Busy Month Ahead!

April is going to be a great month, I just know it!  First of all, the weather is definitely going to improve soon.  It just has to, doesn’t it?  My mom always told me the best thing about being at the bottom is that you have nowhere to go but up!  That’s definitely the case with the weather right now.  Now that I’m thinking about it, I do wonder why my mom had to tell me that so often?  Hmmmm….

Anywho…on to the other great things that are coming in April….

This week and next, I will be painting the new 25^th anniversary logo on the wall at Ledo’s Pizza  in Crofton.  This is a really fun job for me because I painted the 20^th anniversary logo for them 5 years ago!  Although this is not my first repeat client, it does hold a special place in my heart because it was one of my first jobs when my family moved from New Jersey to Maryland.  I had to re-launch my business then, and working there again this week reminds me of that time.  I am looking forward to painting the 30^th logo and having my children paint the 35^th!

I am also registered for a  ”Website Kickstart” course offered by Tara Gentile which begins on the 11^th.   I have been following her posts for a while and she is an amazing consulting and coaching resource for creative people.  She is going to show me how to integrate my blog with my website and blow the roof off the whole thing!  Look for big changes coming with my site.  I guarantee it will look better, function better and be easier for you to use and “follow me” which is what I know you all want to do.

On the 14^th I will be attending the opening reception for the Anne Arundel County Arts Council 2^nd Annual BWI Exhibit “Natural Wonders”.  My painting, Cypress Creek, will be featured in this exhibit which is on display from now through July.  This is a big thrill for me as it is my first Art Show since my college days.  As some of you know, I have been pretty focused on my murals for the last few years, and only recently started painting on canvas.  This is the first show I have applied for in ages and I’m so excited that my work has been accepted. If you're at the airport, check out the artwork between concourse C&D in Departures. 

To top it all off, we have a big finish planned for the month of April – a trip to Disney!  We took the kids, currently ages 4 & 7, about 18 months ago and we can hardly wait to go back.  It is going to be a blast.  So even if the weather doesn’t improve here in Maryland by then, I’m sure it will be great in Florida!  Of course we're flying out of BWI, so this will give me another chance to visit my painting.

I plan to return fully rejuvenated and ready for May when I put the finishing touches on my new site and gear up for one hot summer!

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DIY - Hand Painted Lettering on your Walls

Today I'm going to switch things up a little bit and give you guys a fun weekend project to think about it.  As a muralist, I am occasionally asked to add words to an image or sometimes there is no image, a client just wants a favorite phrase painted on the wall.  This is one of the more technical yet less creative parts of my job.  Still, I am happy to do it!  But if wanted to, you could do it yourself and experience that smug satisfaction that comes with a job well done and a few dollars saved.  So I'm going to offer up the "how-to" and see if anyone's inclined to try it:

 1. Type the phrase in a word processing program so you can choose a font that you like.  Play around with several fonts and choose the one that is best for your message - playful, traditional, romantic - you get the idea. 

2. Once you have it looking the way you want, print it out on a transparency sheet.  You can buy the sheets at any office supply store.  Make sure that you get the right kind for your printer (it says "inkjet" or "laser" on the box) or the ink won't stick to the sheet.  Big waste of time and money.  Been there, done that.

 3. Decide where you want your phrase.  Use a level to get a straight line and use blue or green painters tape to mark the line on the wall.  I do not recommend using pencil to mark your line unless you want to clean up all the pencil marks at the end.  

4. Use an overhead projector to project the words on to the wall.  You can rent one for less than $100 for the weekend.  You might even be able to buy one for that price.  If you're really lucky, you can get it from a local school, library or the office where you or your new BFF neighbor works!  Check around. 

You'll probably need to put the projector on a table or something so that it's level with the area of the wall you're projecting on.  If you try to project from the floor up, your text will be distorted.  Project it so that the text sits right on the tape line you've made.

If you're not into the whole straight line business or you don't have a clue how to use a level, try something like this:

Once you have your lettering projected where you want it, tape the transparency to the projector and DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING.  It's pretty important not to move, shake or bump the projector for the duration of the project.  I think it goes without saying that this "DO NOT TOUCH" thing is best accomplished when there are no young children around.  But I said it anyway.  So don't say I didn't warn you.

Now that you have the image projected on your wall, you can paint it!  Just go right over it with a solid color.  If you're feeling fancy, add a highlight or shadow to each letter.

You can do this! It's only four little steps!  It's just painting over the projected letters! 

If you decide to give it a try, post a pic of your results on my facebook page.  I'd love to see it!