Wife Gives Husband Barn Mural

Wife Gives Husband Barn Mural FARM HOME Miscellaneous 33-6-42 Looking for something different to get your spouse for a special day? How about a mural? That's what Vera Harrill did for her husband Bill's 70th birthday, when she commissioned a 7 by 50-ft. mural on the south side of their barn. As a hobby artist, Harrill knew professional muralists, Linda Spencer and Roberto Regalado, a married couple who paint together through their business Laughingwell Studio (www.laughingwellstudio.com). The artists spent a lot of time with the Harrills before putting any paint on the wall. "They took photos of the farm and asked Bill what he wanted," Harrill says. Bill picked out his favorite Oliver tractor, dogs Blue and Buster, and some of the animals the Harrills raise on their 260-acre Lebanon, Mo., farm. It took the artists a few days to paint in the sky and grass and fill in the details, including Bill driving his Oliver tractor. They spent about as much time doing prep work, Harrill notes figuring out what to paint and priming the wall. Harrill notes she got a very good deal at $3,000 for the mural. Prices will vary in different regions. Murals don't have to be huge, Harrill points out. It can just be a small one around a shed door or on the side of a chicken house. The picture can be of whatever the person enjoys: a quilt pattern for a quilter; cows for a dairyman. And if you want something permanent, the side of a barn makes a good canvas. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bill and Vera Harrill, 23488 Highway N, Lebanon, Mo. 65536 (ph 417 588-3768;www.lebanonartguild.org; vharrill@embarqmaiol.com).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.