adventures in homemaking :: photo wall
One of my very favorite things about homemaking is the decorating side of it. Creating a lovely and calm place for my little family is a privilege and a joy. House fluffing makes me happy, just like others enjoy baking or sewing or scrubbing the most.
We are on a very tight budget, but I've never let that stop me from bringing beauty into our home. Thrift stores? They're my best friends. Spray paint? She's my sister. That old beat up tool chest from an elderly friend's basement? Slap a fresh coat of paint on it and it's found a new life in our living room.
My style has evolved a bit over the years and I've settled nicely into a cottage-antiquey-farmhouse-chic niche. I need white and bright. Pops of color are a must. You can bet there are maps and globes, numbers and letters. I like classic with a side of quirk. Chippy paint is always welcome. Nothing is picture perfect and someone else might dislike my choices, but it's perfectly me.
I always and forever have a project going. One of my most recent ones is a photo wall for our hallway. I snap thousands of photos each year but fail too often at being on top of printing them off and displaying them.
Not.any.more!
The "difficult" part was choosing the photos since the list of possible contenders is endless. I settled on a dozen of my favorites : a few that we had professionally taken, as well as moments caught from our wedding day, the day we brought Josiah home from Korea, holidays and celebrations, and sweet summer evenings outside.
The frames were either ones I already owned or were thrift store penny finds. When I was on the hunt for them, I kept my eyes out for texture and shape and size. The color of the frames did not matter a bit because I spray painted all of them the same shade of Heirloom White.
Before I even thought about putting nails into the wall, I played with the frame configuration on the floor. I measured out the 72 inches of width I had to work with and then swapped and switched and arranged until I was content with the layout.
My hubby was willing to help hang everything when he came home for his lunch break. Josh is my biggest cheerleader and partner and leader on home projects. Before he became a pastor, he was a carpenter. He has all the tools and skills....and I get to dream and plan. Yay me!
I still may do some tweaking to it and add a few more frames, but it's up and it makes us smile. It whispers joy and love, which are exactly what I want my home to be filled with. I'm motivated now to start putting together another photo wall with snapshots of extended family and friends!
What is a house project you have been working on lately? I'd love to hear about it!
We joined interior designer Liz Marie's link party - we love watching her projects bloom!
Be blessed today, friends.
