Frame Collage

I have been in love with the pack of wooden 4 by 6 frames you can get at Ikea—3 frames for $1.99. (They used to be .99 but oh well). I don't know how many of these I've used over the years. I've painted, mod-podged and stenciled dozens for myself and presents galore. One Christmas I made personalized frames for all of my friends. I probably buy a new pack almost every time I go to Ikea...yes, sad I know.


Well, I had a project that I never finished about a year ago...and about 10 frames have been sitting in my closet. I still haven't hung anything on the walls in my new apartment, so I wanted to make a frame collage to hang up.
(P.S. You'll notice some similar patterns from past projects...You all are pretty much witnessing me decorating my apartment.)



Materials I Used:
Ikea wooden frames
paint
ribbon
scrapbook paper
permanent marker (for drawing on clear plastic)
nails



For this finished product, I actually combined several past ideas that I didn't finish. Notice the clear insert with the black...doodles? (I'm not sure the name). This was originally for a set of frames to hang in a square on a tan wall. I liked the clear idea for that.

I also picked some favorite scrapbook paper for other frames and a matching green color for the other accent. I had previously painted all the frames a black and a maroonish-red.


The first step is to find a pattern you like. Just a couple things to keep in mind: If you want a free-hanging look, the best idea is to do a straight vertical hanging, which is what I ended up with. I have two and have placed them on opposite sides of a wall that has a door on each side.

My original design was like this:


I ended up changing it for where I decided to put the project. But I did experiment in how to best hang it. First, decide on the pattern. Make sure there are places where each frame can be supported or support another frame. If you want to use ribbon ties like I did, insert them in the bottom of each frame, however don't tie and attach until they are on the wall. (Otherwise the frames will pull the ribbon and the whole balance will be off.)

Place nails for the top layer of frames. Depending on your design, it might be smart to place nails for frames in the middle. If you don't want to work with the ribbons for the balance, go ahead and place nails for each frame, you can always tie the ribbons to mimic the look. It's best to have an idea of the design you want, but you might have to tweak things once you see how they hang.

It's fun to use frames together to form a visual element rather than just to frame something. I also like using basic patterns for the center.