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When it comes to art for your home, there are many ways you can go. I’m all about curating a home art collection, featuring artists that move and inspire you. I mean, who doesn’t want to support talented artists? However, I believe that you can simultaneously find inexpensive art for your home if you get a little creative! And those pieces can be just as special.
I’ve been practicing most of these ideas for years, but I realized that I’ve kinda glossed over them when featuring my home, so I wanted to compile them into one blog post.
My Favorite Inexpensive Art Ideas
You can complete so many of these projects in an evening or weekend, so hopefully, these ideas give you a kick in the pants to add some new pieces throughout your space. Because if you’re going to display something, it might as well be personal!
Free DIY Canvas
My mom had an old canvas that she was ditching and I scooped it up and painted my own little landscape art on it. I even built a frame around it to make the piece look extra special. I’m no artist, but it actually turned out nice enough to hang in Ellis’ nursery. You can find an inexpensive piece of canvas art at HomeGoods or Michaels and then paint over it using my tutorial.
Greeting Cards
Greeting cards are so dang good these days. I always look through all of the cards at the grocery store and I just can’t believe the witty sayings and beautiful covers they now sell.
Here, all I did was tape a cute greeting card into this 5×7 gold frame and I was done. I bought this greeting card new, but this idea would be super cool if you’re looking to showcase a more meaningful card from someone special in your life. Either way, you can’t beat this price tag as an inexpensive art option.
Postcards from Your Travels
Whenever we go on a trip, we always buy a postcard. It doesn’t matter if we’re going somewhere far and exotic, or if we’re just going for a quick weekend getaway a few towns over. It’s always our mission to come home with a postcard from our trip. When we get back from vacay, I’ll unpack my suitcase, throw in a load of laundry, and take a seat at our kitchen table to write a few paragraphs on the back of the new postcard, which we usually pick up for about $.10! I add the date to the corner and then share a few specific memories from the trip.
This postcard then goes into a basket that I keep on my office built-ins, along with dozens of others we’ve collected over the years. Instead of buying a tacky souvenir, we just stick to our postcard idea to commemorate each of our trips.
If I find a really pretty postcard, like the above scene from our Quebec Trip, I will sometimes frame it and add it to a shelf or a gallery wall.
Framed Photos
Family photos get a bad rap when it comes to art ideas, but I’d argue that they absolutely deserve a place in your home. What better way to showcase your life and interests than with photos of the people you love and moments that make you smile?
However, I think some ways are definitely better than others when displaying these family photos. (You can check out this post for all of my tips.) My mom’s symmetrical gallery wall is a great example of family photos that make a gorgeous statement in a home, and it features my favorite inexpensive frame.
Family Recipes
I have a recipe from my grandma and my great-grandma framed in our kitchen! I chose two of their favorite recipes, plopped them in a frame with a thick mat, and have them displayed on our open shelves. I love this piece of family history right in the heart of our home!
Framed Letter
Speaking of family history, I also had a framed letter from my great-grandmother hanging over the nightstand in our old bedroom. Her cursive is absolutely beautiful and I loved having this piece so close to me every day! I need to find a spot in our new home for it. Framing a letter or a card from a loved one is a FREE art idea that is absolutely priceless.
Photo Booth Strips
I dedicated an entire blog post to creative ideas for displaying all of the photo booth strips you collect over the years. I suggest choosing your favorite photos and putting them in a frame for your walls.
Grab all of those photo booth strips from your drawer, find your faves, cut them out, and glue them to a white piece of paper. Then you can place them in a frame to highlight those silly pics! This inexpensive art idea is a wonderful way to showcase all of those memories.
Home Keys
This is one of those craft projects that was so incredibly easy, but it receives so much attention! I’ve saved all of the keys from the places where Finn and I have lived over the years, and I put them all in a frame, and then into a shadow box when we moved into our current home. This was such an EASY and inexpensive art project and everyone goes gaga over it.
It’s really special to look back at these little keys and be reminded of our history together and how far we’ve come. I highly recommend digging out your old keys to frame in your house. Or if you haven’t saved them, start doing it now! Even if you’re in your first house, make a copy of your key and frame it with the words “Our First Home.” Then you’ll be ready to add to the frame when it’s time to move on to your next place.
Framed Newspapers
When we renovated our home, we found this newspaper from 1938 inside the walls. It was so cool to read it and see all that was going on in the world during that time. We just had to make this piece of history a part of our home decor.
I ended up framing two of my favorite sections and displayed them in our front entryway. Everyone who comes into our home comments on them and it was FREE wall art.
Handpainted Plate
You can also think outside of the frame when it comes to art. My great-grandmother was an amazing painter (I have her pieces all throughout our home) and she even painted other objects like plates and cups.
I added this gorgeous painted plate to Rory’s gallery wall and it’s the perfect sentimental touch. This post has more details on how to use a plate hanger to secure it.
Sheet Music
Here’s another free idea from Rory’s gallery wall. I wrote a lullaby for Rory when she was a baby and an amazing follower, who is a music teacher, ended up notating it for me! I then framed it for her wall so she can always see it and remember the tune. I’m not saying that you have to go out there and write your own song. Instead, you could find sheet music for your wedding song or your favorite jam to display somewhere in your home.
Crocheted Doily
Here’s another idea from my daughter’s nursery…a framed doily. This was crocheted by my husband’s great-grandmother and I knew I needed to include it somewhere in our home.
I share how I cleaned it up and framed it over in this blog post. Again, this created free and sentimental art that we will cherish forever.
Digital Downloads
I’ve recently been adding online art around here and it’s an affordable way to incorporate beautiful art into your home without making a huge investment. There are so many amazing online art shops out there. Many allow you to download the print right to your computer and print it yourself! I love this option because not only does it make it easier on the wallet, but I feel less guilty about changing art up as I find new pieces that inspire me. You can find some of my favorite shops in this blog post.
Make Some Inexpensive Art Today!
You don’t need to shell out big bucks to add art to the walls throughout your home. Instead, get a little creative and try out some of these inexpensive art ideas. I promise your home will feel a lot more like YOU when you stop buying generic pieces and instead opt for personal art!
Casey
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