I love accessorizing with a few thoughtfully placed vintage items, and I find that frames are one of my favorite things to use. They come in all colors and sizes, all kinds of materials, and they are pretty cheap in the grand scheme of accessories. You can often find bundles of antique frames in thrift or antique stores, or sold together on Etsy (which saves you the hunt of trying to put together a coordinated frame collection!). I once got a group of three white frames at an antique store in Tennessee for about $20. I still use them. Here’s one that I recently styled for an article on vintage pieces; I think this would be perfect for a teenager’s room!
One of the challenges with frames like this is that they often have no back or hardware (see above!). If this is the case with your recent find, you can always take the frame to a local shop and have them work their magic. For a more cost effective method of displaying your frame, you can just attach you own hardware and display it au-naturale like the frames below.
As you can see, a little spray paint never hurt anyone. (images via L - HGTV, R - sfgirlbybay)
Another image I saw this weekend that I just loved was from a favorite site of mine, Design Sponge. It’s the upstairs hallway from Sarah Fowlske and James Milward’s home in Toronto. You can see the rest of this lovely, typography-heavy abode here. This image of the virtually grayscale hallway is just perfect!
Monochrome minimalism at its best! (image via Design Sponge)
Finally, though this isn’t a frame it evokes the idea of using a frame to store jewelry. I am totally enamored with the way this home uses a strip of simple wood and hooks to display colorful beads at the top of the wall! This idea could be easily emulated on a smaller scale with a few frames rigged to hang your beads.
A neat, non-traditional take on molding. (image source unknown)
Do you have any creative uses for old frames, or good places to find them? If so, share in the comments!
Design consultations for all styles and budgets: JGB Interiors.
Paint It What I Tell You 
Leave a Reply