Painting a mountain bedroom mural in Park Slope, Brooklyn

Last year, I had the pleasure to paint a big, bold, floral mural for a little girl’s room in Park Slope. The mum got back in touch- she had an idea: a mountain at sunrise, to create a relaxing, natural space within their bedroom. She was also an avid reader and I liked the idea of creating a scene straight from the pages of a book.

There were a few design challenges; the design needed to be fit around the bed, and the room didn’t receive a lot of natural light so it was important to keep it light instead of moody and dark. I initially thought I’d simply find a suitable photograph and paint from it; however when I tried to find one which would be a good fit for the space I was stumped- they just didn’t make the most out of the room. I lot of my job is to create a design that really showcases a space; so I began to play around with collaging landscapes to create something tailored. This way I could also create the sense of a comforting hug around the bed, and ensure any important elements were visible.

Below you can see some of my initial experimentation:

An early experiment of a landscape collage

Process image of a nature landscape collage from the creation of the design

I kept working on the design, until I was happy with how everything was working. She asked for no changes; so I booked in the painting days!

The mock up of the design in the space, crafted to fit the room and their furnishings.

The Process- painting a nature-inspired bedroom mural in a private home in Park Slope

As a local Brooklyn artist, I was able to walk to the client’s home, and began prepping the space; protecting the bed, furnishings and floor as well as taping the surrounding walls to give a clean line.

Getting the design on the wall

I used my new Meta VR to get the design on the wall, a recent investment for me. While having a back up of a tape grid is sensible, this has been a much quicker way to accurately get a design on the wall. It took me around an hour to sketch up the background design, whereas with my old method it would take me half a day at the least.

Layering up

I see a lot of muralists working like printers; painting every part to completion and moving onto the next part. While this makes a lot of sense on a large wall using equipment to access parts of the wall, for something smaller I much prefer to layering up and balancing out the design. My favourite part about mural painting is the flow state I can spend hours in, and I do my best to not get slowed down and do what feels natural and relaxing, something I hope comes through in the final design.

The first layer!

The base is mainly down and need to be refined

Running a mural painting workshop with my client and her daughter

Art has had an incredibly positive impact in my life, and when I have the opportunity I love to try to share that with others. Often if I’m working in a family home I’ll have the children help me with something small; for example dotting the centre of flowers. My client’s daughter helped on her own floral bedroom mural, and she was very proud and told all her friends how she’d painted the butterfly on the wall.

For this mountain design, she helped me create textures in the background, I could see her mum and followed my gut- would she also like to help to paint? She jumped at the opportunity and the three of use spent some time working together having fun. For me this adds a really wholesome angle and deeper joy to the artwork.

The final reveal

This was a relaxing project with a really lovely client. Around day two of five the client was already pleased with the design and told me it could be finished for her. I knew we could take it a lot further but it’s great when things come together so easily.

The biggest impact was adding the bed back into the space. While I painted behind the bed, the design was always created to compliment a bed in the middle, and the composition didn’t make as much sense without it.

My client gave me this fabulous review:

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

“We hired Martha to paint a mural for our daughter’s bedroom, and she did such an exceptional job that we hired her to do another mural for our master bedroom.

Martha was able to listen to our ideas and then bring the vision to life in a way that exceeded our expectations. The attention to detail, creativity, and care put into both pieces really show. It’s clear Martha has a gift for translating personal vision into beautiful, meaningful artwork. We would absolutely recommend Martha to anyone looking for custom murals!” - Juno, Park Slope

Interested in a Custom Mural for Your Home?

Whether you're dreaming of a calming landscape for a bedroom, a statement piece for a living room, or a nature-inspired mural for a children's space, I'd love to hear about your project.

Every mural is designed specifically for the space and the people who live in it. My process begins with a conversation about your ideas, followed by bespoke design mockups that allow you to see how the artwork will look in your home before painting begins.

I create custom murals throughout New York City, including Brooklyn and Manhattan, working closely with homeowners, families, and interior designers to create artwork that feels personal, timeless, and deeply connected to the space.

If you're considering a mural for your home, get in touch to discuss your project and receive a custom quote.