DIY Hanging Wall Art

I have probably the most simple of all projects to share with you today...so simple it probably shouldn't even count as a blog post.  But - I put it together, its in my house and anyone can do it so that justifies it in my mind.  If you are struggling with what exactly to hang on your walls maybe this easy project will give you a little wall inspiration.  You can change it up to suit your style!  

Also, keep scrolling to the bottom to check out a great way to help support a sweet family.  

So this project is for those of you who may have a big blank wall and are wondering what to put on it or for that person who has run into a cool poster, map or pretty paper that you want to do something with but haven't figured out what yet.  

Here is what you will need to make a quick and easy piece of wall art - 

1.  Poster, Map or Pretty Craft Paper

2. Two Dowel Rods

3. A hand Saw

4. Hot Glue Gun

5. Twine/Scissors

The hardest part of this project is sawing the wooden dowel rods.  I found my wooden dowel rods in the hardware store near the lumber section, you can also find them at a craft store like Michael's or AC Moore.  First step to do -simply measure your poster and determine the length you want your rods to be and then measure and saw until you have two dowel rods of equal length.

Next, hot glue your poster onto the rods - just a little glue at the edge works.  Make sure not to glue the whole length and then try and apply the dowel rod - the glue will dry too fast and you will have a mess.  Just a little bit at a time as you work down the poster.  After you get the poster glued to the two rods then you can cut your twine and glue it as well around your rod at the top.  I just simply wrapped the twine around the edges until I reached the desired length and glued as I went.  

And my friends - that was it.  Simple and super cute!

I actually have two of these now in my house - this one in the bedroom and one of a map in our kitchen.  I love how colorful they both are and how its something a little different than just a framed poster.  This would also be a great project to create something simple and inexpensive for your Christmas decor.  It could be larger like a poster, or smaller like a print.

Yay for easy projects!  I see a new Christmas one in my near future.  

Thanks so much for joining me today!  I wanted to share with you an easy way to support a a great family.  The Gullett family is hosting an online auction to help raise support for their adoption. They have a ton of great items to bid on...you can even find a few pieces of my handmade jewelry :). Go check out their auction site here. The date is extended to this Thursday!

Framed Instagram Photo Collage

I love all of the little candid shots I get from my phone.  They are usually the more {in the moment} type snapshots that really capture your memories.  After living in our home for 4 years now we still have lots of bare walls that need something and hardly any family photos framed- so what better way to utilize precious wall space than to use some of those fun instagram shots.

So I've had this frame just lurking around for years, probably 10 years or more.  Its an old antique frame that had an old print that wasn't really my style in it.  For years I have wanted to use it in some way and I finally figured out what to do with it.  I wanted a white frame so I simply spray painted it white - just a couple of light coats will do the trick.

I found out through the years that I really dislike taping windows and glass - blame it on painting every single window frame in our house inside and out.  So I didn't even bother to do any sort of taping and just painted it right on.  Later I just sprayed a little cleaner on the glass, let it sit for a while and it scraped right off.  It seemed like that felt easier and actually gave me a better painted edge.  But either way will accomplish your goal.  

After I had all of the paint scarped off I had a great helper who cleaned the glass for me.

So now for the fun part, the photos!  I decided to order my prints from a company that uses your photos straight from instagram.  They are called Print Studio (formerly prinstagram) and I have to say I love this company.  This is not some sort of sponsored post, just an actual real life feeling.  The photos are awesome quality, its really simple to use, they came really quickly and have great customer service.  They also have a lot of cool printing options other than just photos.  So definitely give them a look. 

Narrowing the photos down was the most difficult part!  Justin and I worked together to pick our favorites, mostly all memories over the last year or so.  After we had the dimensions figured out I laid out a plan and got to work.  My first idea was to use photo mounting tape to adhere it to some paper (that I had cut to the right size) and then insert that into the frame.  But after I did that, it wasn't as straight as I was wanting it to be and after fiddling with it for a while I took a different approach.  

