Trompe L'oeil Archives - Page 2 of 3

A Sign of The Times

by Sharon Leichsenring· March 01, 2019· in Signs, Trompe L'oeil·

This project started with a call from the talented Matthew Willinger of Doyle Herman Design Associates of Greenwich. A senior landscape designer with the firm, Matthew had need of my services for a project he has been involved with for a decade. He didn’t know, but he had me at “there’s a trompe l’oeil chicken involved”. How could I not say yes? The property had a sign that had seen its better days years ago. I couldn’t estimate how many years old it might have been, but what was clear that it was well beyond the point or repair. This allowed for an opportunity to fine tune the design and come up with a panel that would echo the elegant streamlined architecture of the home. A few alterations to copy let me add the address to make it easier for guests to find and I was on my way. The new sign was made of medium density overlay exterior wood. All the molding and raw edges were sealed with West system two part epoxy. The molding, simple squared steps mimics the residence. The background color for the sign and the post also matches the home. And then it was time […]
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Two sides of texture

by Sharon Leichsenring· December 01, 2018· in Artisan Finish, Budget Conscious, Commercial Space, Furniture, Textured Finishes, Trompe L'oeil·

Wall finishes have come such a long way since DIY sponge kits. Let’s take a look at two approaches to using texture. Recently, Bella’s Café in New Haven underwent major renovations when the original café was expanded by taking over the newly available space next door. Dramatic warm colors were chosen for the multi-layered plaster finish on the walls. The color started with depth , a mesmerizing merlot, followed by a rich carmine, and finished with a cinnamon hue. The plaster is infused with mica powder. The layers alternate from smooth troweling to lacelike texture. Here’s the wall to check out. The banquettes were covered in a deep oxblood color, which prompted the trim color I chose. The excitement came when I spotted these shutters on a fun hunting trip with Rose, the owner. I was tasked with matching the worn colors on new wood needed to hang the shutters. I took a cue from the shutter colors and instead of flat black on the ceiling, it’s a dark gray with a definite deep blue green cast. Take a breather from these highly charged color choices, and see the ship lapped wall opposite the banquettes has a textured salt […]
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A Little Goes A Long Way!

by Sharon Leichsenring· November 01, 2018· in Artisan Finish, Artwork, Brick Treatments, Budget Conscious, Ceiling, Childrens, Fireplace, Headboards, Scrollwork, Trompe L'oeil·

One of the biggest misconceptions that people make about decorative painting is that it’s only something for mansions. That artists like myself are only interested in big, lengthy (read expensive) projects in high end properties. I’d like to use this newsletter to illustrate just how wrong that notion is. Many of these are smaller scaled design solutions that took only a day or two to complete. This first example is a simple, glazed finish for this kitchen in Darien, Connecticut. I didn’t want to compete with the gorgeous jaw-dropping countertops, so the glaze served as a perfect transition from the intricate patterning found in the stone. The grey has just a hint of plum that matches the same overtone in the cabinetry. Next, the windows flanking the fireplace in scenic Seymour, CT framed a view too pretty to block with window treatments. Instead, I used the lovely flowered branches and bird motifs found in the sofa fabric to marry the walls to the rest of the room. And when it comes to window treatments, simple panels soar to the next level with the addition of a painted border. Both of these designs were driven from the fabric patterns. The focal […]
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My head’s up in the clouds!

by Sharon Leichsenring· September 30, 2018· in Ceiling, Clouds, Trompe L'oeil, Video·

I was hooked the first minute I walked into the foyer of the beautifully renovated home in Trumbull, CT in Fairfield County, Connecticut. I mean I could taste how much fun this was going to be to paint. Here’s what met my eyes. My client was quick to assure me of my safety and was indeed a man of his word. A temporary platform (or as we in the trade are fond of calling it, a dance floor) was going to make this project as easy as painting for days with your arms over your head can be. After our initial discussion of what the clouds would look like, we started moving from the more stylized clouds of the Gilded Age to keeping the coloring more realistic to New England cloudscapes. Well worth the little side trip I needed to make to Newport to see Rosecliff in person again, and I picked up an inspiration there. I painted scaled canvases, a half a dozen, so that we could get the configuration and coloring exactly where it needed to be. Here is the final canvas that was my map. My client is keeping that as part of the foyer’s storyboard, […]
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Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

by Sharon Leichsenring· June 01, 2018· in Floral, Murals, Trompe L'oeil, Video·

If it’s true that good fences make good neighbors, then this recent project will be making the whole neighborhood happy. I was contacted by Jan who began as a student and client years ago and has become a dear friend. I met Jan over a decade ago at the school of Anything but Plain Decorative Finishes in Houston where I taught workshops in mural painting, trompe l’oeil and perspective drawing amongst many other classes. Jan took a class and at the end took me up on the request I make of students: stay in touch, send me pictures. She did exactly that and then one day asked me to come to her newly built home in Grapeland, Texas to paint a mural. It would be the first of many murals I would come to paint there. A treat every single time as I fell under the charms of the peacefulness of East Texas. Here’s a picture of Jan and me at the Blue Bell Creameries, home of arguably the best ice cream in the country. This project brought many aspects of my Texas connections together. Amongst my visitors while working was Janie Ellis, founder of Anything But Plain, […]
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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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Dreaming About Dragonflies

by Sharon Leichsenring· March 03, 2017· in Dining Room, Murals, Scrollwork, Trompe L'oeil·

