Custom Wallpaper Imagery: Random Photos

Have you ever driven or walked by something that caught your eye and thought: "I'd love to get a photo of that, it's so unusual..."? Be it a building or an architectural element, a piece of graffiti, or an interesting perspective on an everyday object, these are the types of random images that we love to be seen used as custom wallpaper installations.

The custom wall mural in the inspiration room is based on an unintentional collage of posters and handbills I've seen over and over again that I've intended to photograph. Located on (in)famous 8 mile, all of these posters that have been pasted up are slowly peeling away, revealing previously posted announcements. Ripped and jagged, colorful with haphazard streaks of torn white paper highlights, the potential eyesore has always had a striking effect on me.

The wall mural shown is thus an approximation of this accidental work of art on 8 mile. Again, exactly the type of random image that we encourage you to look at with a more discerning eye. Though these images create unexpected and non-traditional murals and giclee, the overall effect they can have on your home is immense.

Custom Wallpaper Inspiration: Vampires

Today's custom wallpaper entry takes us to the dark side, where things go bump in the night and danger lurks 'round every corner. Or, look at our vampire-inspired custom wallpaper installation another way, as pure aesthetic enjoyment; which is the current attitude about vampires and other fanged creatures of the night.

You see, growing up Vampires used to be terrifying. Images from Nosferatu and Béla Lugosi portraying Dracula were dark, ominous, and patently unattractive. Cue today's new crop of Vampires that are decidedly more Hollywood: young and attractive, free of the less savory trappings of blood suckers of yore. That's fine by us, From Twilight to HBO's True Blood, Vampire related imagery has been become an appealing source for custom wallpaper.

For those of you that think this may be just like Halloween everyday in your home, you're partially right. If you want an overtly ominous design like the wall mural in the inspiration room above, we can certainly achieve that. Or you could commission an original wallpaper design, perhaps a creepy old Victorian inspired blood red wallpaper, or a wallpaper pattern based on spider webs. With full design capabilities, we can help you achieve the undead look that you've been dying to have.

Custom Wallpaper Inspiration: Tie-Dye

Today's custom wallpaper inspiration marks the celebration of a couple milestones. Our tie-dye inspired wallpaper is an homage to the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, held originally in August 1969. Initially billed as a music and arts festival, the event became more of a beacon of a new cultural and political awareness to the hundreds of thousands that attended as well as the country at large.

As the country is currently embroiled in debates over health care, it's interesting to reflect on how different our political realm is now compared to the late '60's. One thing that hasn't changed is our affinity for tie-dye, which is a beautiful art form perfectly suited for a custom wall mural. Tie-dye techniques can be dated as far back as 500-800 AD, later becoming a cultural phenomenon and uniform of those ascribing to the "hippie" style. The circular swirling shapes of the mural compliment the round chair and light fixture effortlessly.

The fact that this is our 100th custom wallpaper blog post is the second milestone. Thank you to those who have read and commented on our entries. If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that we are truly passionate about the unique art of custom wallpaper. Though we may not have the same visionary status of those storied icons of the '60's, we share that same spirit of individuality, and hope you'll continue to share your time in reading our next 100 posts.

Custom Wallpaper: Altering Reality

When producing custom wallpaper installations for our clients, our end result is always to dramatically change the feel of a space, as well as how viewers respond to the mural within that space. With scenic or environmental imagery, we're essentially trying to transport the viewer to another place and maybe time.

In a sense, we're attempting to alter the reality of the viewer with a wall mural: though they may be in a New York townhouse, a mural of a Southwestern landscape will be the strongest, most salient aspect of the room, thereby giving the notion that one is out of time and place. We couldn't think of a more clever way to fully transport oneself while still being 100% legal.

To take a transportative scenic a step further, we've sometimes flipped the horizon on more static images. For example, the inspiration room features a custom wallpaper installation of a rocky coastline, punctuated by deep blue water. The image has been flipped on it's side, and though the effect may not be instantly recognizable, subtle lighting cues and the rippling water pattern gives the impression that something is somehow askew. This innocent attempt to confound the senses is just one of may tricks you can use in creating your own custom wall mural.

Imitation: Not Always The Best Form Of Flattery

Today we won't be focusing on a particular aspect of custom wallpaper. Instead, we want to discuss the unique and creative essence of our company, Great Wall Custom Coverings. Founded nearly five years ago (we celebrate our 5 year anniversary at the end of the month), we sought to create wall murals and custom wallpaper that weren't available to the masses, to create one-of-a-kind installations that our clients would enjoy for years. We didn't realize the special position we'd create for ourselves, not only providing print services but creative consultation, project management, and in general highly innovative problem solving.

