Midnight in New Orleans

Sky ceilngs are fun to paint.  Usually I'm asked to do them in a nursery, but I've done them in pantries, dining rooms and bathrooms.  Just before Christmas, I got to paint one in a master bedroom.  Usually, the clients want a cheerful blue sky with just wisps of clouds.  These folks didn't want the usual.  These folks wanted:  

•    Moody romance
•    Maybe with a stormy sky, if possible
•    A 1920's vibe...art nouveau perhaps
•    Perhaps a little New Orleans
•    Perhaps a little Celtic
•    Work with their lavender walls and traditional mahogany furniture

Here's how all that worked into one design...
 

This shot actually shows it a little brighter than it looks in person, but you can see the overall idea here, anyway.  Perhaps you can understand why I spent a couple of days singing everything from "Stormy Weather" to "Bad Moon Rising", as I painted.  As music is not one of my talents, this will hopefully fade from the client's memory fairly soon.

All the necessities, and then some.  Most clients give me hugs, but these folks gave me kisses!  

Here you get a  better sense of the ceiling color.  The clouds fade down onto the walls, where they are overlapped by a free form border, based on a 1920's wrought iron design, which I crossed with some Celtic line work from an ad of the same vintage.  Though the ceiling was mostly blue and gray, I used some purple toward the edges, to blend with the walls, and then a shade of raisin for the main scrolls to link the purple and lavender with the mahogany furniture.  

Yes!  One shot where the camera saw what people see.  Here you see the plummy undertones in the lavender, the extra ribbons of white in the border, and the clouds in their full glory.  This shot explains why this is my new favorite project.  Of course, I'm one of those odd ducks who loves thunder storms, so I'm biased.

So, what's on your ceiling?  Bored with plain white?  Even if something this dramatic is a bit much for you, there are lots of other possibilities.  Click on over to my website to see some other ideas, or give me a list of everything you like, and I'll see what I can stir up.