We are always on the lookout for old frames at flea markets, salvage shops and somewhat less frequently, yard sales. I love finding unique shapes, ornate versions, or simply really large ones. There are so many things you can do with frames. Sometimes I just hang the empty frame on my walls. I often paint and wax them for a more vintage-y look that brings out the decorative patterns. I also like to repurpose frames as chalkboards and memo boards. Frames can be an inexpensive addition to your home decor and fit in every room.
Old frames are also perfect for all those free printables you’ve been pinning on Pinterest. Anyhow, I’ve recently noticed an increase of crafts using old book pages, sheets of music, etc. This inspired me to work our collection of old maps into our home decor and of course, our Robb Restyle inventory. I cant’ wait to share more about Corey’s window-frame maps soon, but for now I’ll show you a quick DIY map project.
Selecting the map I wanted to use was the hardest part of this DIY project. We have a nice assortment of both vintage black/white and color maps. Since my mudroom has blues and yellows, I decided on a similarly colored picture from our old atlas.
This frame was perfect as is. Love the narrow gold trim on the naturally distressed black. I stole some glass from another old frame and this project was ready to hang in the mudroom. I would LOVE to wallpaper my whole mudroom in vintage maps someday…
But I swore that me and wallpaper, well… ♫♫♫ “we-ee are never, ever, ever… getting back together.”
This little framed map, as many of my speedy DIY projects do, inspired me to restyle the mudroom shelves as well. As our main entry and exit, this room gets pretty heavy traffic. I admit it rarely looks this organized, but it’s a great place to catch papers, purses, shoes, book bags, leashes, and more before they are scattered about the rest of our house. Sorting those items, on the other hand, is a bit more difficult… and rare.
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| This season our back door is almost always open – let the light come in! |
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| Unfortunately it is also the season for squirrels… poor dog. I have to end up closing it before he jumps through the glass. |
This project was shared with these parties:
Really cute idea to recycle vintage maps!
Over The Apple Tree
Love it! Looks great in that frame.
Hi there. I love your DIY maps, inside the windows and the picture frame. Is there anywhere that you show or explain how it’s done? I would love to make one for my sons room. Thank you. God Bless.
Hi Stacy! Thank you so much. I would love to share more details about how we make those. Currently we are busy making several to sell at the Holiday Hobnob Market in November. But after that event, I’ll try to get a post together with our DIY process.