I’ve used various means to display the kids artwork through the years, and I finally feel like I have created something that is convenient, easy to use, looks pleasing to the eyes, and displays more than 1 picture per child.
When it was just Whitney, I bought old picture frames on EBay and cut galvanized sheet metal to fit inside the frame. I hung them with Command Strips and used glued magnets onto some small wooden flowers and W letters to hang up her artwork. (I apologize that this picture is SO SMALL….it’s the only one I could find without having to go onto an old hard drive….you can see the idea though).
This worked for a while with just one child, but as she brought home more and more artwork, I needed more frames and really didn’t feel like cutting sheet metal (which was difficult the first time around), PLUS, by this time I was pregnant with Wes and, AHHHHH! I just let the artwork pile up on the 6 frames I had until just recently.
I discovered this idea somewhere on Pinterest (as we all do) and immediately ordered more frames from EBay. (By the way, this is the cheapest way to get plain wooden frames, no glass, no hangars, just the frames. Search for a “Lot of picture frames” and you can easily find sellers who post a ‘Lot’ for quite cheap).
Once I had all the frames, I painted them the color I wanted, and thought it would provide less meltdowns if the kids had an individual frame for their favorite piece, hence the “Best In Show” frame.
Figuring out how to hang them on the walls was the most difficult part. Do not, I repeat…DO NOT put your Command Strips on the backs of the frames OR insert your eye hooks until you figure out how you are going to hang them on the wall. As I found out, some frames look better turned vertically or horizontally, and you don’t know that until you lay them all out on the floor first.
So, lay them down on the floor and arrange, and rearrange, and rearrange, and….. it’s a lot of rearranging UNTIL you get what you think looks good. THEN, you can put your Command Strips on the backs of the frames and insert your eye hooks.
I used these small eye hooks and with a drill, pre-drilled holes on the inside tops of the frames.
I then tied jute twine around the eye hooks. Twine naturally droops over time, so no need to allow a droop in the twine…just tie straight across, one eye hook to the other.
I have a confession, I NEVER measure anything, especially when hanging frames. It’s just easiest for me to ‘eyeball’ everything and I’m typically spot on. This is especially easy using Command Strips because you can move the pictures a bit if you don’t like how they look. And, you can pretty much hang the picture EXACTLY where you want it to be, which is why I love Command Strips.
I started with the “Best In Show” frames and centered them on the wall. Hang the outer frames from that same row. I started with the upper row next and hung the middle frames first, centering them as best I could with the “Best In Show” frames. The same goes for the bottom row.
Once the frames are hung, clip these mini wooden clothespins onto the twine and hang that artwork up!!! The clothespins also come in cool colors if you want even more options.
This makes displaying artwork so much easier…even the kids can grab a chair and hang up what they want. Plus, I’ve noticed it really helps with throwing old artwork away….”Well, we just don’t have a frame for it”….”Ok mom”. Ahhhhhhhh, I love simple solutions for simple problems. 🙂
