Hello! I’ve been working on redoing our playroom and the inspiration for vintage decor really came when we got our vintage kitchen set. It’s awesome when special items like this can be passed down through the family and this is certainly an example of that! The oven was played with by my sister and myself when we were growing up and then the sink and refrigerator were made by my brother-in-law for their kids. They got to the point they were outgrowing it and we were very excited to receive it for our playroom! It was a special day when my niece arrived to help my son set up the kitchen with all the food, dishes, and play appliances you could imagine!
Once it was in the room, I was able to begin to envision the direction I wanted to go with decor and it started with painting the walls a soft toned grey. I chose Agreeable Grey from Sherwin-Williams. It is a very popular one with farmhouse style decor and you really can’t go wrong with it. It is one of the lighter shades of grey and it is nice because it isn’t a cool toned grey, nor a true greige…so it strikes such a nice balance. I highly recommend taking a look at it.
With the room painted I wanted to create some vintage looking wall hangings, but didn’t want to spend a lot of money. I had in my mind to create some vintage school posters, but large prints can be quite expensive, so I went on the Etsy website and was able to find exactly what I was looking for. I ordered digital files of the images I liked, which is extremely affordable and gives you so much flexibility with what you can do with them. There are so many great sellers creating digital images for things like posters to party invitations and more. And, I just love supporting small businesses on Etsy! I only spent $8 total to get the two images. I then looked for where I could get the best deal on poster size prints and I was able to find a great deal with VistaPrint. I was able to 16 X 20 inch posters for only $4.49 a piece. In addition to the prints I got from Etsy, I also ordered prints of two candid shots of my children. I did them in the same size and used a filter to create a vintage look to have them to go with the vibe of the room I was creating.
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our new content sent to your inbox:
So, let’s get started making the frames…..
Here’s What You Need:
- 16 x 20 Etsy Alphabet & Numbers Digital Image
- white duct tape
- wide masking tape
- twine
- craft glue
- 1 eight foot piece of 1/4 inch by 1 3/8 inch moulding for each poster, pine or PVC (I used PVC, looks like wood and can be stained or painted, but was cheaper. It was about $4 for an 8 foot piece.)
- drill
- miter box and saw
- Command Hooks to hang posters
- Optional: Stain or Paint…I left mine natural.
PIN IT TO SAVE FOR LATER:
STEPS TO MAKE FARMHOUSE STYLE POSTER FRAME:
- The first thing I did was to use the white duct tape on the left and right sides of the poster. I ran one strip down each side to add a little strength to the poster and help it resist curling on the edges.
2. Next, I created a false edge to the top and the bottom of the poster. This way I did not have to lose any of the image under the frame. To start, I ran the masking tape along the back of the poster leaving about half the width overhang the poster.
3. Then, turn the poster over and run a strip of masking tape over the top of the other piece starting right along, but not touching the bottom edge of the poster.
4. Fold the edge of the tape that is exposed on top of the other piece. This will create the surface for the wood molding to secure to. Cut the uneven edges of the tape leaving about one quarter inch overhang on each side.
5. Repeat the same procedure on the top edge of the poster. The poster is now ready for the moulding to be applied.
6. I decided to leave one half inch overhang on the left and right of the poster. So, I cut the moulding into 17 inch pieces using the miter box. You will need four 17 inch pieces.
7. Cut the pieces using the miter box and saw.
8. Now you are ready to glue the moulding to the poster. Apply craft glue to one strip of moulding and lay the poster on top of it, lining it up with the masking tape and edge of the poster. There should be a one half inch overhang of moulding to each side of the poster. Then, take the next piece of moulding and apply glue to it and place it on the other side of the poster, lining it up directly on top of the first piece of moulding. Think of it as creating a sandwich of moulding w/ the masking tape in between. Press together and wipe any excess glue away. Follow the same steps on the other side of the poster with the last two pieces of moulding.
9. Lay flat to allow the glue to dry for a few hours or overnight. I added some weight to them to help the glue to secure. I just grabbed a few cans of items from my pantry…keep it simple, haha!
10. Once the glue is dry, you can drill the holes in the top strip of moulding. I placed my holes about 2-3 inches in from the outer edges and centered from top to bottom. Simply make a pencil mark where you want the hole, then make a hole about one eighth inch to one quarter inch diameter.
11. Finally, you can feed the twine through and knot it on each side and hang your framed poster. I chose to use Command hooks, so that I didn’t have to make holes in the walls. Since it is a playroom, I envision it changing numerous times as our little ones grow, so using Command hooks whenever possible helps make that easy and reduce damage to the walls.
Love the finished look of the posters with our vintage kitchen and table and chairs set. I added some fun little snowflakes in the corner of the room for winter and have a wall with a felt Christmas tree and gingerbread man that the kids can decorate over and over. On the adjacent wall, I made the same poster frames with a picture of each of our kids that I adjusted with a filter to give them a coordinating vintage look. Here is where I got my digital image files: Alphabet & Number Digital Images from Etsy The image files were $8 total and then I printed them from Vistaprint for about $4.50 a poster.
Thanks so much for reading and I can’t wait to see what projects you make using this simple DIY. Did you PIN this to save it for later?
And, be sure to subscribe to get our new content sent to your inbox and follow us on Pinterest & Instagram.
You may also want to check out my easy DIY on making Farmhouse Style Bows.
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our new content sent to your inbox:
Recent Posts
Solomon's Seal is one of the most beautiful curious woodland wildflowers one may encounter while on a Spring or Summer hike. Beautiful smooth leaves neatly arranged, and complimented by dangling...
One of the tallest flowers to ever grace the prairies of North America is the Compass Plant. Mature specimens can reach 12’ tall making it one of the tallest perennials...