Cheap Chic! - Photo Frames

I'm so excited to share this idea with you all! Basically, I don't have money to splurge on decorating so I'm constantly trying to come up with creative (and inexpensive) ways of making my house look homey. A recent dilemma that I had was this: I had some fabulous photos (taken by the fabulous JS Foto) that I wanted to display in my house. And I had no frames to put them in.

First... I discovered that picture frames are expensive!

Then... I had a brainwave. Here we go folks...

1. Head to your nearest Salvation Army or Goodwill.
2. Raid the frame section. Look for SHAPES that you like. All different sizes. Don't worry if the frames are OBNOXIOUS colors and look really dated. The frames I bought were super cheap. We're talking a couple bucks cheap.
3. Buy black spray paint or a little can of black paint.
4. Paint the frames.
5. Develop your favorite photos. I grouped like colors together (sepias and b&w). Check out Picnik if you need some easy (and free) photo-tweaking software.
6. Put the photos in the frames and cluster them together (this is a look that places like Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel often do). My favorite way of displaying frames is to NOT hang them (that's been done). Instead, I group them together on shelves, bookshelves, wherever! It looks pretty cool to lean different sizes on a shelf and have some of them overlap. Plus, the frames all match and the black looks super chic and classy!

VOILA!

(The big frame on the far left was the most UGLY turquoise color when I bought it. Usually I like turquoise... But it was not pretty!)

This could also be done with white or ivory paint if you want another option for a super classy look. And if you've got kids you could choose a bright accent color (hot pink, yellow, green, orange) and put frames in their room! Plus, you could frame some of their "artwork" to personalize the room even more. The options are endless!