I would love to fill my home with original artwork that I carefully selected. But time and money limit my ability to fill my house with one-of-a-kind pieces, and sometimes I just want to add some color and texture to a wall. It doesn't always have to be "the one"; it can be a simple find that is good enough for now. I also know that a completed home always looks better than empty walls.
Below is a range of ways and places to purchase artwork to color and style your home that won't take a lot of time or money.
The artwork in the picture above is a beautiful large-scale piece that we used in an upscale Atlanta Airbnb. Minted has many styles and size options, and you customize the frame and mat to coordinate with your home. I love that they offer large-scale pieces like the one above; large-scale artwork beautifully impacts a room.
Reframe a secondhand piece or a discounted store purchase.
If the piece you want to reframe is a standard size, then fantastic! For well-priced standard-sized frames, I suggest Target or Michaels. Michaels always has sales, and a quick search online for coupons can save you lots of money. If the artwork is not a standard size, then several online options, such as framebridge.com, and www.arttoframe.com, allow you to custom order frames and mattes for a reasonable price.
Etsy!
Etsy has lots and lots of artwork. For a quick option, I love the downloadable prints they offer. For frames, I use ready-made ones from Target and Michaels. Many Etsy makers will customize items if you want to tweak the size or color of a piece.
Target/Home Goods/ TJ Maxx and Marshals
Home Goods and Target are my go-to for Airbnb / VRBO designs and fillers for my home. A bonus of shopping at these stores is that I can purchase a large assortment, and I don't have to worry that everything will work since I can quickly return anything.
Example:
Target Art, Etsy Prints, and online Frames:
Left is a trio of artwork in my own home. I had a photographer coming to photograph the remodel we completed (ahem, two years prior) and wanted to add some pretty to the wall the TV is on, but I only had a few days to pull it together. I bought the top piece from Target, the bird, and the drawing of the mushroom from Etsy and ordered custom-sized frames online. I had the Etsy seller send me the image of the bird, but I printed out the mushroom drawing on my home printer. This came together for under $300.
Tips
Go big or go home. For central areas of your home, spots like above a fireplace, dining room walls, or any large walls go big! If a single large piece is too expensive or hard to find, find a diptych or triptych to fill in the space.
Overbuy the amount of artwork if it's returnable. Then do a "dry run" and place all the pieces upright on the wall you are contemplating hanging the artwork. Take your time, walk the room/s and switch out what you don't like.
Hang your kid's artwork! We bought two of these clip gallery hanging systems to rotate the insane amount of artwork the kids bring home. It's seriously so much artwork!!! I love that I can display a lot of their once without it looking like an s*** show.
Stack two pieces on a smaller wall, or if, like the below image, there are light switches placed in spots that annoyingly and unnecessarily take up prime hanging space. I picked up the two below from Target for under $100. Although mass-produced, they make me happy and obscure the aggravating placement of the light switches :-)
For gallery walls, cut out multiple pieces of paper in a color that contrasts against your wall, or use painter's tape to represent the pieces you plan on hanging. If you own your wall frames already, use those sizes to guide your paper cutouts. If you still need to purchase frames or artwork, then great; cut out lots of sizes and play around with the sizes until you get just what you want.
I can't fully explain how fantastic this hanging tool is, but it is incredible and speeds up hanging and accuracy! You temporarily hang the piece on this tool, then use one of the tabs to leave a small dimple in the wall, and boom, that is precisely where you put your nail! I have even had family ask to borrow it. Bonus, it's cheap, and you can use it solo or while chasing or being chased by a toddler while trying to get your home updated. Link here: https://sovrn.co/bs1skj4
Mix it up! Mix up your artwork style if you have a lot of wall space.
- Put up a photograph and a painting in the same room.
- Use mirrors to add reflective light, and as a bonus, mirrors are easier to work with than art; almost any mirror will work with any paint color or wall texture.
- A textured wall hanging, such as baskets or metal discs, will add dimension to a room and play well with other artwork styles. If your discs arrive looking cheesy as mine did, break into your kid's paint box to zhoosh it up.
Remember, spackle is your friend and is cheap! Don't stress about placing a piece incorrectly; artwork can be moved, and holes can be filled.