Blog - Page 7 of 14 - Leichsenring Studios

This one is for the birds!

by Sharon Leichsenring· March 01, 2018· in Birds, Murals·

A few years back, I joked with my husband that he was officially old. Watching his colony of bluebirds thrive had risen on his priority list. Getting up early to feed them steroid munching sized worms. Only old people had time for the birds. I humbly stand corrected. I’ve been old, by that standard, for a really long time. Recently, I came across a picture of a heron I’d painted in a mural years ago. I’d misfiled it, and I was so excited finding it, I posted it immediately on Instagram, not even noticing I’d done so, cutting off most of his head. Here he is, in all his glory. I started thinking that I have painted quite a few birds over the years, because I think they are glorious subjects to include in a mural. So without further ado, here are some of my absolute favorites, and a few visits going back to one of my very first murals. This was a blue glazed ceiling, simulating sky. More mood than anything else, the birds were my favorite part. Another early mural is painted on the stockroom door at TileAmerica in New Haven. This was my early entry into trompe […]
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Up, up and away

by Sharon Leichsenring· January 03, 2018· in Childrens, Clouds, Murals·

From the start, my client made it clear that his son, in whose room I’d be painting, was indeed my client. The young man had some very clear directives of what he wanted and my job was to listen and see if I could come up with a design that would include all of them. Here’s the room as we first contemplated where the mural would go. Moving the bed to the adjacent wall freed up the best wall for the mural. It allowed an unencumbered view to the large window and the mural would be completely viewable. My target wall was big. Subtract for moldings, the painted area was 8′ by 17′. The first requirement was a bright blue sky with dramatic clouds and a meadow, Ok, then add add some hot air balloons, vapor trails (I have to admit, that’s where being a twelve year old boy comes into play; I would never have thought of that) and maybe some flowers. Hmmm….remember, I said, that’s a lot of square feet here and meadows, though pretty, are not enough to sustain it. That’s where the hot air balloons became front stage. They gave focus and color, lots of color […]
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A Little Piece of Heaven

by Sharon Leichsenring· December 05, 2017· in Birds, Ceiling, Clouds, Historic, Lettering, Murals, Signs, Trompe L'oeil, Video·

So sometimes a project starts out as a wonderful surprise. When I pulled into the driveway of this home for the first time, I just knew this was going to be something special. Looking at this beautifully restored country church in Fairfield county, Connecticut, I had no idea of what to expect. Originally built in 1873, the church was sold and converted into a private residence when the parish outgrew its tiny size in the 1950s. An attic floor was built converting it into a five room home. My client purchased it in 1990. By that time, the deed restrictions dictating that “it not look like a church” had passed and she was able to renovate the exterior back to its original beauty in 1992. The interior renovations started earlier this year and are nearly complete. When the closet was demolished and the false ceiling removed, an absolutely lovely foyer space emerged. Salvaged wainscoting was used where needed. I experienced the special gift when I “get” a new client and they in turn “get me”. It’s a special combination of crazy and inspiration, with a dash of whimsy and when it’s there, we get magic. Here is the vision I […]
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The Glow of Gold

by Sharon Leichsenring· October 31, 2017· in Artisan Finish, Bathrooms/Powder Room, Birds, Gold Leaf/Silver Leaf·

I’ve got to admit, this powder room is going to be a tough act to top! Simply put, I loved every part of it, from the planning to the last bird. Oh, the birds! But I’m rushing ahead of myself. My client, to whom I’m truly grateful for this painting experience, made the initial choice for the room. She had an inspiration picture that she had filed away several years ago, knowing this was her vision for this powder room. It showed a gold leafed wall with traditional chinoiserie painted on top of it. First, I made two gold leaf samples for her. One was very formal, and as close to perfect as the human hand can make it. The second, done on a brick red bole, the rich color that is behind the gold leaf and adds to his great depth of color, had some irregularities, leaving some of the seams about a sixteenth of an inch exposed here and there. Actually harder to do creating the irregularities, but well worth the effort. It gave a gentle sense of aging to the gold. Gold leaf is actually incredibly thin pieces of gold that are attached to a tacky sized […]
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Trending Tissue Finishes

by Sharon Leichsenring· October 04, 2017· in Artisan Finish, Bathrooms/Powder Room, Headboards·

As much as painting murals is my favorite work, I have to admit that that every so often, I have an opportunity to create one of my favorite finishes, glazed tissue with raised stencils. And I love it! Hmmmm….you’re wondering. What exactly is that? It’s a dimensional, textured finish. It’s created by first troweling on a stencil in plaster, creating a raised, or embossed, image. Then the surface is covered with tissue paper. The creases and crevices found in the rolled tissue over the stencil is caught by the glaze that is applied as the final layer. Take a walk with me through a recent job. The biggest challenge was narrowing down several possibilities. All of them looked so pretty in the light coming through the shutter, but the test would be which would look best without the benefit of the added light. I’ll be showing you closeups of the winner’s choice in a moment, but this finish was a close contender. This is a plaster finish in the look of linen. I then troweled my favorite fern leaf stencil for an additional layer of depth. This was painted in a muted metallic gold paint and then washed with an […]
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The Paint Whisperer

