Make a quick wooden frame.

 *Don't forget to hop by the recent giveaway where TWO lucky winners will get a Creativity for Kids Sparkle 3D paint activity set! Whoop to the whoop!*

Okay, so when I was all gung-ho (gungho?)...All excited about my summer mantel I had just the picture for it. My Ikea print from many a year ago that I didn't ever put up because apparently when you go to a store thee hours away and buy special sized prints it's totally natural to NOT buy the frames to fit said prints.

It's also normal to not buy them the next two times you go.

I digress.

So I wanted to use the prints and had no frame, you get where I'm going. I also decided to do this a few hours before I wanted to write the post. So I did what any average house wife would do and grabbed some scrap wood (from the board and batten project) ebony stain and a box saw. I had about 5 inches left over so I had just enough. Basically the heavens aligned and it was meant to be is what I'm getting at.

Now, this is in NO way the normal way to do things. Not at all, as I go along I'll tell you how to really do them, but I had a child who was not wanting to run to the store with me so I improvised, you'll see how, you might laugh too. It's okay, because you're laughing with me not at me right?

Yeah..

So I cut all the pieces at a 40 degree angle like so, you could just fix em up square and account for the different lengths, but that always seems like more work to me than mitering and it only takes a few extra minutes for me to do it this way so I did. Then because I didn't have any staples or wood glue I used my hot glue gun. I know, shield your eyes. It'll feel super flimsy and well that's because it is but we'll stabilize it in a few don't you worry.

I gave it a nice coat of Ebony stain, and dragged it on and off. If I missed a few spots I wasn't too worried. Remember, nothing is perfect in my house and I'm a-okay with that.

 Don't you love the dingy greige color? Total driftwood vibe to me.

Then because the frame was way too wobbly for my liking I just took the cardboard that came with the print and glued it right on the back. Awesome, right? I know. It's my own little brand of genius. Cardboard and glue. It's like we're in elementary again.

Then I just used some double sided tape and taped the picture that fit perfectly into the frame, right on the cardboard. Done and done.

So, if you're going to make a real frame, get some staples and staple it, or those fancy hooks that hook the two pieces of wood together. You could also seal it really well but for us it's just sitting up really high where no little hands will be touching it so I think we're safe. :) Also don't worry about any imperfections in the wood, it gives it character. :) Love love love it. And, for being free, I love it even more. So does my husbands wallet. :)

The end.

Sarah's before and after party