With more homes to stage than money these days we are having to get creative! Here is my latest project. (I'm sorry I don't have photos, but you'll get the idea anyway, I promise!)
I purchased a book called A year in Art at the local mega book store. It cost $12.99. In it are 365 copies of world renowned art. The pages are about 4" x 8", all landscape format. The great thing is that in this book, none of the art pieces are on the back of another. Here are some projects I've been working on tonight with this book...
* Small desk/accessory style frames - you know the ones we always tell homeowner they should remove from their homes! We tell them this because they are too personal, with their family photographs. Well, imagine adding a miniature version of authentic artwork. I found two particularly good ones in my book. One was a wedding with the bride and groom being swept away by a very large bird. The other was a particularly famous one of a little girl. I trimmed the artwork down so that the frames, now showing what could be typical photos - a wedding and a child, can now be proudly shown, without the problem of being overly personal.
* I purchased 8 frames with matting on clearance for $7/ea at the local HomeGoods store. I found art pieces that were similar in nature to each other - in this case asian inspired. These I can use in leiu of more expensive framed art that you purchase elsewhere. The great thing is that because the frames are all identical and the artwork is similar in nature I can also use these as a large grouping instead of a very expensive large piece!
So, that's 10 whole pieces out of the 365 I have to work with..... I think this is definately a great inexpensive project!
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Melissa Marro, a published artist, now turned staging advocate and national speaker speaks her mind about real estate and the home staging industry. In her 'no holds barred' approach, audience members find real answers to the industries pitfalls and learn how to overcome them with tried and true information and guidance. With marketing as her passion, she turned a small home based business into one of the nation's largest home staging and training facilities. She now operates as the CEO of First Impressions Home Staging & Interior ReDesign as well as an instructor for Staging And Resign and regularly speaks at the StagerList Expos and Real Estate Staging Association (RESA)'s trade events.
For more information on having Marro speak at one of your real estate functions, please contact her at 843.822.2622 or email at marro.melissa@gmail.com
If you would like Marro's team to provide information on staging a property in the state of South Carolina, or the Greater Charleston Area, please visit www.WeStageSC.com, email marro.melissa@gmail.com or call 843.822.2622.
Melissa,
You go girl !!! Sometimes our most creative ideas come out of neccesity... IT"S a GOOD problem to have !! You can always cover a few cheap canvases with grahic fabric - great for your coastal area..
Calendars have great artwork too. I've also used photos from magazines for smaller frames. It pays to be resourceful.
another great idea - thanks for sharing Melissa. a bunch of similar pictures carries a lot of weight.
I love doing this, I use the big coffe table books that have interesting pictures. I always hate to cut them out though, so I always buy one to keep...:)
Some times I insert cards with pictures of flowers or landscaping in to existing 5x7 or 4x6 frames. This helps de-personalize without leaving the house bare and cold. Additionally, this helps eliminate nail holes that must be filled when personal pictures are removed from the walls.
Another suggestion which works for 8x10 frames is inserting pretty scrap booking paper into the frame.
With both cards and scrap booking paper, you can get several that co-ordinate and make a grouping.
Love this idea! Thanks for sharing
Melissa, Great idea. I recently purchased some books at a used book store with some great pictures...Now I know what I'm going to do! Thanks
Melissa; I love it... stagers creativity oftens comes from the fact we're not sitting on a pile of money. I like to use greeting cards and wrapping paper sometime. Fabric is also fun to frame.
This tip is both cost-effective and saves time shopping...I chop up books too!
Here's a bathrooom we did for a former off-Broadway actress who wanted a Hollywood Bathroom... with glossies of famous actresses. Ordering individually them online would have cost about $20 each plus framing. We bought one book, and a bunch of $3 frames on clearance at Walmart...
I dropped one of the three dollar frames (I think I dropped Susan Hayward) in that last shot with the dress manniquin ( I could not have THAT in my bathroom...too freaky), there was supposed to be three in that grouping...the camara shot above it is corrected, after an emergency trip to wallyworld.
That one book saved us tons o' dough! And the customer really loved it.
~mcihelle
Great idea!
I imagine that a grouping of small frames using your art from the book would have both color and impact.
I've had good luck browsing used book stores and you can usually find some really nice art books like the one you found.
I have yet to do this but have thought about it off and on. You have again reminded me to get of my butt and do it!
P.S. you know we would love to see pictures when you have some!
Melissa, great idea! I've used greeting cards and beautiful pictures at the top of wall calendars for artwork, too.
Melissa I love crafty do-it-yourself things. thats an authentic awesome idea! thank you for sharing!
I would love to see photos of the finished product. Very creative!
thanks Melissa for the tips on these projects, but when it comes to putting together anything crafty, I stink at it, believe it or not. I ALWAYS do great when out shopping so I have been lucky in finding some great pieces of art or wall hangings
I admire some of the girls who can put all these things together. Just last weekend I threw out some small prints I had with the same idea in mind that you mentioned. I never got around to framing them so I chucked them and the idea LOL
Phyllis Pafumi
That's a fantastic idea! Great way to keep some photos as accessories on display shelves, too.
Thanks for the great idea. We all need cost effective tips!
Melissa,
Another wonderful idea Decorating on a Dime. I continue to find some of these same books at my local thrift stores. But it is rare to find one that does not have printing on the back is supberb! Good for you. Keep it up the great work!
Have a Colorful Day!