We’ve been concentrating on office organization and pimping our desks this month, which has led us to ask what projects can we DIY with office supplies? So we decided to tackle covering the mostly bare walls of our new workspace. We started by creating a photo booth backdrop out of colorful paper (we can’t pass up a good selfie, even at work) and now we’re making picture frames out of copy paper and tape! Why deal with hammers and levels when you can create your own wild wall designs?
We created these four unique designs with dorm living in mind. Restrictions like no nail holes in the wall can put a real damper on your decor plans. But really, being without a proper frame is freeing – the materials we’re using to encompass our photos are so light and versatile that the possibilities are nearly endless! That’s what makes this project insanely fun – it gets those creative juices flowing and it barely leaves a blemish behind.
Materials:
– washi tape
– clear packing tape
– office tape
– factory-made pom poms
– needle and thread
– copy paper
– foam adhesive squares
Tools:
– paper punches
– scissors
– paint pen
– ink pen
– ruler
This washi tape frame was inspired by a post we saw on Design*Sponge. We were smitten with the impact they had on making both the wall and the pictures pop. It looked so easy – you just tape straight to the wall! – that we had to give it a try. Once your pictures are taped to the wall, all you’ll need to make this frame is a variety of washi tape and a pair of scissors.
One, two, three…start taping! It really is that simple! We fell in love with this particular pattern from Design*Sponge’s post, and it’s way easy to re-create: just make a rectangle around the picture, leaving about two inches of extra room at the end of each strip. Then connect the two edges by making a square shape out of each end. Just cut off any access tape so that the edges line up.
Next for our tiny picture trio, we decided to give the frame some extra flair by snipping each end into a pennant shape. Cute, huh? We divided each of the photos with the silver tape first, then laid this amazing patterned tape over it. Frame two, complete!
We thought we’d go geometric for this last washi tape frame. Start by laying two long strips of tape on either side of your picture. Now do the same on the outside of what you just laid down, but make the new strands about two inches shorter on either side. Next, connect the longer pieces of tape on the top and bottom with two strips of tape running horizontally, so that you have a large rectangular box and two smaller floating pieces of tape. Finally, bring the whole piece together by connecting its angled edges.
These frames seriously took five minutes to make! They’re so colorful and visually intriguing. Best part? They’re even easier to take down.
Our favorite of the bunch was this chevron-inspired frame. Those clipped edges give it so much charm!
We recently used these paper punches to make stencils for scratch off business cards, but we thought it was time for the punch-out pieces themselves to have their time in the spotlight. We thought their simple shapes would make an awesome pattern around each of our pictures. To make this frame, you’ll need colorful copy paper, office tape, and paper punches – ours are in the shape of a pennant and triangle.
We’re all about eye-catching color combos, so we used purple and neon orange for our pennant frame, and green and highlighter yellow for our triangle frame. Our paper punches were large enough to double up our paper, so punching shapes really took no time. One sheet of paper in each color gave us enough punches to surround our photos, but you may have to use more paper if you’re pictures are extra large. Once you’re shapes are punched, stick office tape on one side of each shape to get them ready for some sticking. Watch out wall, here we come!
We decided to make our frames by alternating colors, but there are so many ways you could approach the design, like using different colors for each side or even mixing paper punch shapes in the same frame!
Check ’em out! We love the tribal pattern that the triangles create around our butterflies and the bold pennants look downright regal with their crown-like shape surrounding a beauty queen. For our next frame, we’ll leave the smooth paper behind and get ready for something more…furry.
From tape to paper to…pom poms? Oh yes! Furry and festive, these round puffs aren’t just for garland anymore! To make this frame, You’ll need factory-made pom poms, a needle and thread, scissors, and something to hang the frames on your wall. We’re not talking nails here – remember, were keeping wall holes to a minimum. We used push pins, but if that’s even too much for your wall to handle you could always sub them out for hooks backed by removable tape. Now thread that needle, it’s time to sew!
First, lay out your pom poms in whatever pattern you like to surround your picture. We chose to decorate the right and left sides – larger ones on each of the four corners and a few little guys to float in between – then keep the top and bottom thread only. We eyeballed how big this frame should be based on the photos we used, but if you want to be more exact you could always measure. Next, start sewing from the bottom up. A simple knot will hold the bottom puff in place – they’re really as light as a feather – and keep stringing till there are no puffs left!
