Cheap Decorating

Something on many other blogs, and I'll share my efforts too, is different ways to put photos on canvas with mod podge.

It's a simple process with variations for different people. All you need is canvas, a photo, and mod podge. Some will paint the canvas, too. This canvas was too thin so I didn't bother. Any canvas that has thick sides I would recommend paint. I have some old acrylic from high school in a box (that stuff seems to last forever!) that worked well.

This still has a little drying left, and my trial and error moment is that anything not on a "photo" paper will bleed. As you can see, things are a little pinker than I planned.

Here's a better example of non-bleeding. Acrylic blue paint and a proper glossy photo with a little mod podge over it. Simple, the longest process was how long it takes to dry.

I've read some sites use matte finish mod podge, I used gloss and wish I'd bought the matte as the light does reflect it on certain angles. 

#2 was inspired by this site:

http://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/toilet-paper-roll-wall-art

I saved toilet paper and paper towel rolls for a while. The site I found recommended spray painting, but I don't have a good place to do that in. I don't have black acrylic paint, either, so I opted for the painfully slow method: color the cardboard with magic marker. I did this in spurts, coloring it as I had some free time to kill, and it took months to complete. Hot glued them together, and I've got them hanging with some 3m pull tabs (which you can see up close, but not from far away- cannot hang things on walls). Overall I'm very happy with the results, a very unique decoration and super cheap!

I had some cheap frames from walmart ($5.00 each). I put some scrapbook paper in 2 of them and printed off a phrase I liked off the internet. I made that my center piece of the wall.

I had some photo's from my wedding laying around. I threw some brown shoe polish on the frame, rubbed it in really good, and threw the photo's in it.

I like the contract of the dark grain with the black & white photo. It really helped these photos pop!

This one I had the most fun with. I threw some scrapbook paper on the background, but the frame was the real challenge. I used sandpaper around the frame just a little, then I marked it up with green scrapbook marker. I applied sandpaper again to blend the green in. Again I used the brown shoe polish to further blend in the green and let it pop more. I then applied mod podge- curious if it would help blend the green in further and just wanted to see what it would do. It helped blend the shoe polish better than I expected. I only wish I had the matte finish mod podge- the frame is shiny.

My bottom line recommendation is to enjoy it. While not everyone may like my green frame, it is the one I had the most fun doing so I love looking at it the most. Your decor is an expression of who you are, and what better way to decorate your house then with your own inner creativity?