I am an art mom. I am very definitely not a crafty mom, but art? Art, I can do.
What, exactly, is the distinction? In my mind, crafting makes a finished product and often requires some amount of skill (sewing, stitching, cutting in straight lines - all things I am incapable of), while art...well, art is messy. And making a huge mess is something I have no problem with. And something my husband (bless him) has learned to live with.
So it follows that we have tons and tons of artwork, in various phases of "finished" floating about our small apartment. And since Jackson Pollock is one of my very favorite artists....I obviously don't need a recognizable shape to love the art. But, given the size of our space, we did need a cool way to display! My old method of scotch-taping-to-the-wall (see it in my previous post on easy Montessori-style shelves) just wasn't cutting it. After much research, we decided on Ikea's Dignitet Curtain Wire System ($14.99) plus hooks ($4.99).
NOTE: Denver still doesn't have an Ikea, but we found the entire Dignitet system on Ebay for $30, including shipping. Done and done.
But depending on your space (or the type of artwork to display)...you might want to check out some of these other cool methods for displaying your kiddo's work:
Magnetic Paint
Use magnetic chalkboard paint or (just magnetic primer) on your walls, the affix your child's artwork to the wall with cool magnets. The pic at left shows HGTV's take, using magnetic chalkboard paint to display old photos, but I think kid's art would also be cool.
I love the idea of painting an entire wall with magnetic chalkboard paint, but if that idea is overwhelming, you can easily define a space using either home-made frames or large poster-size frames.
Storage Frames
I like the idea of storage art frames. We tend to create so much art in any given week that a traditional frame would take more patience than I have (taking down the frames, unscrewing the backs, inserting new pictures, etc, etc.) Storage frames are a no-brainer. Open it up, throw in the new pic. The other artwork just gets stored behind the newer ones.
I love the Lil Davinci storage art frames at Hearth Song. They come in two standard sizes, the smaller for $25, the larger for $35.
If you are looking for a DIY option, OhDeeDoh has instructions for making this storage art frame, pictured at right, from an old cereal box.
Quick Frames
OhDeeDoh also had a couple of fun quick frame ideas. One of their ideas (pictured below) involves mounting Wexel Art frames to the wall, then affixing your kiddo's art with magnets.
Another of OhDeeDoh's ideas (pictured at right) simply tapes your kiddos art to the wall, framing it with inexpensive colored mats. I think black mattes would be more sophisticated, but any color would look better than the scotch tape I started out using, LOL!
Any other ideas, readers? What have you done to display your kiddo's artwork?
xo,
S