We held up our pom-ified string next to the picture we’re framing to make sure the puffs were in place before we knotted off the top. They easily slide up and down if you need to make any adjustments – we liked our large puffs to be just below and just above the photo we’re framing.
All that’s left is to knot our top pom pom in place. Wrap the string around your finger to create a hook, then sew back down through the pom pom. Finally, loop your needle around and through the string to create a knot. Be sure to pull it tight! This will keep both the pom pom and hook secure. Now just repeat on the other side. Once you’re done, you’re ready to connect the top and bottom.
All you have to do for this step is string the needle through both bottom and top pom poms. Remember to allow for enough thread to cover the width of your picture. Once you think your frame is the right size, pull your thread tight by the needle and knot tails before you tie it off and snip off excess string. This will ensure your frame is not extra slouchy. Ready to see what it looks like all sewn together?
Like this! Have you ever seen a pom pom frame before? It’s such a whimsical piece. We love the pop of color the blue thread adds to this frame. Now all that’s left to do is hang it up!
Transparent push pins make it look like these frames are floating in space! We thought that it would only be appropriate to have a luxurious fur coat and fluffy kittens be the subjects for these frames. Are these the chicest fur balls you’ve ever laid eyes on?
For this final frame, we’ll be making corner protector pouches out of clear packing tape. But these won’t be your average old corner protectors – we’re turning them into diamonds! Well not literally, but we’re drawing jewel cut lines on each pouch to make them look like diamonds! We didn’t tape our pictures to the wall to start since the “frames” themselves will be stuck to the wall with foam adhesive squares. Besides that, you’ll need scissors, a ruler, a paint pen, and an ink pen. Are you ready to bling out your walls?
Each corner protector is two sided, so let’s start out by making the side that will keep the pouch sticking together. Rip off two pieces of packing tape that are more than three inches long each, line up their left sides, and simply layer one a bit on top of the other. Now rip off a third piece – this will go sticky side down on top of the double decker you just made. Be sure to lay it about a half an inch away from the corner on both the bottom and left sides. Rip off just one more piece to cover the remainder (remember to leave that half an inch on the left side!), stick down, and trim away any jagged edges.
Your trimmed piece should look like this, with a big sticky “L” shape on the bottom and left side. Next, let’s make a totally un-sticky piece that is exactly the same size.
Once you’ve layered your tape on top of itself and trimmed your non-sticky piece down to size, lay it carefully over the sticky parts of your first piece. Press down to secure. Now you have a large pouch with two sealed sides and two open sides. Neat-o! Now let’s make it beautiful like diamonds in the sky :)
Measure and mark points at both two and three inches on both sealed sides of your pouch. Just worry about the three inch mark for now – this is the point at which you’ll cut your corner protector down to a uniform size. Once you’ve trimmed both open sides, draw a line diagonally across your pouch and cut along it. See, you’ve made a triangle, which is pretty cool. But nothing beats a diamond. So let’s cut our clear “stone.”
Remember that two inch mark? That’s where we’ll cut our triangle into a diamond shape. Snip each side off at a right angle and you’ve just made some killer bling out of packing tape. Now pull out your paint pen to make it even more convincing!
Using a ruler as a straight edge, trace a line through the widest part of the diamond. Draw two lines up to the top on a slight angle, then from those center points straight down to the tip. All that’s left to do is trace around the edges for perfectly drawn diamonds. It’s like we blinked and ended up in Tiffany & Co.!
Now we’re ready to grab our photos and slip the diamond protector pouches over each corner. Once they’re on, stick a foam adhesive square on the backs. These squares are a bit heftier than office tape, which will ensure your diamonds won’t be dropping to the floor. Now toss ’em up on your wall!
Press the bottom corners into the wall first, followed by the top. The result is an awesomely lux graphic that barely hides any bit of your pictures. Ready to see our collection of four faux frames?
The combination of different textures and shapes is outrageously playful, it almost looks like we’re in a gallery. Can you believe how much life these frames give to our wall?
We’re definitely not missing a wooden frame in this room :)
Which faux frame is your favorite? Have you framed pictures on your wall with unconventional materials? What have you used? Talk to us in the comments below!
