In my previous post, I mentioned that I'm a market hound. One of my favorite ways to spend a free Saturday is scouring garage sales, estate sales, antique sales or markets.

It's only natural that my love for old things has met my love for photography. Over the years, I've discovered some creative ways to display photos using treasures found on my flea market hunts. If you look through my home, you'll find some distinctive photo displays that show off my unique décor style.

Let's take a wander around my house.

One of my favorite homemade photo display creations have been the racket press frames I made from three old tennis rackets. The presses already had the appropriate hardware, so all it took was some stain, acrylic plastic and a photo mat. I insert photos of our sports-crazed dog Lucy and dubbed the themed trio 'Lucy takes the Field'!

Our old, wheelbarrow coffee table often gets a makeover. Simply changing out the photos or adding 'seasonal' props can give it instant pizzazz and change the look of the room! Here I printed out photos with the same subject theme in black and white and added some fall leaves for Thanksgiving.

Filling up a card carousel rack with photos was an idea I saw in a popular home décor catalog. While I haven't found the perfect one yet, my girlfriend scored one at a thrift store that had probably had been collecting dust for decades! I think it looks super cute filled with her old books and black-and-white photos. The best part is it now has RENEWED life as a major conversational piece in her living room!

Clipboards can be INSTANT frames and allow for easily changing out photos whenever you want. I just HAD to have the old clipboard below when I saw it has 'Rochester, NY' inscribed on it. I paired it with a photo mat, a picture of my late grandfather and hung on the wall! Oh - and what about hangers? Okay - so maybe not the ones you get from the dry cleaners but I took 3 of these old, wooden hangers (10 cents each!) and used them for hanging a chalk drawing and photos down our staircase.

I can't forget about my wooden ruler easel frames, I always knew I'd find a use for them when I scored them cheap at an antique co-op. All it took was a couple screws, a hinge and POOF - you have a mini easel to lean your frame or photo against. (Yes, that is me. Contrary to popular belief - I used to be a blond.)

You don't have to be crazy like me and use old junk, almost ANYTHING can be used to make unique photo displays. Over the years I've used a napkin dispenser and even place-card holders! Although typically used for table settings, they both can be used instead of frames to display snapshots. Just look at my turkeys below! They only come out once a year on Thanksgiving but for the rest of the fall season they prop little 2x3 candid shots.

My 'frame' philosophy is basically anything that can hang or surround a photo can take the place of a photo frame, old or new! This offers a WORLD of opportunity for creatively repurposing ordinary objects as frames. Personally, I happen to love enhancing my home with vintage, one-of-a-kind creations to display the photos that are special to me. It adds charm and character I typically don't find at a department store and allows for some older objects to breathe new life.

Have you ever used something unique to frame a photo?

Comments (5) | Permalink