DIY wall Mural...

H and I redid the master bathroom at the same time we redid the kitchen, because we are crazy people. We added a bathtub, which we both love. Above the tub is a great old mirror, which used to be in the kitchen. The frame of the mirror matches the new cabinets very nicely. I bought this mirror while shopping with my mom right after we bought the house. This is my decorating go-to, a mirror.

The other wall is blank. Totally blank, which I think suited H just fine. He is such a minimalist. He loves white and empty. To me this space above the tub just looked empty. When we went to Michigan I shot some pictures, which I thought might really be perfect for the space. While the photos might well have filled the space nicely, I could never find the right frames.

Before we continue, I have to tell you about a website that I just adore Fab. Fab features curated shops ranging from furniture to jewelry to clothing. Mostly indie and always with a focus on design. I have actually been shopping with them for awhile and I love everything I have ordered and the customer service is outstanding.

The first time Fab featured wall clings, I passed. I did not love any of the designs and I was a little worried about the application process. The second time, well I fell in love with a botanical motif and I decided it was worth trying.

This item took a bit of time in shipping, which was a good thing. It gave me time to talk myself into giving this a try and when it arrived, I was at a place time wise to go for it.

Inside the box was a tub. Honestly, do you want to know what the hardest part of this project was? I mean the one part that I thought I might never accomplish?

Getting the sheet out of the plastic tube. No kidding, I had to work and work at getting the rolled sheet out of the tube, it was in that protective sleeve but good.

The clings are on a single sheet of this special blue backing, covered in a clear cover sheet. They are manufactured in Canada, Montreal to be exact by a firm called ADzif. The designer is Lotta Jansdotter. I love Lotta's sensibility. Very modern and fresh and natural.

The second hardest part and the scariest part was cutting out the clings. You have to cut out every leaf and the two trunks. Cutting is the skill I am lacking in. I am not a good cutter. I had to give myself a pep talk for about a half hour and admit my fear twice on twitter and once on Facebook, before I actually had the gumption to slice into these babies. (I had washed the wall the previous day. The directions do not say this is a necessary step, but I think it is prudent.)

Once I had the leaves cut and sorted by size and the trunks cut, I did as directed and taped the trunks to the wall. Careful to measure and make sure my design would be centered over the tub. (This was easier than one would suspect, because I used the wall tiles as a guide.)

 

I should mention that I found my rotary cutting mat a very helpful tool for this process. It gave me a flat and solid surface to work from. I marked on the wall carefully where my trunks were to go and then took them down from the wall.

Now began the easy but tedious part.

Using a used up gift card, I had to place each decal face down on the rotary cutting mat and apply firm and equal pressure to the blue surface, following the grid printed on the reverse of the blue backing paper, to transfer the decal from the blue paper to the clear over cover. The directions were very clear and concise and this process went very smooth.

I have to say this is an instance where I think one can see the quality of the materials and the care in the manufacturing process. This product performs as it should. 

And there began the slow process. Once you have the decal transferred you remove the blue backing carefully, position the decal on the wall, and then repeat, only this time you are using the used up gift card to carefully transfer the decal from the clear cover to the wall, very careful to smooth out any air bubbles. Once set, you carefully pull the clear coversheet off the wall, leaving behind the white decal.

Each leaf is placed separately. I basically  followed the leaf pattern from the enclosed picture and then decided to free hand the falling leaves.

Instead of a pile of leaves, I wanted to create the illusion of the leaves falling into the tub.

From start to finish, with one short tea break, this took me about two hours. It is tedious. Placing each leaf with care and the stops to transfer the leaf from the blue backing to the clear coversheet and then to the wall.

I think it was worth it. The white design looks great with our white subway tile and the mural really does fit the space well. The design is also minimalist and white.

For the investment of about $35 and 2 hours of my time, I have a custom looking mural. Not a bad investment all around.

It was so worth it. I love the results and it fits the space just perfectly.