Rainbow is all the rage, right?!? I have wanted to give my girls one for forever now and finally pulled the trigger… only to find out we are moving. Haha
But, I wanted to get this down on paper, not only for you, but for me to be able to recreate it in the new space. Because of course I finally pulled the trigger on the rainbow only days before we found out we were moving.
The whole vibe of the room is imaginative, I want it to be a place that stirs creativity and excitement. Black and white contrasts with dashes of fun color to really shine. I went with a more tropical vibe over the traditional color wheel, rainbow. I have retro island vibes dancing in my head, so I ran with the idea.
Colors are from Behr and they are in a high-gloss finish:
Pink Frenzy
Sonic Lime
Swim
Peach Frenzy
Late Day Sun
Sonora Rose
I went with a high gloss finish, where the background color is flat. I not only wanted the rainbow to stand out in color but finish as well for the most contrast.
For the shape of my bow I wanted a more retro arch, a little more artistic than a simple ¼ circle. I felt the harder lines and aggressive curve embodied that modern retro vibe I was seeking.
We started off by deciding on the height of the overall design. Then I picked the thickness of the start and end points. Once I decided on the thickness, I divided the overall length of thickness by the amount of colors I wanted to use and marked the starting point with a pencil {starting at the top of the shape} where each color would start. I roughly sketched out the smallest angle (bottom of the bow). Where that bottom point starts I used the exact same method to replicate what I had just done but for the bottom of the bow. I wanted the side and bottom of my rainbow to be the same size, the middle however is going to be slightly thicker. Once the bottom section and the side section is established I pick three pivot points on the apex of the rainbow to guide my curve. With a ruler I measured my middle point on the largest bow, to the middle point on the small bow. I divided that number, again by the amount of colors I was using. And on that line was where to mark out the apex of each color. I replicated this process for the other pivot pints, starting at the top of each one, bringing it to the apex of the smallest one. This method will give you a guide to producing the same arch.
I wanted an inch in between each of the colors so I used 1ich thick painters tape to form the lines of separation. I placed the painters tape directly in the middle each other the pencil marks to ensure they would all maintain the same thickness. Obviously painters tape doesn’t bend so I already knew this wouldn’t be perfect and I would go in afterwards to clean up the line, free hand.
To get the crispest lines I suggest painting over your entire area after everything is mapped out with the background color {pro tip}. This will give the painters tape a tighter gripe on the wall by filling in those little air gaps. Wait until the original color is completely dry before moving onto the fun colors. Plan for two to three coats depending on each of the colors needs. With these measurements I was able to buy all sample sizes and still have paint to spare.
It’s time to take off the painters tape once all the coats are finished and the paint is dry. From here I just went in free hand and straightened out the lines. It takes a very steady hand, but it can be done. I used my daughter’s play straight-angled brush. Nothing fancy just one of those ones that come in a brush combo pack.
This took in total, a few days. Mainly because I was working with only one large brush and children crawling all over me. However, it was pretty easy to execute and totally worth it to see her adorable smile and cheers-for-joy upon seeing it finished!