Prices and Business Hints for Murals and Faux - Page 4

Tina K · #46 11-28-2006, 06:05 PM

I just bid a job yesterday and am waiting to hear if I got it. I gave the bid to the interior designer and she said she'd run it by the client. I had the feeling she thought it was high. I bid $5000 to do approx. 1530 sf. It's for a Master bedroom, bathroom, and water closet. She wants the water closet and 3 walls in 1 2-color finish and the rest in another 2-color finish. She wants everything painted including ceilings, doors, all of the trim, and wall outlets etc. Right now the walls are white flat paint that are pretty dingey-can tell they were painted quite awhile ago. Can anyone tell me if I'm too high? Thanks

Becktoria · #47 11-28-2006, 11:25 PM

Tina,
It sounds a little high to me....But painting doors, trim, outlets and so forth is a lot more than faux. If it were just straight paint and faux I might have charged about $3,000 to $3,600.

But maybe you'll get it anyway....I hope so!

FauxFillingDreams · #48 11-29-2006, 12:42 PM

With the ceilings, Id say it wasnt that high...especially if you have to base paint it first. Without the ceilings I'd be right where Becky is....but 2 color glaze on ceilings...ugh! How high are the ceilings?

Tina K · #49 11-29-2006, 01:57 PM

The ceilings are only 9ft. I talked with the designer today and she said the client is thinking it over. She hasn't gotten any other bids on it as yet and we discussed possibly coming down a little on the price. Anyway we'll just wait and see but in the meantime I picked up another job-the neighbor of the client from 2 weeks ago, the one with the orange wall.

Becktoria · #50 11-29-2006, 03:56 PM

Wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I did not realize it was ceilings....your price is fine!

FauxFillingDreams · #51 11-29-2006, 10:16 PM

I'd probably tell her if she wants to go with a solid on the ceilings in a complimentary color and no faux up there, that would knock the price down....then you can still get the job, they still get the effect, and you dont have to spend all your profits on chiropracty!

Tina K · #52 11-30-2006, 11:34 AM

We discussed various ways to bring down the price but I have a feeling the client doesn't want to spend anywhere near that price. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Becktoria · #53 12-29-2006, 11:30 AM

ooops, forgot a press release. I promise, I will add one in here.

Becktoria · #54 12-29-2006, 11:34 AM

[center]
Wall Surprises!

For Immediate Release October 31, 2006

Contact: Becky Moder
(phone goes here)

Master Artisan Relocates to Sonoran Foothills in Deer Valley Area

Moving into the North Phoenix/Deer Valley neighborhood of Sonoran Foothills is a dream come true for Becky Moder. Moder is the owner and Master Artisan of Wall Surprises!, a faux finishing and custom mural company. Her brand new home is a perfect opportunity to take her own white walls from plain and boring to "WOW" creations. Painting has recently begun as she creates Western Washes on the main walls of her home and the accent of faux stacked stone will begin soon. Moder says that the Western Washes are perfect for any Territorial, Tuscan or Santa Fe style interiors.

A native of Arizona, Moder's passion to paint on walls began in 1979 in Scottsdale, AZ where she was hired for her first mural. She has added many other creative touches to walls along her 27 year artistic journey. Lazure, Western Washes, faux leather and granite, faux stacked stone and metallic are her most requested wall techniques. Her favorite murals involve children's rooms but she paints in every room of residences and businesses from Casa Grande to Prescott, from Gold Canyon to Verado. Moder is especially thrilled to be living in the North Valley since she gets much of her work from North Phoenix and North Scottsdale. In 2007 Moder will begin teaching private Faux Finishing Classes in the Sonoran Foothills.

You may contact Moder via her web site at www.wallsurprises.com or call (phone goes last).

###

debsn2paintn · #55 12-29-2006, 02:30 PM

Becky- This sounds wonderful! So where are you going to teach classes at? Will you be teaching professionals or the DIYer?

Becktoria · #56 12-29-2006, 05:39 PM

Thanks, Deb, I am teaching DIY's..have done this in the past but this is a press release so I wanted to get this information out again.
I mostly just wanted to show how a press release is done out so Michele (and anyone else) can send one to the paper and put some fire under them. For example, it is common to put the ### at the end of the release to show that is the end. And the shorter the better. This one filled up only a portion of a page.

sillk · #57 01-04-2007, 07:55 PM

Hi everyone!

