Frequently Asked Questions 

For Letterly's purposes, a traditional mural is one that is painted on a permanent, existing wall or other substrate, where the art is intended to be permanent. By comparison, a mobile wall is a temporarily constructed surface that a mural may be painted on during a special event, or in locations where a traditional mural is not allowed or possible. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

A mobile mural is painted on a freestanding, portable wall that is ideal for special events. The wall can be pre-painted offsite and delivered/assembled as a complete work of art, or the design can be partially installed beforehand and completed onsite, with or without community participation. After the event, the wall can be relocated as desired, stashed away for future use, or even auctioned off to raise money. As of January 2025 Letterly is developing a mobile wall design that will allow for some or all of the important features below: - Easy setup: one-person transport and assembly - Expandability: multiple sizes possible using one design for base panels and wall stand - Rentability: walls may be returned to Letterly after client's use, to reduce costs and waste - Divisibility: finished murals may be cut or otherwise divided into smaller pieces for the client's use, such as fundraiser auction items or summer camp keepsakes IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

Live painting is done as sort of a performance, as opposed to offsite painting or asynchronous painting. While many traditional murals are installed in public areas where the painting process may be seen by passersby, a live mural is deliberately painted where people are expected to watch the installation process. A live mural installation may be part of an event such as a festival or fundraiser, where guests love to observe the creative process and witness the mural art appearing on the wall. This can be a permanent wall—an existing part of a building or other structure—or a mobile wall that is constructed especially for the event and removed later. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

When talking about Letterly's services, an interactive mural is a project that is installed interactively—with community or client participation. For example, students at a school might help paint the mural, or the project could be a team building exercise for employees at a corporate office. You may have heard the term "interactive" applied to mural designs, such as butterfly wings that people take pictures with, or even moving parts that viewers can physically interact with. Those are interactive designs, but when I pitch you an interactive element I'm specifically talking about the painting process where I might facilitate an interactive installation that invites others to paint with me. Whether our design is interactive will be a separate conversation to be had during the design phase. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

While I have turned my focus to murals, I could still be convinced to take on the right design or signage project. If your project needs MY touch---typography, hand lettering, thoughtful community representation or sustainable solutions---let's talk! Otherwise I can usually recommend another artist whose offerings align with your needs. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

Yes! However... A) Typography is an area of expertise for Letterly, and unless your chosen font is part of a brand package I may push back on font selection for the best possible project outcome. B) Font choice affects the complexity of your design, and that typeface you had your heart set on could end up pushing my quote outside of your budget. We will work together to make sure whatever font goes into your project isn't going to break your bank, while building a design we'll both be proud of. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

Design complexity is a complex, subjective subject! I learn a lot from every project and each one helps me to hone my own understanding of design complexity, which can also be thought of as how much effort can be anticipated during installation. The two main factors in determining complexity are detail and precision, which help me predict my overall effort expenditure. The more effort required, the more I need to pay myself. For example, there may be a lot of detail involved, but if a design doesn't need to be precise then my ability to freehand or improvise can temper the amount of effort expended. Conversely, a font may look simple (or undetailed) but if it is comprised of straight lines, specific curves and carefully designed widths, there could be significant prep work to be done in measuring and taping, followed by slow, careful painting. To help clients visualize, below are some examples of four levels of complexity. Level 1 is the least complex and Level 4 is the most complex. Some factors that affect complexity are artistic detail and shading, font selection, tool/material options, and number of paint colors required. Design density is addressed at bottom. Complexity Level 1: Sip & Scoop California selfie wall The artwork here was organic and simple, with blocks of color loosely detailed with paint markers: medium detail but low precision. The lettering is a combination of my signature script + block caps, also done with paint markers because of the scale, and also medium detail with low precision. The ability to use paint markers in place of paint brushes can often reduce my overall complexity rating of a design, since the installation process is simplified with readily available, commutable tools. Complexity Level 2: DiVINE on Main wine bar While I was able to use paint markers for much of this project, the detail of the illustrations was labor intensive. The font chosen required precise edges and corners, but at this scale wasn't terribly complicated to install—a blocky font like this can actually be more trouble when smaller. Complexity Level 3: Memorial Elementary School library While the font selected here was very complex—lots of precise details—the imagery surrounding it was very simple. The combination of high complexity with low complexity placed this design somewhere in the middle, and the text-heavy composition bumped it up to the higher side of middle. Complexity Level 4: Greetings From Brentwood This project contained many detailed illustrations with a wide variety of paint colors blended meticulously for realistic shades and textures. The images needed to be precise in their details, because they depict real-life people, places, animals and structures. The text at far left would be considered low complexity because of its fluid shape and irregular baseline, but the "Brentwood" font that comes from the city logo and the "California" lettering that follows a strictly horizontal baseline and uniform x-height (the size of the lowercase letters) are both much more complex text elements. Please be aware that design density is a separate topic from complexity. A complex design with sparse coverage, such as the Greetings From Brentwood mural above, may have the total square footage calculation reduced OR the price per square foot reduced to compensate for the significant "empty" areas with little to no complexity. Every project will be different and while the levels described and depicted above may help clients to understand the concept of design complexity, I will ultimately have to give my best guess as to how much effort is going to be required to install your project, and I will always aim for the design solution that satisfies both of us. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

Nope. But also... I will absolutely look to others for inspiration... What did you like about that other mural? Is it the color palette? The illustration style? The layout? We can definitely talk about finding design elements in the wild and applying the theories and concepts that other artists have had success with, but there will be no outright replication of existing designs or installations. Gone are my days of taking on every project to come my way, and one of my hard limits is copying other artists' work. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

As of January 2025, Letterly Workshops are only run through MAxT Makerspace in Peterborough, NH, and there is no regular schedule. For a list of upcoming MAxT programming, please visit their events calendar.

Sometimes! As of January 2024, Letterly Workshops are only run through MAxT Makerspace in Peterborough, NH, and some are appropriate for children. For a list of upcoming MAxT programming, please visit their events calendar.

Any physically deliverable project that meets Letterly's minimum total of $1,500 includes free delivery within 50 miles of Letterly's home address in Wilton, NH. Pick-up is similarly included, as applicable. The 50-mile threshold is a hard limit, with delivery addresses beyond that distance incurring fees as described below. Some projects may be picked up by the client. For those that cannot, delivery addresses further than 50 miles from Wilton, NH will incur a ground travel fee of $100 per estimated hour of travel plus $0.70 per additional mile. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.

While I have turned my focus to murals, I could still be convinced to take on the right design or signage project. If your project needs MY touch—typography, hand lettering, thoughtful community representation or sustainable solutions—let's talk! Otherwise I can usually recommend another artist whose offerings align with your needs. IMPORTANT: Letterly reserves the right to make changes to any policies described in these FAQs, without notice. Project contracts will contain detailed information pertinent to all relevant topics, and should be read carefully before engaging Letterly's services.