It was easier to lay the photos out on the glass and tape them together from behind.  It just kept everything really straight and even.  Then I covered it from behind with my backing paper. 

Yay!  I was finally done.  I love it so much.  So many great memories in one space.

So have you guys ever utilized your instagram or phone photos for a fun project?  Share with me!

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Easy DIY Artwork

I have a simple and easy art project to share with you today.  Sometimes I find myself wanting to add a little color or personal touch to my home but don't have the budget to buy new frames or artwork so I have to improvise.  Sometimes just updating some old frames and mats with paint and finding something around the house to work in that frame is all it takes! 

So here is what I started with.  Not terrible, but not what I was wanting for my room.  

I decided to change the frames up with a gray color spray paint and to make the mats uniform and sleek I sprayed painted them all white.  Just make sure you use even and thin layers when spray painting.  Globs are not your friend.

I knew I had some photos I wanted to use for one of my frames but I was a little stumped as to what to use for the other.  I wanted to add some color and pattern to my space so I turned to a pretty gift bag that Justin gave me this year for my birthday.  I thought it was so cute so why not enjoy the pretty pattern in my frame?  

Super easy, no money and I love the added pop of color.  Plus, I can change it out the next time I am gifted a pretty bag :).  Don't forget to peruse your wrapping paper stash, craft/scrap paper stash or scrap fabric for more fun and easy artwork options!  

Hope you guys have an amazing Easter weekend!  Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. Romans 10:9-10

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DIY Paint Chip Project

We've lived in our house for 10 months now and we have two mirrors hanging on our walls and that's it.  We haven't put up one single picture, artwork, frame, nothing.  I'm feeling like it's time to remedy that so, here's my first go at new artwork for our house - which comes in the form of free.  I shared with you Wednesday that I was loving all of the paint chip artwork and projects I had seen and wanted to do something using all of the paint chips we have collected since starting on this remodeling process.  One of my favorite rooms in the house, which happens to be the smallest is our little half bath that sits next to our master bedroom.  I love the painted floor, the diy-ed mirror frame, the new bright wall color - there is just a lot of character going on in there and I'm loving it.  So in thinking of the paint chip colors I had on hand and in going with the same color theme as the teal floor I came up with and idea to make a peacock out of paint chips.

Here's what I did:

First, I just cut out my feather shapes from the paint chips - these are totally free hand cutting, they are all different shapes and sizes and they are definitely not perfect but I kind of liked it that way.

Next I cut out a little bird shape from one of the slate colors I had - this time I did trace my bird shape on the back before cutting.  But, once again it's nothing perfect.  There was a white outline around the edge of the bird after it was cut out - so I just ran a black marker along the edge to make it look more uniform.

I drew some legs and cut out a little wing and then began arranging and gluing down my feathers.

Until I had my finished peacock...

And, I finally had something to use in my frame of old (remember this post).

So this -

Is now this - 

I really like the finished product, it's by no means perfect and took very little skill but I love the colorful statement it makes.

It's actually not hanging up yet, but I love the way it connects everything in the bathroom (and you can see that I have not begun painting the rest of the area back there - (I'm hoping that will be a weekend project).

This was really a super easy project - anyone can do this - and it was free - win/win/win.  Have a wonderful weekend! 

Linking Up Here!

Paint Chip Mania

I'm all about some paint chip art lately, I love the idea of reusing something like that and making it into something awesome and beautiful.  I have a little paint chip project in the works that I will be sharing with you soon, so in the meantime feast your eyes on some really fun & colorful ideas:

Magnets, So Cute (Source)

These notebooks are one of my favs (Source)

Perfect for a little Valentine's Day Decor (Source)

Colorful Clock (Source)

Statement Artwork (Source)

Loving the Bookmarks (Source)

Simple and So Pretty (Source)

This is just Awesome (Source)

It's a rainy, dreary day here so I'm enjoying all of the color and cheerfulness of these projects.  It's obvious that the possibilities are endless with paint chips, who knew?