inspired to make every day, life + work stellar

Happy Monday, ya’ll! Just wanted to share something really quick with you all.

As you probably have noticed, I’m in the process of decorating + organizing my office space.

I found these fun + simple kraft storage boxes at Ikea + love them {I even had my friend pick up some more for me while she was there last night}! Each pack comes with two boxes + you really can’t beat the price either! I use these boxes to store my tech gear, scrapbook stuff, etc.

1// Polka Dot Kraft Storage Boxes – $4.99 for 2!
2// Large Striped Kraft Storage Boxes – $7.99 for 2!

A fairly large wall in my office needed some serious love so I decided to give it some life by creating a budget-friendly photo frame wall collage! I bought most of the supplies from Ikea + Target.

It’s an easy project {minus the difficulties of figuring out how to hang up the Ikea white RIBBA frames. I’ll show you how I added an additional hanging hardware before the DIY photo frame collage tutorial}.

Materials needed:

• grocery paper bags, gift wrapping paper, butcher paper, anything larger than a letter-size paper
• tape
• nails {I bought the photo frame mounting accessory set at Ikea} and/or photo mounting hardware {i.e. sawtooth picture hangers if you decide to use Ikea RIBBA frames}
• hammer
• scissors
• pencil
• variety of photo frames {all of these frames are from Ikea}
• prints, photos

If you purchase the RIBBA frames from Ikea, I would suggest installing a sawtooth hanger so that it’s easier to hang on the wall. The hanging hardware is too deep in the frame that it made it really difficult to get the nail to grip onto the hook. So instead, I applied a sawtooth picture hanger to the back of the frame so that it was easier to hang.

Now onto the DIY photo frame wall collage tutorial!

1// Start tracing the frames on the paper and cut out the shapes.
2// Measure the top of the frame to the tip of the hanging hardware where it will be hung on the nail. Measure also from the right edge of the frame to the center of the hardware.
3// Using these measurements, take the paper cut out and make an intersecting point on the paper.

4// Now take the cut out and lay it to back of its corresponding frame.
5// Take a nail, place it on the intersecting point, puncture it through the paper, and make sure the nail fits securely in the hanging hardware. Now remove the nail from the cut out.

6// Apply a piece of tape on top of each paper cut frame and write on the paper of the corresponding frame.
7// Start arranging it on your wall {you can also arrange the actual frames on the floor as well to see if the prints look good together}. Play around with the layout for a bit and step back to take a good look at your arrangement. I placed the frames around 2-3 inches apart. The key is that it doesn’t have to be perfectly spaced!
8// Once you’re happy with the layout, leave the paper cut outs on the wall and start hammering in the nails or hardware hangers where the pre-punctured holes were.

Tadah! Here’s what the arrangement looked like!

1// This framed print was gift from a sweet friend! Thanks P!
2+9// Art cards of London found at Ikea + Ikea’s RIBBA frames
3+8// Old postcard prints bought at Target {they were in the stationery section} + Ikea’s small RIBBA frames
4+7// Photos taken from my trips, converted to black + white, printed at Target. Ikea’s KVILL frames
5+6// Fun way to display souvenirs from trips {pictured, masks bought in Venice, Italy}

Aren’t these masks amazing! Now, I just need to be invited to a masquerade ball or have an excuse to wear this!

Can you believe these victorian-style frames were only $5 each?!

Dust off your souvenirs, and find a way to display your souvenirs!

Is this not picture perfect ! This photo frame collage definitely brightened up the wall!