This month’s project was literally a dream commission. My client, the fabulous Ms.M, was a person I’d done work for many years ago. A move to a new home precipitated a call to come fix these blah walls and make it look as beautiful as my old home. So I ask, so what do you see happening here, pointing to this huge blank wall measuring 14 feet in width, and ten feet high. “Oh,” says she , “I’m leaving that up to you. You know what I like.” And yes I did know. A long perusal of fabrics in window treatments, throws and furniture kept turning up a recurring element of scrolls. Throughout the home, I also spied dragonflies. Could it be? Truly two of my favorites themes combined? I drew my proposal on top of a photo of the wall, the dining room table marking the visual bottom of the design. She loved it! I love it! We are calling this work? I am in love. The idea to use scrollwork as a frame surrounding a field of blue had been floating in my wish list for a long time and here I was, with the entire room dictating […]
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Equal Parts Quirky and Classic

by Sharon Leichsenring· July 06, 2016· in Clouds, Furniture, Lettering, Trompe L'oeil·

A request for whimsical lettering? Music to my ears. I met with the fabulous Joanna Farber, no stranger to the world of design. Farber, the former owner of Westport’s iconic Parc Monceau was looking for some lettered detailing. She had chosen a font named Gluttony Man for this location. I was also asked created a rebus that was an homage to her late husband’s career. At Ms. Farber’s home, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Michael Pagett, the owner of Chetwode. Michael has recently opened his new showroom at 318 Strawberry Hill Avenue in Norwalk. Learn more about his exquisite cabinetry at www.chetwodecabinetry.com. Here is a fun trompe l’oeil window I created in the showroom. Have I mentioned that my work is never boring? A call from Virginia Blaker of Room Rescue (www.roomrescue.com) resulted in an unusual request. Virginia asked me to add my painting skills to a “chair-ity” auction for the Center of Family Justice in Bridgeport, CT. Virginia had a sturdy little high chair that had been originally painted by her grandmother in the early 1950s. It was time to give it a new face. Virginia sanded the chair, primed it for me and together we brainstormed […]
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Making a Statement

by Sharon Leichsenring· April 06, 2016· in Artisan Finish, Mica, Trompe L'oeil·

I’m not sure when the trend began, but you’ve probably come across that one wall in a room painted a different color. The design term is “accent walls” or “focal walls.” Bold and dramatic and for sure, four walls of it would be too much! I recently heard them referred to as “statement walls”. As I think about it, a lot more goes into designing the perfect statement than just picking a color. I recently had the pleasure of working with the talented Lisa Fero of Trumbull. Check out her work at www.lisaferointeriors.com. Lisa has a great sense of color and her rooms look fresh yet layered with sophistication. My part in this room was to create a textured wall finish that would indeed make a statement. Here’s a picture of the sample Lisa chose. It has several layers of mica infused plaster as well as a smoky beige metallic paint. Here is the carpet, fabric and parts of the room that inspired this artisan finish. And without further ado, here’s the finished wall that definitely makes a statement. Another way to make a statement in a room has nothing to do with singling out one wall and […]
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The Fifth Wall… Forget Me Not

by Sharon Leichsenring· May 03, 2015· in Ceiling, Clouds, Dome, Mica, Trees, Trompe L'oeil·

Thank you so much to each and every one of you that send me your choice of your favorite powder room. I loved the feedback. It was so much fun compiling that last newsletter, I thought, let’s do it again. So here we go. Ceilings are often referred to as the “fifth wall”. And way too often, they are simply ignored. There are so many solutions that there is no excuse not to consider that ceiling the next time you are looking up at the expanse of flat ceiling white paint. If you’ve got crown molding already (or are considering it), make it pop with anything but white. Here’s my answer to adding color and a few simple stripes for a simple solution. Below is an area of mica infused plaster that reflects the chandelier’s light. A border and shadow give dimension. A ceiling treatment does not have to utilize the entire ceiling. Here are two trompe l’oeil medallions that add focus but are modest in dimension. I see many master bedrooms that have very deep trays, with the sides being three to four feet. This design incorporated the entire space. And then there are situations where I am so […]
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