Paint Decor Studio

Paint Decor Studio is the home of Denver mural artist Michelle Frances and, on occasion, a few of her awesomely talented friends. Michelle's art includes murals, decorative paint effects, faux finishes and decorative plasters in addition to portraits, pet portraits and custom fine art pieces. Please take a few minutes to browse this site and don't miss the archive (as there is more photos there than anywhere else). If you are using Explorer and having trouble viewing pictures go to the archive and you should be able to see images there.

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Permalink Decorative ceiling with clouds and tree branches in Downtown Denver office foyer. 
Permalink This denim finish is on the walls of a boy’s room in Denver, CO. It is a Ralph Lauren finish and, as a result of this project, I will never use a Ralph Lauren faux product again (his tools are nice as long as you don’t have to rely on the instructions to teach you how to use them).  I know I was not the only one to struggle with this ‘denim glaze’ as the product was discontinued shortly after I completed this. The glaze was water based which means that it dried quickly. The instructions suggested doing three foot wide bands of the finish at a time and over lapping them a half an inch; thus creating ‘seams’. The picture on the packaging had none of these seams so the client was disappointed with them. She wanted entire walls painted in a single go so there were three of us, water misters in hand climbing over each other trying to paint, scratch off the glaze and keep it wet all simultaneously. It was a nightmare. In hindsight I should have given up on Ralph and remixed the color into an oil glaze but it still would have been difficult (and far more toxic). I do love this room in spite of the headaches it gave me… I think it is a ‘success against all odds’ thing.
Permalink This is one of many decorative paint details I did outside this Denver home’s wine cellar. I tried to accentuate all the warm woods and rusty bricks in the home’s design by using lots of warm hues… rusts, pinks and aubergine.  This vine wraps around the tasting room at chair rail height but begins and ends with stems growing out of the brick floor on either side of the wine cellar door.
Permalink Bird murals in Denver kitchen. Although these paintings are of birds form around the world it seems a perfect fit in this Colorado home as it incorperates the dark warm wood and a very natural, ‘bringing the outdoors in’ theme.   It always helps when an artist has a high quality canvas and that is just what this kitchen was for me. It was a lovely space and the clients were amazing to work with. Linda wanted something fairly subtle yet colorful that incorporated her favorite little creatures… birds.  I never know whether to label this as mural work or decorative painting… it borders on both…. subtle abstracted vines, fairly literal birds and butterflies and a oil glaze to finish and antique everything a bit.
Permalink Powder room in Denver home. I used Venetian Plaster and stencils to create a unique look that would compliment but not overpower the room’s framed art. 
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Permalink Decorative paint and faux painting in Castle Pines, Colorado home. The painting in this room was a collaboration with Cathy Gibbons. The ceiling is ‘silver leaf’ with red under painting and an umber over-glaze. The lower walls are painted with a green/ grey and then glazed and the upper walls were very carefully stenciled and then given a light wash of the base color to antique them a bit. 
Permalink Gold Leaf scroll work over Venetian plaster in Denver home. I LOVE how this turned out and so does the client… it is a bit of a show stopper. Real gold leaf made all the difference. The dome just radiates warm light and the art deco design is perfect with the fixtures.
Permalink Detail of a small kid’s table painted to coordinate with the fabric used for both the window treatments and quilts in the room.
Permalink Super fancy custom powder room.  This wallpaper like decorative painting effect was created using glazes, metallic paints and a custom cut stencil.  The designer I was working with found a similar pattern on some fabric and wanted me to translate it to the walls.  This is only one of many stunning examples of decorative painting and mural work in this Colorado home (this was my contribution to a home full of spectacular art).
Permalink I love this style… a light faux on the lower walls with some sort of ‘chair rail’ or border.  I painted this in a home in Denver, CO and I think I really captured the feel of the areas scenery. This faux is a made up ‘Colorado prairie’ color wash.  With just a few bits of muraling the entire room is used. Using decorative paint techniques to accent can give a room a 360 degree scenic feel without the room becoming cluttered or overwhelmed by a single wall mural.
Permalink Cloud ceiling mural in Denver, Colorado home (iron work is also painted).
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