Framing Nursery Art the Cheap Way

We finally framed those Wes Anderson movie prints we bought for the nursery on Etsy several months ago.

We're cheap when it comes to buying frames, so we went with those poster-style ones you can pick up at Target for around $5 a pop. Thing is, if you just stick the print/photo inside . . . they LOOK like you paid even less than that.

To jazz them up, we used natural muslin fabric as a backdrop. Here are some of the other materials we needed to make this project happen:


Not many, right? And you may already have all this stuff at home.


After measuring four rectangles (that would overlap the frames by an inch on all sides), Stephen ironed the fabric so it would be smooth and uniform.


Tip: To cut the fabric to just the "right" size, we just laid it on the ground and cut around the frames -- very scientific.


Then, because we were doing this spur-of-the-moment and didn't have anything else, we used duct tape to affix the fabric to the cardboard backing of the frame. A nice, long piece on all sides has helped to ensure it won't budge. And it hasn't in the two months since we completed this project.


Then we flipped the frame insert over so the smooth muslin was facing up. We used even more duct tape -- just smaller pieces, one for each of the four corners and one for the middle -- to join the print to the fabric.


Yet again, we eyeballed it, and the prints look centered. Then we slid on the plastic framing pieces to secure everything firmly into place.


They look quite good. Much better than if we had just stuck the prints in there naked. But the sad part in all of this: After we got the prints up to the nursery, I didn't like them in the space.

They just didn't feel right.


But we're hoping to use them in our guest bedroom/gym/office-extraordinaire. If we ever get to cleaning that room. Sometime in the next 9 weeks. Which we absolutely have, have, have to do.

So, successful nursery project or not, we thought you'd enjoy this tutorial and find it helpful as you spiff up your baby spaces. Happy Sunday!

Like what you just read? You can subscribe to the feed of these posts or follow us on Twitter or Facebook to be the first to know what the (never home)makers are up to. And we’ll love you forever!