Making a dramatic first impression

The front entrance foyer of your home sets the tone for the rest of your living space. It is where your guests are welcomed and have their first taste of your home’s personality and their initial impression will have a lasting effect.

Would you prefer this space to convey an elegant or rustic aesthetic, or perhaps you lean more towards the industrial look? Maybe you like a traditional, classic style?

Putting thought into this area, which is often neglected or overlooked, will allow you to create a dramatic space that is eye-catching and memorable, whether it’s a floor-to-ceiling feature between multi-storey levels or a consistent inside/outside flow. With the addition of Muros Wall Panels, achieving this need not be complicated or require major structural changes to your home.

Muros NZ has spent the last ten years bringing walls to life with its beautiful European-made decorative panels. These are ideal for use on the interior and exterior* of residential houses and commercial buildings—on walls, ceilings, counters, or to clad columns.

The fibreglass decorative panels are imported from Northern Spain, where the manufacturer lives. This private family-owned company has built up a strong global reputation over the past 25 years. During that time, it has developed a range of special moulds, which, in many cases, have been lifted from real-life walls, so they exhibit the character, appearance, ‘rawness’, texture and depth of the original concrete, brick, stone, or wood surfaces.

Muros NZ Director Sejal Blackler says the wall panels are all artisan hand-made rather than mass-produced, and designed to have a three-dimensional relief finish.

With the extensive Muros range of veneered panels, you can easily create a unique ambience in your home—whether it’s with the Roughcast Concrete for a raw, industrial style; Loft Brick to recreate a contemporary New York apartment; Wedgewood for a modern, edgy reclaimed wood look; or Strata or Schist Stone to provide a traditional, cosy Queenstown vibe.

And, if the colour of the panel isn’t quite right for your interior décor, then it is a straightforward job to paint (spray or soft roll) or stain it to match your existing colour scheme. It can even have paint, plaster or cement applied to age or accentuate it for a distinctive, creative effect.

Because the panels are made from fibreglass, they are a lightweight and flexible decorative feature, rather than being a heavy, structural element, so no building consents are required to install them. As well as creating a dramatic impact, they are hard wearing and durable, making them well-suited to being used in high traffic areas such as entrance halls and stairwells.

Panels are supplied in standard sizes and can be fitted together like a jigsaw to cover walls of any size or shape. The fibreglass panels are designed to be cut and jointed with ease, so they can be fitted around windows, doors, corners, bookcases and fireplaces. Installation materials such as adhesives and paints are provided with the panels to ensure joins are seamless and invisible.

A professional builder can carry out installation, or Muros can recommend one of its installers for more complex or large projects.

“The finishing is really important,” says Sejal, “so Muros provides technical advice, videos and guide sheets to ensure your builder installs the panels correctly to create that seamless finish”.

“Our panels have quite a few advantages over natural materials, which can be expensive, messy, labour-intensive and time-consuming to install. We carry large stock quantities here, so we normally have stock on hand when needed”.

“And because it is decorative and not structural, architects, designers and homeowners can make a final decision and order it at any time in the building process. It doesn’t have to be ordered early or incorporated in the consent plans. However, with international supply chain congestion we recommend placing orders early to secure stock.”

Panels are all backed by a 10-year manufacturer’s warranty and have proven resistant to water, fire and UV. Muros can supply the panels for projects throughout New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific.

To create a unique look for the entrance or stairwell in your next project or upgrade an existing space, check out the range of wall panels from Muros.