I've always loved art. I love to draw and paint, and after taking several art classes and after massive encouragement from my family, I have taken the next step to make something out of a beloved hobby. Most of my inspiration comes from my family, and I now have two kids, Charlee and her little brother Jett. Like me, when some parents are expecting a new addition to the family, or redecorating a child's bedroom, they want that room to be personalized and special for their child. That is where my joy of painting has led me... to become a muralist.

I am very versatile... I do custom canvases in multiple sizes. And for those who live near the Des Moines, Iowa area, I can work with your children's rooms, windows, bathrooms, laundry rooms, almost any room you need.

Every child inspires. How does your child inspire you? Let me put their inspiration onto their walls...

Matthews Muralist.

Sharing inspirations with paint.

12/11/11

Abstract

Here is an abstract piece i just finished:



It is a two canvas piece. each cavas is 24x30"



Christmas Window

Growing up my mom always painted our front window for Christmas and i like to carry on that tradition:)


Here is our front window this year:



Have yoursELF a merry christmas!!!

11/21/11

Toy Story Match N Mixers

My niece is turning one year old and for a special present her mom ordered her some Toy Story Match N Mixers

Here is Bullseye...

Woody...





10/15/11

Storybook Mural


So, there is a very special baby who gets to have a very special storybook room.
This mural is a compilation of all of the parent's favorite children's books...
This room is filled with Winnie the Pooh, the Cat in the Hat, the Giving Tree and Boy, the Guess How Much I Love You Bunnies, the Hungry Caterpillar, and lots of other very fun additions...


Here I was just playing around with some of the different effects with my camera, but you can see all of the characters...

Here is the boy from the Giving Tree

Here, the Hungry Caterpillar is crawling along the fence...


and mister Cat in the Hat is strolling his way down into the mural...



Winnie the Pooh, floating up above the whole mural...


And the Guess How Much I Love You Bunnies playing in the corner...


This is a little taste of the other little accents that spread throughout the mural...

And, of course, you can't have a mural in Iowa without corn, so here is the super fun cornfield...


This is a simple little fabric canvas that will add even more fun to the walls:)

Overall, this is a very special room, made for a very special baby!!!


9/13/11

Be Brave

My sister left behind a note, and on that note she shared what she wanted her kids be like as they grew up, and she summed it up in these words:
"Be sweet and gentle, Be strong and brave." ~ Paige L. Cahoon.
My brother in law wanted to have this quote to hang in his daughter's room as a reminder of the kind of person Paige wanted her daughter to be.
This is an 18x24 size canvas and I wanted to try something that I have never tried before... I have done paintings with 3D elements before, but never with this many elements. On the background it is actually written over and over again the words "sweet, gentle, strong, brave" and a giant "Esme" overlapping all of those words. I thought that was the perfect foundation for such a special artpiece.
This is just the bottom corner section of the painting and it is also one of my favorite parts. I love that the word "brave" is just off-center of Paige's name, because that is the ultimate description of who Paige was.
And this is a closer look at some of the detail that went into the "Be" portion of the painting.

Overall, this has been one of my favorite paintings to do simply because it has so much meaning behind it. For those of you who don't know, my sister Paige died this past December to breast cancer, but I find new ways to remember her every day... and this painting is one of them.
This simple statement says so much about who Paige was and it is a great way to try and teach her daughter, Esme, how she can be like her mom.

6/27/11

Morgan's Room

Every child keeps growing, and Morgan is no exception!!! Here is a growth chart made for her to help keep track of her growth. It is decorated with four super cute owls and measures just over six feet tall! it is something that grows with her. It is also made of wood and has a hinge so that it folds in half for easy shipping and transport. Overall, this is a fun addition to Morgan's, or anyone's, room:)





Baby Peterson's Room


The Peterson's are having a baby girl and her bedding is full of pretty flowers. Here I have a few more flowers to accent her bedding:)



5/29/11

Olive's Room

Miss Olive is a lucky girl... She gets to be my niece!!! AND for her bedroom we did some cute "Match n' Mix" flowers to match her bedding...

There are nine paintings total. Each piece is 6"x6"


AND, just like the other Match n' Mixers, these flowers can have a new stem or new flower pot any day:) Match and mix as you please!!!

5/23/11

Sophie's Room

Sophie is getting a brand new room and these paintings are going to add to the fun.
Sophies mom just wanted some fun pink owl fabric paintings, and here is how they turned out...



2/1/11

Elijah's Room

This is my newest Growth Chart. This was made special just for Elijah!!! This cowboy measures six feet tall and is ready to be marked up with Elijah's measurements as Elijah continues to grow:)
for convenience, this growth chart (as well as all of my growth charts) can be folded in half so you don't have to transport a six foot wooden thing everywhere you move, instead it folds into a three foot size, very convenient for transporting.



1/24/11

Bloated Fish

These two paintings are designed for any underwater room. They are both 8x10 canvases and are very fun for any wall:)





Jessie's Room

Jessie is already a sweet girl and is destined to be a cowgirl.
These two canvases are designed special, just for baby Jessie:)






1/20/11

Couple Randoms

These are a couple paintings that i did just for fun.

This is another fabric painting called "The Neighborhood." It is a 12x24 size canvas.
This one would go for $25 plus shipping


This is a simple "SUN flower." It is a 11x14 sized canvas.
This one is $15 plus shipping


Both of these paintings can be seen at the Crafter's Boutique in Ankeny, IA.