North Carolina Dad Builds Amazing Mario Kart-Themed Nursery for Son
Wes Swain said it took him a year and a half to complete the Mario Kart room.
— -- Wes Swain said he wanted to create something special and surprising when choosing a theme for his son's nursery -- and as a former video game tester, it was no wonder he decided on Nintendo's Mario Kart.
"It's weird to think that he's going to be in this room his entire life, so maybe he won't think it's strange," Swain told ABC News. "I just wanted him to have something unique to look at and to know that I made it just for him.
"I want to thank my wife and family for putting up with me making something for a year and a half," he said.
Swain, a dad of two, said in the past he had created video game bedroom themes such as "The Legend of Zelda" for a friend's child and "Yoshi's Island" for his 4-year-old daughter.
But for his 1-year-old son Grant, he decided to create the nursery theme revolving around the 2014 released Mario Kart 8.
The finished project features a mobile playing Mario melodies, Mario Kart decor, and a painted mural featuring iconic characters from the game, such as Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Bowser, the infamous villain.
"I've been growing up with Nintendo since the original came out," Swain said. "They [the paintings] are recreations from the game itself. When I first started doing the project, I was going off video coverage, still framing it, and taking pictures of it. They're based off a specific level. I free-handed it on an eight-by-11 sheet of paper and transcribed it on the wall."
In addition to his realistic-looking artwork, Swain said his main focus of Grant's Mario Kart nursery was the actual makeup of Mario hanging from the ceiling.
"The kart and most of Mario is using blue insulation foam that builders use," he said. "The whole thing is probably is less than 10 pounds. The heaviest part is the wood that is attached to the ceilings."
Swain said he used a similar method used by prop makers, called slush-casting, to complete the Mario sculpture.
"It's what makes the room unique, and I added some LED lights in there," he added. "The lights makes everything better. I wanted to do it because I thought it was an insane idea. Not many things are attached to a ceiling so its kind of a surprise factor. I wanted to keep it as true as I could to the game."
Swain said he has new ideas for attempting future projects, which he continues to feature on his YouTube channel.
He added that he'd like to share his enjoyment of learning to build new things with his children, should they show an interest someday.
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