Who doesn’t love photos? What better way of reliving some of those special moments in our lives? We’ve got loads of them. Most of them on our phone, a LOT of them on display but … loads of them in boxes too!! I mean, what a waste of memories! Of course we’ve got our traditional picture frames around the house, but this time I went off the beat and track to create something a bit less “run of the mill”. Scrap wood to the rescue!!
You know I love me a bit of scrap wood! (Have you seen my budget scrap wood Easter Bunnies yet? – you can check out the post here). We had plenty of scrap wood left over from a building project last year and some of the larger pieces were just perfect for this project.
here’s what I used to make a scrap wood picture frame
- Scrap wood (shocker, I know!) – my piece was approx 27 x 14 cm
- An amazingly gorgeous photo of one of your favourite memories – picture was approx 15 x 10 cm
- Scrapbook paper of your choice. I used the Happy range from Craft sensations (unfortunately I couldn’t see it available on line, but Amazon do a Craft sensations range here with some great designs)
- Mod Podge – the Matt variety (personal preference, you can use the silk one if you prefer!)
- Hessian material – I used these squares
- Jute string
- Some embellishments (I used some Burlap Blooms from The Range and a bright button)
- A small(ish) peg
- Glue gun
- Small piece of sandpaper – 120 grit (optional)
how to make your frame
I started by sanding down the piece of wood to get rid of any splinters and rough bits. You are going to be covering it so it doesn’t have to be too perfect but smooth enough. Wipe down the piece of wood after sanding and you’re all good to go.
I didn’t stain or paint the wood but kept it completely natural. Of course, you can stain or paint it if you want – the choice is completely yours! Start of by cutting a piece of scrapbook paper to size. I cut it slightly smaller than the piece of wood as I wanted to have some of the wood showing. Not loads, but you know, enough so that you can see some at the edges. Something like this.
Next, give the piece of wood a generous layer of Mod Podge – fill in all those knots and cracks in the wood. Once you’ve applied a general layer of Mod Podge, place your scrapbook paper on top of the wood. I normally place it on one side and then with my hand gently slide it over the whole piece. You want to try and avoid getting any bubbles in the paper so gently press it down as you go.
Once this is attached to the scrap wood, you add a layer of Mod Podge on top of the piece of paper. This seals the whole thing and gives it a hard finish. Really glue down those edges too .. they can be little rebels! Unfortunately I didn’t take any photos of this step but I hope it’s pretty self-explanatory. Glue, stick, rub down, glue, done! If you want to see the step by step, you can catch the Facebook Live here where I made it from scratch 🙂
After adding the layer of Mod Podge on top, leave it to dry fully. I would recommend leaving it to set overnight to make sure it’s really dried well and solid for the next step.
optional step – sanding down the edges
Now, this is an optional step. Some people like it .. and some don’t. I’m on the fence .. If you want to give your frame a rustic, worn look you can sand down the edges of the paper to kinda make them “blend in” with the wood. It will take off some of the pattern so it’s personal preference! If you do, you take a small bit of sandpaper, grit 120 or 240 (I personally wouldn’t go coarser than that or you may end up taking off too much of the paper) and gently sand down the edges. This is the effect you will get:
What do you reckon? Yay, or Nay? I’ve done it for the photo but decided to leave mine pretty much intact without the sanding. (I told you I was on the fence!)
Putting it all together
I then cut down my piece of Hessian material slightly larger than the photos, but slightly smaller than the block of wood. Basically, just right .. (anyone else feel like they’re in a Goldilocks story?!). I wanted to have some of the paper showing at the top and the bottom. I pulled out a few of the strands of the material to give it a bit of a worn look. Stick the Hessian material onto the piece of wood with some hot glue.
Next, grab yourself some jute string – I used a very thin string and wound it round the block just a few times, securing it with hot glue at the top and the bottom of the block. It’s just to add some detail to the block and to tuck the photo behind to keep it in place. Repeat the same process on the other side.
To finish off the frame I used some Burlap Blooms. I bought these at the Range but unfortunately they’re not available online. Amazon do some beaded ones here that would look lovely to finish this project off! These bad boys are all pre-cut and everything, and glued them on top of each other. Finish the flower off with a colourful button to match your paper and stick down. I added the flower on top of the string on the left hand side to fill up the empty space. Boom!! Simple but so effective 🙂
And finally, glue a small peg to the top of the frame to place your photo in. Slide the pic under the strands to keep it in pace. This way you can change the photo when you want to. To display some more memories and amazing times!
result!
And here’s the final result. I LOVE how this has turned out! It’s just a fun way of displaying a picture that would have otherwise stayed on my phone. Can I get a Hurray for Scrap wood?! What do you guys think? Where could you have this in your home?
Oh, and a little tip – if you use another colour scrapbook paper on the other side you can mix and match different looks. Like for Christmas – with your favourite seasonal family picture! That’s some of your decorating done, right there! Double Boom!! You’re welcome!
If you’re making this, don’t forget to tag me on any social media platform to show me your results, I’d love to see them.
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