A summer of faux painting and murals on Long Island

whew!! what a glorious summer we have enjoyed on Long Island this year! While mixing in beach days and summer concerts, we have been busy at the studio working on many great projects this past summer, that included a Baby superhero mural, fantastic handpainted kitchen cabinet renovations, the beginnings of a new faux finish mansion extravaganza and some exciting faux finishes using glitter and mica. Decorative painting is alive and well, going strong and showing up in the form of metallics, stencils, hand painting and murals.

Salon Lecce 2015

A recent trip to Lecce, Italy for the 20th annual Salon of Decorative painters served as an inspiring, educational feast for my eyes. The 4 day convention attracted over 100 artists from 30 countries. The artists displayed beautiful paintings as well as ongoing demonstrations in marble, wood, ornament and gilding for 4 days. Held in the old city of Lecce, there was much to see and do as well as luscious eateries and an abundance of old churches to slip into and say a prayer of thanks that I was actually there! I would like to share with you a link to the website as well as a few of the paintings. Enjoy!

Posh nursery ceiling!!

This lucky little Prince will wake up to a metalic striped ceiling! This trend in nursery decorating that is not so babyish is a trend that is more sophisticated, a trend that the mural or decorative paintwork will have longevity. The design of the nursery is not short torm, clients are thinking about faux painting and murals in terms of something they and their baby can enjoy for a longer period of time. Im doing a lot of nurseries in metallics and geometric designs, faux painted ceilings, and grown up type murals.

Millneck Manor 2015 Designer Showcase

I am excited to unveil my room at the Millneck Manor 2015 Designer Showcase. In conjunction with mansions and millionaires I have finished and bathroom named "Black and Bling" I Faux Painted the walls with a black glitterpaint, then hand painted a panoramic oversized floral design throughout the room. The ceiling has a faux silver glaze with freehand roses. Close the door and surprise! a Glamorous painting of a fashionable woman framed by faux painted onyx. I hung some of my pop art on the walls and a gorgeous cut velvet curtain complete the room. The show runs from May 2 - June 1, 2015 at Millneck mansion.

Marilyn Monroe popart paintings

I am happy to announce my new shop on Etsy I am offering a collection of pop art paintings , these one of a kind art paintings are renderings of celebrities and mainly Marilyn Monroe. I use mixed media and collage aspects in these paintings, some utilizing 3 dimensional aspects like plaster, beads, pearls and glitter.

Faux painted kitchen cabinets

Faux painted and and hand painted kitchen cabinets are still a very strong trend in decorative painting community on Long Island. The demand for painting cabinets is high, due to the many options clients have with a quality faux painter. The options include, updating from woods like oak and walnut to clean and crisp whites, and glazed looks, to bold colors such as red and black. Painted cabinets are durable, washable and can come in virtually every color in a color deck. Things to look for when hiring a faux artist to do your cabinets are actual samples so you can see you finish. Photos of previous clients cabinets as well as referrals.

Faux painted dome ceiling trends

Faux painted dome ceilings on Long Island are a specialty of renowned artist and faux painting artisan Arlene Mcloughlin. Domes of distinctions are many times found in the main entry way of grand foyers in Long Island Gold Coast mansions. These domes when treated witha decorative paint finish are incredibly beautiful statements pieces in a home. Many of the dome ceilings Arlene has done are faux painted with metallics, or plasters, these paint finishes are beautiful and durable. The other alternatives for these domes are murals, we have had the luxury of painting many murals on Long Island and especially in ceilings and domes. Pictured are a few of our favorite dome ceilings on Long Island.

Mixed media popart paintings

I'd like to share with you some mixed media paintings I've been working on. I enjoy painting and creating celebrity pop art, one person I go to over and over again is Marylin Monroe, here are a few that I have done, using some eclectic materials, like pencil shavings, flowers, beads and epoxy. I hope tou enjoy.

Long Island Muralist recognized for excellence by Houzz.com

Long Island Muralist Arlene Mcloughlin is proud to announce for the second year in a row, recognition from Houzz.com for customer satisfaction, and excellence. We have a full portfolio showing our high end work on Houzz.com, we offer color consultations, design suggestions, artistic painting, murals and faux painting. See our full website as well for new projects. Our facebook page is updated twice weekly with projects we are working on.

Plank wood walls

Plank wood, reclaimed wood and drift type woods are a hot commodity right now in wall decor. Recently , I have done several work for several clients utilizing real and faux painted plank wood looks. Depending upon your budget real wood can be installed relatively easily with a few power tools and an experienced crafts person. If your budget is more cost conscious a faux painted look can achieve the look of beahed wood, driftwood, or reclaimed barnwood. I'm including several photos showing numerous color options and styles.

Guggenheim Castle Designer Showcase

Arlene Mcloughlin is proud to announce her participation in a very special Designer Showcase. The Sands Point preserve is hosting its second annual Designer Showcase. In affiliation with Silvana Locciasano at Bella Casa Designs , the pair teamed up to create the ultimate luxurious "man cave" The room entitled "Play Like a King" features faux painted alligator , murals, venetian plaster, fabulous window treatments and details for royalty including leather game chairs, a custom poker table and more. The showcase runs at the Preserve from November 1 till the 30th

Sands Point Preserve Designer showcase

The 2014 Designer showcase at the Sands Point Preserve is located in the Hempstead House also known as the Guggenheim Castle. Our room won out of26 a place in the top 5 from Shawn Elliot Luxury Magazine. I am proud and excited to have joined forces with Silvana Locciasano of Balla Home Designs. Together we created our room appropriately titled "Play like a King" our man cave themed playroom is room 22 in the 26 room show featuring some of the best design firms on Long Island. Our room features an alligator faux painted accent all behind the fireplace, faux painted leather panels, a fantastic plaster finish with gold leaf and a trompe l'oiel marble fireplace surround. The ornamental plaster relieves, on the ceiling original to the castle were nuanced with gold leaf. Some of the artwork in the room as painted by me including the large joker, queen and king paintings. The staging done by Bella Home featurea rich wood poker table, fabulous leather chairs , stunning window treatments and beautiful masculine accents throughout. The showcase runs the entire month of November from 10-4 closed Tuesdays and Thanksgiving.

