Dream team: Andrew, Caroline, Brian, and me
Special thanks to our friend Dan, for power tools and wisdom
Quarantine Project
Climbing wall
Ever since shelter-in-place, our house has been missing climbing. We eventually decided to build a free-standing climbing wall in our backyard. My main contribution was painting a mural that is bold, functional, and complementary to our flower garden.
Before
After
Design process
1. Adjustable wall mechanics
We decided to make the wall adjustable because our climbing skills vary from beginner to advanced levels.
After some research we went with this wall design by SendStory, a Youtuber. It required thorough planning and precise measurements to plan out the workflow and compile a complete shopping list.
2. Visual exploration
Considering that the wall would be eventually covered with climbing holds and shoe marks, I came up with these three main design considerations:
• it should be painted in a short timeframe
• the visual should be bold and simple so that it doesn’t get lost when holds get attached
• fits the color scheme and the spirit of our flower garden
3. Final mural design
I ended up translating an illustration I did for a separate project, but which was inspired by the beautiful snapdragons in our garden.
It consists of bold geometric shapes and an organic flower, which creates a strong dramatic visual.
Process
Mural painting
My main focus for this mural was making it visually stunning while keeping it simple. I used a pencil on a string to draw a perfect circle and semi-circle. For the snapdragon, I painted elaborate curvy shapes to add drama. We coated it with Polyurethane mixed with sand to achieve a grippy surface ideal for climbing.
Building process
This hands-on, large-scale, and highly collaborative project demanded scrupulous planning and clear communication. Between four of us, we managed to parallelize most all activities, which allowed us to finish this project in little under 3 weeks.
I happily take commissions for murals within San Francisco Bay Area!
Please reach out to hi@adelyadesign.com.
Resources
Building this wall was a lot of fun thanks to all the amazing resources we found online. If you want to build your own wall, here are some helpful links:
SendStory’s amazing build video which we used to guide our process
Climber Dad’s guide on how to make a lean to systems board, which we used as reference
Everyone in Home Climbing Wall Forum who has shared their progress, pain points, and questions!