Along the way we've amassed a body of print work, based on our designs as well as our clients: designers, artists, photographers, architects, and event planners. We've shared photographs of some of these installations to show the breadth of our capabilities, as well as to inspire people in the process of undertaking a custom wallpaper project.

The image above is a collage of our installation photos. However, this image was being used on a competitor's website. Fortunately, they were very prompt in removing the image form their site once we contacted them, but the situation illustrates the unique position our company inhabits. Though we are artists by nature, we use commercial printing methods, inks and materials to create custom wallpaper. But as true creative professionals, this synthesis comes naturally; we don't need to fake it.

Consider a hand painted mural: you can put a paintbrush in anyone's hand, but that doesn't guarantee a professional, aesthetically pleasing result. Most any printer could take a stab at printing custom wallpaper, but these printers typically specialize in temporary banners; throw away products, and are not comfortable in the realm of interior design or fine art, where we truly excel. Take a company like the one that hijacked our photos above: they think that they can make a few extra dollars by adding custom wallpaper to their product line. With little expertise in the decorating industry, they look to creative company's like us to help create their own creative identity. But no matter how many images of ours they steal, they will never have our vast knowledge and enhanced comfort level when it comes to having a discerning artistic eye.

In short, you need to trust your custom wallpaper producer as you would an architect, contractor, or interior designer. If one of these professionals couldn't represent their own work and substituted another's project as their own, would you use them? We sell originality, creativity and integrity, not other people's work. We invite you to check out our installation gallery to see how we've assisted our clients, and to show you how a real creative company can bridge the gap between the disparate worlds of artistic vision and professional commercial reproduction.

Custom Wallpaper Inspiration: Subdued Imagery

Oftentimes the custom wallpaper imagery we blog about is quite striking. Perhaps it's an innate flair for the dramatic, but vibrantly colored murals with plenty of motion and visual interest are certainly alluring. Today though, we are casting off the shackles of over the top indulgence and focusing on custom wallpaper for a much more demure palette.

Incorporating a custom wall mural into your decor that isn't a dominating focal point is definitely possible. Consider the wall mural in the inspiration room. While the wallpaper has a strong graphic pattern, and a modern look engendered by the subtle alternating gradient, the overall tone of the piece is very soft and ethereal, almost like it isn't there. This is a balancing act we hope to achieve when creating a more soft-spoken custom wall mural: maintain a supporting role for the mural, while not letting the design be mundane and lifeless.

The wall mural featured above is called "Cellular Grey," available for purchase at Wallgazer.net. If the hard-lined graphic look doesn't speak to you, consider an oversized floral pattern in off-whites and creams, which would tonally create a static look, with a lot of visual interest created by shadows and highlights around the mingling flower petals. Need more ideas for a subdued custom wallpaper installation? Contact us to learn more.

Custom Wallpaper Inspiration: Classic Cars

Now that the month of August is here, Metro Detroit will shortly fall into the annual classic car craze with the Woodward Dream Cruise. Classic cars inspire thousands of enthusiasts to line historic Woodward Avenue for miles in either direction, celebrating their love for vintage autos. Let this same adoration be your inspiration point for a custom wallpaper installation featuring classic car imagery.

The Dream Cruise, held August 14th, 15th and 16th is now in it's 15th year. One of the most exciting spots to check out the cruisers is our hometown of Ferndale, due in part to the direction of Michael Lary, event coordinator of the Ferndale Dream Cruise. With live entertainment, activities, and vendors of all types, the Ferndale Woodward Dream Cruise has become the place to be. All those present represent almost every different social group with one common interest: the love of classic cars. If you share this same passion, consider using a custom wall mural using a classic auto as your focus.

In the inspiration room above, we've taken a less than literal approach using the classic car theme. Instead of creating a custom wall mural with a shiny, colorful exterior, we honed in on a vintage car interior. The wall mural, presented in black and white, would be the perfect addition to any room where you'd like to display your affinity for classic Detroit autos. What better way to reward the classic car enthusiast that has refurbished an older car than with a wall mural featuring their vintage auto. If your loved one spends all their time in the garage, perhaps a mural featuring their car will help keep them indoors more often!