She Sells Seashells...

I have long wanted to create a gallery wall in my home. I often check them out on pinterest and eye the gallery frames in the pottery barn catalogs. However, they can be quite pricey (starting at around $15 a frame.) As I formed my plan for Savannah's new "big girl" room, I decided that I would finally create such a wall. It was about this time that a friend of mine shared with me a new business that she and her husband have started creating custom vinyl decor. This would the perfect addition to my gallery wall! I decided to use pictures of my kids from the beach to match Savannah's hibiscus Hawaiian style bedding. I ordered a custom vinyl that says "she sells seashells by the seashore." Then I hunted for frames.

Because my goal was to spend very little on this project, I did not order fancy gallery frames. Instead I got the absolute cheapest that Hobby Lobby had to offer and they were 50% off of the sticker price. They ranged from $2 to $3.50. All five of my frames totaled $12.50. I was so excited to come up with a design. I tried several different layouts centering around my vinyl phrase.

Of course, these frames are only available in one brown color, so I spray painted them white with some paint that I had on hand. I sprayed a very thin coat so that they would look weathered and "beach-y." Then to imitate the look of mats without purchasing anything expensive, I used scrapbook paper - which only costs about thirty cents a sheet - in various styles and colors to mat the photos I had chosen.

Finally, I was ready to put everything on the wall! I measured some and eye-balled some of it. The first thing I did was apply my vinyl since it would be the center-point. The instructions were simple. I laid the phrase face-down on a flat surface and ran a card over it. This made it super simple to peel the backing off of the word art.

After applying the art by placing it and slowly peeling the plastic away, I carefully placed and hung each of the pictures around it, and I am in love with the final results! (I had to bump up the contrast in these pictures. Although you can see the art easily when standing in the room, my camera had a little bit of trouble capturing the white on pale pink.)

I added some real star-fish to the wall. Little touches like this make a big difference in the overall look.

So there you have it. My first gallery wall. A big thanks to Stacie and Joel for making an awesome piece of custom art! You'll definitely want to check our their business, Wisdom on the Wall, by following this link! They have several great pre-made designs if you need inspiration or they can make a custom vinyl of your choosing in variety of colors and fonts! Its an inexpensive way to make a big impact on a bare wall. I am slowly finishing Savannah's room and I will be completing it soon. I'm ready to focus on Christmas, but I'll admit that I'm not the greatest multi-tasker! I am happy with the way things are shaping up, and I especially love sitting on the edge of her bed and seeing this.