Bring friends and brushes, and give that blank wall color
Your mission
Paint the Wall Together
Finish a 10x10 foot mural section with your group in one painting session, then hold a short unveiling where everyone points out the part they painted and signs a small tribute panel nearby.
Bonus challenge: Snap a photo from the same spot every hour, then play the whole set back as a time-lapse at the unveiling.
Gather a dozen friends and neighbors and paint a real mural on a real wall. You'll vote on the design together, trace it at dusk with a projector, then spend one big session filling a 10x10 foot section with color that lasts for years.
A blank wall and fifteen people holding brushes is one of the best ways to spend a Saturday. Someone mixes the greens, someone else goes wild on the border, and a kid stands on the grass painting the bottom corner with total seriousness. You'll find a wall, get written permission from the owner, pick a design as a group, and paint it in a 3-6 hour session. No art training needed, promise. Plenty of mural work is just filling in shapes someone already traced. Your job is to get it finished and then throw a tiny unveiling party.
Most group projects disappear the moment they end. This one stays on the wall, and every person who held a brush gets to walk past it with someone and say which part is theirs. That shared ownership turns a crowd of acquaintances into people who wave at each other. The wall is the excuse; the group is the real result.
Top gear to make this quest great.
Pull it off
Exterior acrylics with UV sealant hold their color for years; craft paint fades in one season.
Get on Amazon · $29.99 — Exterior Acrylic Paint Set with Weather Sealant
Telescoping poles let shorter painters reach high sections without anyone climbing a ladder.
Everyone handling paint needs them, and they're required for sealant work.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Prices may change.
The hardest part happens before anyone opens a paint can, and it's mostly phone calls. Scout walls at community centers, alley sides and playground fences, then get written permission from the owner at least three weeks out. Ask your city's arts or code office whether a mural permit is required. Buy exterior acrylic paint with UV-resistant sealant (craft paint fades in one season), a brush kit with telescoping poles, drop cloths and tape. Handy extras: a mini projector, a folding wagon, a shade canopy. Check noise rules before bringing a speaker, and give the neighbors a heads-up.
A good quest stays a good story. These are general notes; your gear's manual, the venue's rules and local law come first.
Grab one friend and go wall-shopping. Community centers, alley sides and playground fences all have big flat surfaces facing public space. Photograph your favorites from several angles so you can judge size and light later. Then track down the owner and get written permission at least three weeks before paint day, and ask your city's arts or code office about a mural permit.
Pull together four to six people for two short planning meetings to kick around themes and sketch rough concepts. Nothing fancy, pencil on printer paper is plenty. Then host a design session with your full crew of 10-15 painters and let them vote on the concepts. The winning design belongs to everyone, which is exactly the point.
This is the sneakiest fun of the whole project. On a still evening after dark, aim a projector at the dry wall and beam the final design up at full scale. Trace the outlines in chalk or light pencil while someone holds the projector steady. Headlamps on, high-vis vests for anyone near the road, and tell someone when you'll be done.
Set up four stations so fifteen people aren't fighting over one brush: base coats, detail work, high areas with the extension poles, and touch-ups. Label every paint container by color and section. Add a water station, a shade canopy and drop cloths. Pick one adult as safety coordinator for ladders and traffic watching before anyone starts.
Open with a quick welcome circle so everyone hears the vision, then let people choose their zone and go. Rotate folks between stations so everybody gets a turn at big base coats and fiddly details. Call a 15-minute break every hour, step back as a group, and look at what you've built. Take a photo each hour from the same spot.
Brushes down. Gather everyone where you can see the whole thing, play back your hourly photos as a time-lapse, and go around so each person points out the bit they painted. Have everyone sign their name on a small tribute panel nearby. Swap contact info, and invite the property owner over to see what their wall became.
You and fifteen other people just put something permanent and bright on a wall your whole neighborhood walks past. Pick a date to come back and paint the next section.
You bring the curiosity. We've found the tools.
Pull it off
Exterior acrylics with UV sealant hold their color for years; craft paint fades in one season.
Get on Amazon · $29.99 — Exterior Acrylic Paint Set with Weather Sealantwhat to look for & our pick →
Telescoping poles let shorter painters reach high sections without anyone climbing a ladder.
Assorted brush widths from detail liners to 4-inch flats, plus telescoping pole attachments
Get on Amazon · $34.99 — Multi-Size Brush Kit with Extension Poleswhat to look for & our pick →
Everyone handling paint needs them, and they're required for sealant work.
Get on Amazon · $6.99 — Disposable nitrile glovesdetails & deals →
Marks off your work zone and keeps the crew seen near a street or after dark.
Get on Amazon · $30.99 — Traffic cones and high-visibility vestsdetails & deals →
Protects pavement and gives you clean edges on the wall.
Get on Amazon · $25.64 — Canvas drop cloths and painter's tapedetails & deals →RELATED GEAR GUIDE
10 Pieces of Gear for a Tabletop Game Night Kit (2026)
Practical picks, real prices · Social & Community
As an Amazon Associate, IRL Sidequests earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Prices and availability are subject to change. The price shown at checkout on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
Where this one naturally leads next.
Round up your friends and paint that bare wall.
Grab three to five friends and spend a weekend turning a blank brick wall into a mural you all signed. You'll sketch a design together, block in the big shapes on Saturday, add the glowing details on Sunday, and invite people over to see it.
Hands busy, snacks out, and suddenly everyone's talking.
Invite six or eight people over, put one simple craft project on the table, and spend an afternoon making the same thing together. Everyone leaves with something they built, a few new jokes, and a reason to come back next month. Snacks on a lazy susan, music low, nobody rushing.
Turn your creative skills into community connection—one workshop at a time.
Learn how to design, promote, and run engaging creative workshops in your local community, from pottery classes to photography meetups.
Not this one?
Tell the generator how much time you have, who you're with, and your mood — it picks from 500+ quests like this one.
Try the real life side quest generatorOr browse the full list of real-life side quest ideas or side quests to do with friends.