Murals add color and visual interest to otherwise blank walls.
When it comes to a creative and interesting paint job, there's nothing better than a wall mural. Beyond simply spicing up your interior decorating, wall paintings can have a touch of something magic about them. Whether you're presenting a scene of a sweeping Tuscan sunset or a fantasy medley of unicorns and dragons, having the right paint for the job is essential to a quality mural painting. Different types of paint have different benefits and drawbacks when it comes to this type of painting, so choose the right paint for the mural design you have in mind.
Acrylic
Acrylic paint is a good all-purpose option for creating a mural with vivid, quality color using a medium that's easy to control and gets good results. Acrylic paint is water-soluble but dries waterproof and permanent. For a mural, you can use either acrylic artists' paints, acrylic house paints, or a combination of both. Artists' paints will give you better detail, though they will be more expensive to use when covering large areas.
Latex
Latex paint is similar to work with to acrylic paint, but with a few key differences. Latex paint cannot be thinned with water, but it is cheaper and provides better coverage with fewer coats, making it a good choice for covering large areas of color with less detail control. Latex paint is sold as house paint rather than artists' paint.
Washable
If you like the idea of a wall mural but don't want to commit to a permanent design, or if you want to create temporary murals as a kids' art project, use washable children's paint. These paints are designed to wash away with water and gentle soap but have good color and opaque coverage before they're removed. This is also a good way to test a permanent mural design before applying it in permanent paint.
Oil
Oil paints are expensive and some of the most challenging to work with, since they can only be thinned using turpentine and can require exacting precision, but the results in quality of color and detail are unparalleled for artists. There are, however, many situations in which oil paints are a poor choice for mural paintings; avoid using them on exterior surfaces. Also, avoid stone or concrete painting with oils, as stone materials react poorly with the composition of oil paint, causing it to deteriorate quickly. For best results, use oils on a wall with a smooth texture.
