Has anyone else been spending a lot of time looking critically at the inside of their homes over the past few months? Our walls have the power to speak volumes about our personalities. Decorated walls exude a lived-in look. Empty walls are a missed opportunity. Artwork is a fundamental aspect of your home, and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Here are six creative ways to add a finishing touch to your walls:
Find free or cheap art online
One of our favorite online sources for art is Minted.com. We have gotten reasonably priced, customized pieces from this online source and then framed them ourselves to save money. Check out our latest find here. Etsy has a fantastic selection of cheap downloads. Always download the highest resolution available and then print on good quality card stock. It is possible to score high quality artwork for $0 online. Some great sources of free art are:
Public libraries like the New York Public Library which have huge digital collections that include prints, maps, and photographs.
Biodiversity Heritage Library is billed as the world’s largest open access digital archive dedicated to life on Earth. This is the place to find botanical prints, animal sketches and historical diagrams.
Here and here are other fun and funky free printable wall art resources.`
Make your own wallpaper or fabric panels
Framing strips of wallpaper or fabric makes for a very cool, and unique to you, wall statement. It's best to choose panels that are similar in content, color or pattern. You can make your own frames from moulding available at a home center. Or we love to use IKEA’s thin white RIBBA frames or Target’s brushed gold frames with peel and stick wallpaper. Right now we are on a Chinoiserie panel kick.
Repurpose household items or collections as artwork
Have a collection of snowglobes, antique lunch boxes, or teacups? Incorporating the things you love on your walls will showcase those pieces and add personality to your home. If you have a group of five or six like items, but they are spread all around your room, they won’t make the impact they would if they were grouped together. Consider hanging plates, quilts or scarves to add character and texture to your walls.
Think big scale
Large black and white engineer prints (also known as draft or blueprint copies), that you can get at stores like Staples or Kinkos, can be purchased on the cheap. Enlarge your favorite photos, old family ones are the best. They may be a little grainy but that might just be the vintagey look you want. Back them with foam core or pop them into a 24x36” frame.
Update thrift store art
It may take time and patience to find them but thrift store items can become one of a kind treasures. Change the matting, paint the picture frame or add new artwork into an old beautiful frame. Pair a more vintage thrift store print in an unexpected way with more modern accessories. Or have even more fun by enhancing the painting with your own artwork like was done with this giant Stay Puft Marshmallow man on a Parisian street.
Support a budding artist
Commission a budding young artist to draw or photograph a favorite place or household pet. We had a talented high school art student draw a picture of our cat that we proudly hang in our hallway gallery. And don’t forget the talent right in your house. There are so many ways to curate and display your children’s artwork that will make it look fantastic, but that is a whole other digest topic.
Hopefully these tips will inspire you to add interesting, unique finishing touches to your walls. Need help filling those empty walls? Feel free to reach out to us here.
As of July 1st, we plan to resume in-person organization and home styling appointments. Hope to see you soon!