Old School Pinning

Old School Pinning has been made possible by Shutterfly and Looksi Square.

You know what I miss about the "olden days"?  (Any period of time before 1995 if you go by my daughters' definition.)

I miss pictures.  

You know, like, photographs.

Okay, I know what you're thinking. "Is she crazy??  I take hundreds of pictures a day!  There are more pictures on my iphone than my parents took in their entire 50 year marriage."

And you're right, of course.  I can't argue with that.  

But here's the problem:  these days most of our pictures are stuck inside our phones, computers and ipads, never to see the light of day again. 

So I am on a mission, a mission to free the pictures!  I want to see them out on display in my house.  I want people to walk by and ooh and ahh over the cuteness and beauty that I have so brilliantly captured. Luckily my friends at Shutterfly (via my friends at the inspirational website Looksi Square) have offered me some free prints so I can get started on my quest.   

(That's right folks, it's a sponsored post.  My first.  And as I have previously stated, the only things that I share with you are things that I use and love myself.  That goes for the sponsored posts as well as the unsponsored ones.  I've been registered with Looksi since its inception and using Shutterfly for years.  Both are great companies, and not just because they hooked me up with some free prints.  So let's get back to the post, shall we?)

So here's another modern dilemma:  with so many pictures to choose from, it's hard to decide which ones to display.  For that reason it makes sense to have a rotating display, something that can be switched out quickly and easily.  

There are lots of display options out there and I decided to go with a pin board--a big one--something I could put lots of pictures on at once.  

The first place I looked was Pottery Barn where I was instantly smitten by this beautiful linen pinboard.  I was not, however, smitten by the price:  $159.00 for the largest version (plus $21.00 for shipping).  Ouch!  

I had a similar reaction to this $219.00 version from Ballard Designs (and don't even get me started on the $270.00 one from Restoration Hardware).

Just when it was looking like my pictures would stay forever trapped inside my phone, inspiration struck (as it often does) in the hallowed halls of Home Depot.  

It was there that I spotted this:

In case you're wondering, it's a piece of foam board insulation.  It's two feet wide by four feet tall and it cost a whopping $4.95.  There were other pieces (muuuch bigger pieces) that cost about $15.00.  AND the nice Home Depot men said they could cut the big pieces down to whatever size I desired.    The styrofoam is about one-and-a-half inches thick and it is super-light.

This is what it looks like on the other side:

  

I immediately saw its potential as a pin board and after putting a piece in my cart, I hightailed it over to the paint section and grabbed one of these:

That's right, a canvas painter's drop cloth.  Canvas drop cloths are right up there with paint chips and mason jars on the list of items that bloggers love to repurpose and craft with.

Are you starting to see where this is going?

(I thought you might.)

After I got home I washed the drop cloth and got to work:

As you can see above, I put the foam down on top of the drop cloth (which I cut so it wasn't so big), pulled it taut and fastened it with thumbtacks.  The thumbtacks weren't permanent; they merely held the fabric in place so I could staple it just the way I wanted. 

The corners were a bit of a challenge.  I ended up folding them over, kind of like I was wrapping a present.  They're not perfect, but I doubt anyone but me will notice.

And really, that's all there was to it.  I turned it around, popped a couple of Command Picture Hanging Strips on the back, and hung it up.  (The entire thing probably weighs less than two pounds so there was no problem using the Command Strips.)  

Isn't this a great way to get those photos off the computer and on display?

And the whole thing cost less than $20 to make.

It was so inexpensive that I am currently envisioning several of them hung side by side in an office or crafting space.  Wouldn't that be pretty?

Before signing off I have to link back to the Pottery Barn Linen Pin Board one more time because, really, they're almost identical.   (Click HERE to make the comparison.)

And please let me know if you make one yourself.  I'd love the chance to ooh and ahh over your pictures too :)

Looksi and Shutterfly have invited me to participate in a creative brand collaboration.  I have been provided with product compensation for this post, but all opinions are my own.

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