Think of your wall as a giant page in a coloring book and you get to add the color. With a mural wall kit, you can create a whimsical, one-of-a-kind kid’s room decor using a paint-by-number pattern and transfer paper. This is an alternative to hanging wallpaper that gives a room a distinct personality and makes it special. We found a nice selection of mural designs at www.elephantsonthewall.com, with everything including nursery rhymes, jungle scenes, circus trains, cowboy towns and underwater scenes.
You may want to begin by painting all the walls in the room so they’re clean and dirt- and dust-free before painting the mural design. Any painting project begins with moving furniture away from the wall and protecting the floor with a drop cloth. To begin the mural, lay out the paper pattern design and transfer paper on the wall and tape it in place using blue painter’s tape. Then trace the design onto the wall with a ballpoint pen. The fun starts when you have a brush in hand to paint inside the shapes and designs. Depending on the size of the mural, you may be able to complete it in a weekend. Some do-it-yourselfers like to begin painting in one color at a time, others like to paint one section at a time.
A decorative painter will charge $816, using a mural kit to paint a mural wall design that measures approximately 6 feet tall by 8 feet wide. That includes labor and material. You can buy the mural kit for $130, plus the cost of acrylic paints and brushes, which will run about $40. You’ll find a color guide in the kit for the acrylic paint or choose your own colors. Either way, you’ll find the paint sold at craft stores.
To find more DIY project costs and to post comments and questions, visit www.diyornot.com and m.diyornot.com on smartphones.
Pro Cost—DIY Cost—Pro time—DIY Time—DIY Savings—Percent Saved
$816—$170—10.4—17.0—$646—79 percent