South Hampton Mural

The Gas Hampton Station on 39 got a big facelift this past summer, going from a dull grey box that had no curb appeal, to a fun fully muraled seascape that reminds every one who passes it that the vacation is about to begin. I spent about a week painting the Montauk lighthouse, cabanas, umbrellas and bathers on the three sides of the building . The customers stopping all day enjoyed the transition and watching it happen! The outdoor mural is weather treated and should last for years to come

New Nursery decorating trends and murals on Long Island

In the past few months I have been getting many calls for nursery murals , these calls are a bit different from the usual sports murals, jungle murals, and princess murals, Ive done in the past. My clients want something different for their baby nurseries, the trend in nurseries now a days is bling! Bling meaning glitter, jewels, foils, and metallics. Almost half of the nursery furniture is grey, platinum, pewter or rich dark woods for cribs and changing tables. Incorporating these elements into wall finishes, and murals is a lot of fun, some of the finished include faux painted argyle, stripes, fun patterns, and stencils. The murals themselves seem to be a bit more sophisticated, and less baby driven. Foils and gold leaf used in the patterns also add a touch of that royal feel for your little princess or prince.The photos included in this blog show a striped nursery with a cloud ceiling mural

, an airplane mural with a suprise 3 d element of a real propeler and finally a magnificent ceiling mural with metallic foils. see my website for more nursery mural ideas at www.arlenemurals.com

Raising hopes and homes on Long Islands south shore and improving the appearance with murals

The after math of hurricane Sandy left an enormous amount of homes devastated as well as unsavable, many homes were left with the great task of raising their homes. After the homes are raised often on cement, or cement pilings people are left with an 8 foot slab or multiple collumns. In recent months I have been commissioned by a great many homeowners looking to beautify these concrete slabs. We just finished a slab 30 feet by 8 feet in Island Park area that faces a canal, we did a simple tropical scene complete with water , sky and palm trees. Exterior grade latex paints were used and the results are a very pretty alternative to an otherwise ugly wall. These murals are affordable and last an average of 10 years with out major touch ups. As always murals add a feel of custom artwork to any space interior or exterior, but in the case of raised homes on Long Islands decimated south shore these murals also offer an expression of hope and strength that these homes are done and finally passed the storm. for more murals see my website at

Livingston , New Jersey Mural project. this mural project was exciting for me because it was in a new development in the prestigious Bel Aire section of New Jersey, the client found me on Houzz.com by viewing my idea books there and seeing my existing projects. we designed the mural to fit in pre existing boxes that were the focal point of the magnificent two story foyer. The client wanted a tropical feel that was muted and not over whelming. I used a soft color palette in soft shades of greens and golds, the walls were softly stippled first to give a nice warm background for the murals.

Chinoiserie mural

This is a recent project I just finished in Glen Head NY. The chinoiserie style mural is all handpainted and comprised of a total of 17 separate vignettes. When I was approached by the designer to create this chinoiserie painting I was asked to take into consideration the clients home which was a traditional center hall colonial with very traditional lines and moldings. The Clint did not want the design so filled in as was the case with many wall papers in this classic chinoiserie style. I designed a macquette with a more open design using flowers and bamboo leaves specific to the clients tastes. Since the walls were separated by breaks and moldings I decided to create each mural as it's own chinoiserie panel as opposed to one continuous panoramic mural. The result in a soft grey \ blue background with cream colored leaves and florals is a dreamy soft oriental inspired show stopper when you enter the home.

Faux Paint trends on Long island

Continuing trends in faux painting and decorative paint treatments on long island this year seem to be still holding strong with a more updated and clean look. I am getting requests for more venetian plaster, more troweled tight Lusterstone and the ever popular metallic paint finishes. My best selling finishes are still the metallic tissue paper finishes, i have less requests for tuscan or mediterenean looks. Metallics applied in simple layered washes, over texture and in pattern forms are trends worth paying attention to. Metals don't have to mean contemporary or modern, these finishes can still radiate that arm home look that people like, these paints from Modern masters, and Faux Effects come in such brilliant colors that the options for a gorgeous back ground or accent wall are limitless. I really like using these paints on ceilings and in murals, the effects are stunning.

Handpainted Kitchen Cabinets

A growing trend in the remodeling business on Long Island is hand painted or refurbished kitchen cabinets.the benefits of painting a pre existing kitchen are huge. the savings of thousands of dollars in comparison to buying new cabinets , as well as the freedom to actually design your own paint job. I have painted numerous kitchens in a distressed, shabby style. More recently I have been getting requests for black, red, grey and metallic cabinets, many clients do thier island a different color which is also very fresh looking. Repainting your cabinets is a relatively painless project as there is very little dust or disruption, the job usually takes about 3 to 5 days and the results are stunning.

Venetian plaster two story foyer with fabulous gold foil tray ceiling faux painting on Long Island

Trend alert! The Italian look in plasters is still a strong look on Long Island in the faux painting world. The look is being accentuated with heavy rough plasters, stenciling and a modern twist of foils, leaf and metallic accents are giving the look a new and modern feel. The foyer pictured here is a two story foyer with a heavy knock down of a terra cotta Venetian plaster , the wonderful millwork is stained dark and really frames the beautiful gold foil tray ceiling as the focal point of the room All painting done by Arlene Mcloughlin Mural studio