I just finished a "cost guideline" sheet to give to prospective clients, people that have already expressed interest in a mural. I've never had anything like that on paper and I think my business will really benefit from my clients having a heads-up on price, instead of fumbling around. I need to get that faux book, would be great to have the protocol of an experienced painter....acutally I was confused by some stuff discussed earlier in this thread - I"m pretty sure I can blame the confusion on this terrible head cold but I'll ask anyway...

Some people expressed an aversion to communicating cost to the client in a certain way - such as by sq footage or daily price. How exactly do you communicate it then? Or are you speaking specifically of QUOTING a price for a job....which means my cost guidelines would be a good idea??

-------------------------------------------
I listed it all according to square footage, which I worked out based on past work and how long it takes to create - all the obvious stuff. I'm suspect a lot of people will be telling me i'm low and i look forward to the day I can get what my paintings are worth. but in this area, people expect to pay maybe $200 for something to put on their wall. I enjoy offering work for any budget but I get depressed when I loose commissions because people hear a high price and run away.

I'll paste in the wording so the only stuff you won't be able to see is the graphic design element of it and the images - I would love to hear opinions!

Simplistic $5-10
A cost effective option for covering a large wall, or creating ambiance in an entire room simply with color and texture. Create fantastic atmosphere in any space with a sunset, cloudy sky, or a simple landscape.

Combination : $15-25
Most paintings are composed of highly detailed sections blended with areas of simplicity. This combination can be created in any ratio – a wide summer sky sweeping across a field of wildflowers might be just what your family room needs. A simple background balanced with detailed subjects will create an area of inspiration.

Highly Detailed : $30 - $50
This is painting in high definition, right down to feathers and scales. Ideal for adding dashes of realism or swaths of illusion – create a doorway to an Italian villa, a window with a rain forest view, or a walkway into a calming garden.

*
Everything that has been posted so far is very helpful. It's great to have a resource like WC to pool your information and learn from. YAY WC!

stacey

sillk · #58 01-04-2007, 07:57 PM

Oh Becky, I meant to ask you about that phrase Master Artisan!!

I love it! This may sound silly, but do you have to be certified to call yourself a Master Artisan? Or is a title bestowed by time, experience and a wonderfully benevolent personality, such as you have?

Becktoria · #59 01-04-2007, 08:15 PM

Stacey, this is super great!!!!!! I love the wording...it creates a desire! You did a wonderful job!

Master Artisan is my skill level. I have been painting forever and a day and a designer gave me the title in front of one of her clients and it stuck. It is a good tool to use if you feel you feel qualify! In other words, a beginning muralist who has little skills yet would not want to use that title.

I bid by the project and the size of the room for murals. For example, a client wants a bookcase that is 8 foot high and 7 foot wide. She wants to pay $1,500. She will not get a super detailed bookcase but it will certainly be more than a illusion. For $3,000 I could write the titles on each book and cracks in the leather!

Did I answer your question? (I am tired tonight!) I have added some redesign work to my jobs and they are time consuming.

FauxFillingDreams · #60 01-04-2007, 08:29 PM

Stacey, I think your guidelines are fine, as long as it equals out to getting what you expect at the end of the day. It looks professional and thats the main objective. This work is very much "what the market will bear" so low or high is definitely based on area. Even here we can expect to make more on one side of town than the other.

For my part, I dont give general prices except to say that my minimum is $450 if Im quoting for a faux or "adult" mural, and a minimum of $350 for children's murals....(I bid them the same, but will lower the minimum, mainly because theyre fun for me and sometimes people just want a single character. I just feel bad charging so much for a couple hours work in those cases.)

I explain there are a lot of factors involved from that point, size, detail, location, time involved, etc, and that each project is unique. I give them the minimum (making sure to say, that is for the simplest, smaller spaces, so they dont assume their project fits that category without even hearing the bid!) and offer to come do a free consultation to give a closer bid. When I give the price it is a solid number...it is my price per project (some bids have more than one project involved!) in total, materials, and labor, and I don't tell them how I came to the price. I have really never been asked how I get my price, after I have already told them what things factor into it. Occassionaly if its bid high because of some circumstance, I'll say," its a bit higher since it is ladder work, or ceiling work", etc. State it confidently like its a matter of fact and you wont get balkers. Anyone who was just asking and is really not able to pay your price range will have already been lost at your minimum price before you meet with them, and you can get them screened before you waste a lot of time meeting with them, doing sketches, or what have you.

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