by Sharon Leichsenring· September 05, 2017· in Artwork, Horses, Murals·

This project needs so many words to describe it. It was an honor being able to share in the magic of my client’s horses. It was far more difficult painting horse portraits than people because I had to try to understand a whole different way to visualize personalities. It was also a pleasure working on this huge canvas which measures 6′ by 9′ in my own studio. My husband would come in with a cup of coffee and say “the horse whisperer at work”. But horse whisperer I am not, but hopefully, a paint whisperer, yes I am. My client, the extraordinary Wendy J, offered me entrance to a very spiritual and grounding place with this commission. There are a total of seven horses in the composition, the smallest shown being a family favorite who has truly, no pun intended, crossed to greener pastures. It was so much more than just drawing them and getting their coloring down right. It was understanding their personalities and how they feel about each other that brought this to an entirely different level. Here is the original pencil drawing. From left to right, meet Moon and Esse . Moon is only a […]
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When you hit a brick wall

by Sharon Leichsenring· August 02, 2017· in Brick Treatments, Commercial Space, Lettering, Murals·

When I hit a brick wall, it’s with a smile on my face and paint brushes in hand. Painting on brick brings a whole set of challenges to the table. The surface is uncompromising and changing at every turn. I deal with it by remembering the mission: to end up with result I would have on a smooth surface. Some recent projects have been interior ones. Truthfully, each of these has been fun and an opportunity to paint something a little out of the box. A huge shout out to Bruno DiFabio , along with Steve Cioffi and Germano Minin, at whose restuarants these brick beauties reside. The most difficult part of painting these walls, ironically, is not the painting. It’s the step following, distressing armed with a sander and a squirt bottle of dirty glaze to make the work appear as if it’s been there for decades. You will find the Bertolli girl at Bronx House in Stamford. The lady on a boar just makes me want to grin. She presides on the focal brick wall at Ridgefield’s Village Tavern. I can still hear Sandra DiFabio as I got ready to hit the just completed painting with a sander. […]
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If “Happiness is a Warm Puppy”

by Sharon Leichsenring· July 07, 2017· in Artisan Finish, Dogs, Headboards, Trees·

If Charles M.Schulz is correct that “happiness is a warm puppy”, then these two pet projects are guaranteed to bring a smile to your face. First, let me bring you to Wag Central in Stratford, CT, where owner Angela Pantalone has a created a dog care facility like no other that I have ever seen. My part here was small, but I enjoyed being a part of its creation. I was brought to the project by the inimitable Patrick Briel of Tripka Design, (www.tripkadesign.com )whose direction was creating a look somewhere between a cross of the Flintstones and the Jetsons, with equal measures of simplicity and Zen. Patrick designed the two existing structural support columns to become white birch trees. Here’s a look at how they started after being wrapped in sonic tubes and painted white. I then painted the stylized birch design. The smaller branches made of PVC pipe were prepped and painted into my shop. Here’s how the trees stand now, complete with a few winsome cardinal mobiles. You will be amazed at how fantastic this place is. Check it out at www.wagcentralct.com. Plan a visit. You will not be disappointed. The second project was creating a one-of-a-kind […]
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I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now

by Sharon Leichsenring· June 01, 2017· in Ceiling, Clouds, Dome·

Clouds have always fascinated me. I have literally thousands of pictures I’ve taken, or friends have sent me, of simply beautiful clouds. And I’ve painted them. Each cloudscape calls for different palettes and approaches. I am grateful to have been brought to this project by JoAnn Clapp of the Stone House Studio in Woodbury (www.JClappDesigns.com). JoAnn and I both paint custom headboards for the I.M. Smitten gallery in Trumbull. I have painted larger sized ceilings and domes than this one, but these had other design components: architectural details such as trellises, vines and birds. This was the largest that I had approached that was pure and simply JUST Clouds. No distractions. So, I had to plan a cloudscape that met the client’s wishes for calm and peaceful clouds, with no hint of storminess, and yet, I knew it had to have oomph! The dome measures 30 feet in diameter with a rise of 8 ½’. The bottom of the dome is about 18′ above the platform that covers the pool which it is over. Here’s a picture of the dome structure just after installation. It would still need to be smoothed, primed and basecoated before work could begin. I prepared […]
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Patience and Precision

by Sharon Leichsenring· May 03, 2017· in Commercial Space, Lettering, Video·

I recently had the pleasure of painting a project for Jeff Cavaliere, president of AthleanX Training. The three million people that follow Jeff on Youtube (a truly remarkable and impressive feat) will recognize the gym that Jeff calls the Xbox as the background for his videos. Learn more about Jeff at https://www.athleanx.com. Jeff was looking to brand the gym with his slogan “Train like an Athlete”, his logo and yards of crisp red and white border. Painting by hand was the best solution. Tape was leaving flash or shiny marks on the solid black walls so this was a situation that called for hand detailing. My three decades of sign painting experience provided the old school precision needed for this project. Here are a few shots of the work, followed by a video with Jeff walking you through it. I’d like to give you another link to learn a little more about Jeff. It’s a two and a half minute video entitled “Dare to Dream” that he created as a thank you to his followers, marking the occasion his reaching the three million viewers mark. The guy is in the truest sense of the word, awesome. His […]
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