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Frame Vintage Postcards for Sentimental Art

Ta Da!

I finally framed the antique postcards I bought and, over the weekend, Hubby & I hung them up.  Apologies to our neighbours, because we did so late in the evening.  Both nights. 

Some decorating math:

Stack of white floating frames

+

Postcards from early 1910s

+

Painfully empty stairway

TOO MUCH naked wall, but the scale made even the largest canvas look mini.

=

Less empty stairway

We made sure the top postcard is centred on the light fixture and hung below it,
so the light doesn’t block the view from the top of the stairs.

I love the subtle bits of deep turquoise (of course – my fav colour!)
It helps make the turquoise tile that came with the house make (some) sense.

The white frames are simple enough not to compete
with my DIY card display board.
It was Hubby’s idea to overlap the frames by the width of each frame.
Creates a nice, neat, graphic look.

I rarely do this, but here’s the cost breakdown:

  • 8 antique postcards in total = $40, haggled from $50
  • 7 white floating frames (from Chapter’s) = $118.57
  • Hanging supplies we already had = $0

Total cost: $168.57

With less frustration than last time, we also used templates to space out where we wanted to hang the postcards.  Normally Hubby holds the art while I ponder, but gallery walls preclude that type of distribution of labour.  He was a sweetie, though, and cut out all the templates!



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20 Comments

  1. Faith
    October 26, 2011 / 2:25 pm

    it looks great. what an awesome idea!

  2. La Maison Boheme
    October 26, 2011 / 2:34 pm

    Great idea. Love the overlapping corners.

  3. house no. 2
    October 26, 2011 / 2:43 pm

    tanya, you did it again! these are absolutely marvelous. i always say to my husband, you know harold, i wish we didn't have ONLY family photos. i mean, obviously they are the most important element of our home, however, i wish we had something else to display. i'd never thought of postcards. i did buy a few watercolours from a local artisan the other day. dammit. i should have bought enough to go up our stairwell.ps. our stairs are the exact same colour – honeyish. do you find it hard to pick paint colours that compliment it?

  4. Erica
    October 26, 2011 / 2:53 pm

    I love this! The postcards are such a great idea and I really like the look of the overlapping frames!

  5. Tanya @ Dans le Townhouse
    October 26, 2011 / 3:03 pm

    Thanks Ladies!Hi Ashlee (house no. 2). Almost all of our floors are maple hardwood, which is a little less honey-hued than in the photos. But I love the tone. Paired with our all white walls, the rooms look bright and crisp. I think they would also look good with pale greys, but I think darker colours might be harder to pair. I wimped out and went the easy route! 5 gallon buckets of white paint 🙂

  6. Shannon
    October 26, 2011 / 3:24 pm

    Love it! Looking good!!!!!!

  7. Jen @ RamblingRenovators
    October 26, 2011 / 3:37 pm

    Super cute! I like how you've run them all the way up. And good idea of your hubby's to overlap the edges – it really connects them.

  8. EJ @ Not A House, But A Home
    October 26, 2011 / 3:41 pm

    Looks great! I love how the frames mirror the steps in their placement

  9. house no. 2
    October 26, 2011 / 8:12 pm

    hi tanya, ours are maple hardwood as well. i have a feeling that crisp white may be the way for us to go. i just wish dirty little fingers wouldn't be destroying it constantly 🙂

  10. modern jane
    October 26, 2011 / 9:04 pm

    Very cool! Love the light too!

  11. Tanya @ Dans le Townhouse
    October 26, 2011 / 9:35 pm

    Hi Ashlee (house no. 2): white will look nice, and a magic eraser is super simple for chasing down smudges. But maybe a pale, pale soft grey might be nice for you? That won't be as high maintenance.

  12. Tanya @ Dans le Townhouse
    October 26, 2011 / 9:36 pm

    Thanks for the blogger award, Shannon!

  13. Dana@Mid2Mod
    October 27, 2011 / 8:17 am

    Looks great! I love the overlap too. It creates a really tight pattern. Pat hubby on the back for the good idea.

  14. Tanya @ Dans le Townhouse
    October 27, 2011 / 2:53 pm

    He sure is clever, isn't he?

  15. house no. 2
    October 28, 2011 / 11:45 pm

    tanya, i'm considering moonshine by ben moore. also, you got these frames at chapters, right? are they are on the chapters website? i can't find them.

  16. Tanya @ Dans le Townhouse
    October 29, 2011 / 1:46 am

    Hey Ashlee, I googled Benjamin Moore moonshine -what a pretty colour! I saw it paired alot with turquoise, is it a bit blue-y? Looks really crisp and fresh.You're making me want to re-paint my white!! With a different white. Lol.The frames are from Chapters, but I bought them instore. West Elm has some floating frames, too, but they were out of white last time I checked.You are super complimentary and so sweet – every comment you leave makes me beam 🙂

  17. Erin- Thanks I Made It
    November 3, 2011 / 4:10 am

    Wow! That's beautiful! I'm filing this idea away. : )

  18. Nic
    April 19, 2012 / 11:17 pm

    Hello,Found your blog from Remodelaholic. What size frames are these?

    • Tanya from Dans le Townhouse
      April 20, 2012 / 12:35 am

      Hi! Nice to meet you, thanks for stopping by. Great question!The inside of the frames are 14"x11". Measure from outside edge to outside edge, the measurement is 16"x13".Hope that helps!

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