Lady on a Budget: Christmas Gallery Wall

Only one week 'til Christmas Eve! Even though I've been stricken with pneumonia, I can't help but get excited for the biggest holiday of the year. I neglected my usual second post last week because I was at Urgent Care getting my lungs checked out. Apparently, I developed a small respiratory infection in my two weeks of being sick. My parents have threatened me to take it easy, so here I sit working on simple, non-health-jeopardizing projects. It's really hard to be sidelined at the the height of the season, when I had so many exciting holiday plans. :( But alas, I'm human and susceptible to inconvenient illnesses. Remember to take care of yourselves, everyone! Your days won't be as merry and bright if mucus is involved, so be careful now, rather than later.

In today's post, I'm sharing one of the easy projects I've been working on - a Christmas gallery wall. When it comes to Christmas decorations, the big investment is of course, the tree. However, I like the rest of the house to look equally festive and glitzy. I used frames, wrapping paper, and bows that we already had to create a gallery wall of sorts for the living room. Even if you don't have all of these supplies on hand, I guarantee that this can be pulled together for under $10, if you purchase everything at a dollar store or on a great sale.

What you'll need

• 5 or more frames of various sizes

• A couple types of wrapping paper

• Bows/ribbon

• Greeting cards

• Scotch tape

• Scissors

How to

• Decide on your scheme and layout. I chose metallics with a few pops of red because our tree will be primarily metallics this year. Due to existing nail placement, the layout had to be asymmetrical, but I can imagine this would look very snazzy as a grid of 6 or 8.. or 9! However many nail holes you wish to put in the wall. :)

• Wrap a few of the frames. Just as you would wrap a present, though you clearly don't have to worry about covering the back. Make sure the edges are nice and crisp.

• Add bows. Stick on a few plain Christmas bows or make your own with ribbon for a nice designer touch.

• Frame your Christmas cards. If you have a few exceptionally pretty greeting cards, now is your chance to show them off! Sometimes they even come in nifty sizes like 5x7, so it is ridiculously easy to pop them in a frame.

• Mix it up with other art. You don't only have to use cards and wrapping paper. For example, in the silver frame (pictured above) I used a winter scene that I had clipped out of a calendar. Art is everywhere, you don't have to spend a fortune on it.

'Til next time,

Eva