Guest Bedroom Living Room

Wallpaper Is Out, Hand-Painted Mural Is In

Last Updated on July 17, 2020 by Kristi Linauer

It’s July 1st, y’all! After feeling so uninspired and unmotivated for so long, I woke up this morning feeling so excited about jumping into some projects and get stuff done.

Maybe it’s because my new living room light arrived on Monday. Or maybe it’s because one of my purple chairs will be here today. Or maybe it’s because I finally feel like I have direction for the guest bedroom that won’t break the bank. But I primed the room yesterday, and I’m ready to head to Home Depot today and pick up some paint so that I can get started.

As you’ll remember, I had originally planned on wallpapering one wall of the guest bedroom. I had selected several wallpapers and narrowed it down to a pretty multi-colored feather print. But that was back when I was working on my mom’s kitchen (which you can see here if you missed it) and I never did order the wallpaper.

So when I revisited the wallpaper idea again last week, I didn’t love the one I had selected. The close-up view is beautiful. But the view from a distance reveals an obvious diagonal grid pattern with those dark blue feathers really standing out.

I do think it’s beautiful, but it was a matter of deciding what was more important to me to spend my money on. Covering one wall of the bedroom with wallpaper would have cost over $500. I wouldn’t hesitate to spend that much on a wallpaper that I absolutely loved for a master bedroom, but for a wallpaper that I was only okay with for a guest bedroom, I just couldn’t make that happen.

So I decided instead to put that money towards chairs and a light for the living room, and to do a hand-painted design on the guest bedroom wall. And again, since this is a guest bedroom, I decided to take the crazy colors and patterns down a notch, and do a calm, serene design instead.

I’m not really sure exactly what I’ll end up with, but these are the ideas I’ll be using as inspiration…

Mountain Landscape mural from Urban Outfitters

You can see the similarities, obviously. There are things about each one that I do like, and things that I don’t like. So I’m hoping to take the things I do like from each one, and put them together into one mural for the guest bedroom. We’ll see how it goes. 😀 I’m excited about the challenge, and I’m especially excited about the fact that it’ll cost a fraction of what wallpaper would cost.

I’m sure it’ll take a few days to get it finished, but hopefully I’ll have some progress to show you in the next day or two. Of course, I may take even longer because I’ll have to take time out this afternoon to stare at my beautiful new purple chair that will be arriving sometime after 1:00pm. 😀

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17 Comments

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  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Margaret Martens
    July 1, 2020 at 10:30 am

    Will it be a sort of ombre look? That would be really pretty.

    • Reply To This Comment ↓
      Molly Lee
      July 2, 2020 at 10:10 pm

      Love this idea but wouldn’t it be cool to make your mural landscape reflective of the Texas landscape or place that you enjoy visiting. Just an idea to throw in the mix

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Deb
    July 1, 2020 at 10:32 am

    Love the ombre mountain mural. I little abstract, would be easy to do.

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Krikit
    July 1, 2020 at 10:49 am

    Luv the Ombré one, too!
    I am sure you’ll have fun doing this project!

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    AlisonG
    July 1, 2020 at 10:57 am

    Kristi, I am glad for you that you woke up re-motivated. Good for you. PERFECT creative project for you right now too. Looking forward to following along. Stay well and keep your chin up!

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Michelle B
    July 1, 2020 at 11:13 am

    Art is well-known as a good therapeutic, and those are lovely calming scenes. Our tastes typically diverge as much as one possibly can 😉 but I like these!! Find one of those soothing nature+piano youtube tracks and tune out this nutball world.. The muse is upon thee!!

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Mercedes McFerrin
    July 1, 2020 at 11:51 am

    ooh yeah! Love the ombre look myself…I know it will be wonderful no matter what you choose.

    BTW I can not thank you enough for using color in your decor. I look and look for ideas for my own home and lately all I can find is tons of white and grey walls. Beautiful but not my cup of tea. I always return to your blog for encouragement in the use of color.

    I am getting ready to stencil my kitchen also due to your blog.

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    CHRISTINE
    July 1, 2020 at 11:55 am

    I think is a great idea to paint instead of wallpaper. I just love the ombre mountain and will work well with the bed against it. It has given me a idea for my guest bedroom. Enjoy your purple chair, I thought you ordered 2. Is one on backorder ? Have a fun and safe day.

    • Reply To This Comment ↓
      Kristi
      July 1, 2020 at 12:34 pm

      I ordered two, but I had to order them from two different places. The other one won’t be here for another two weeks or so. :-/

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Judy Johnson
    July 1, 2020 at 1:45 pm

    Bring on your inner Bob Ross! It will look great!

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Carry
    July 1, 2020 at 5:46 pm

    Just another source for your idea:

    https://inspiredbycharm.com/before-and-after-senior-center-makeover/

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Courtney
    July 1, 2020 at 6:43 pm

    I am literally painting one of these now for my 8-year old son’s bedroom 🙂 I can email you a photo if you’d like.

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Alison
    July 1, 2020 at 9:00 pm

    I just did a mural in my guest room and love it! I’m sure yours will be fantastic!

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CBT_8j2Baaz/?igshid=13wjxk1odbvwr

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Claire
    July 2, 2020 at 11:32 am

    Pretty!! Blake Hill House did something similar, I believe for a one room challenge maybe last year? Just another inspiration/ how to if you need it!

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Christina
    July 2, 2020 at 1:49 pm

    I had the same idea but got busy with work so I ordered a 20 dollar wall tapestry from Amazon. I love it and it’s changeable and adds a softness to the room… I still want to paint a mural someday but waiting for the creative juices to be ready

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Rose
    July 3, 2020 at 1:48 am

    Can’t wait to see what you decide to do for the mural! Love your projects!

  • Reply To This Comment ↓
    Kelsey
    July 6, 2020 at 10:40 am

    If you like the splash of color, and the ombre, but want something more abstract, what about a watercolor wall? Forgive my terrible lighting! I couldn’t find wallpaper that I loved, and I couldn’t find anything on the internet that looked like what was in my head haha so I just started painting! It was surprisingly fun, and felt like a very “Kristi” thing to do as I was doing it 🙂 https://imgur.com/a/rM01dGP