Dealing with funky frames

Did I ever show you the frames I picked up earlier this summer?  Yard sale find, solid wood, 25 cents each.  But of course, I failed to note the size of the openings (10x12 and 10x11), and, when I got home, had nothing to put in them!

Fast forward a couple of months.  I've painted the dingy frames bright white, and called upon Costco Photo Center to fill those pretties.  I chose 4 vintage advertising posters, and had them printed up in 8x12.  Cost me all of about 3 bucks, and they were ready at my local warehouse in about an hour.

Then the prints languished in a folder, next to the disassembled frames, for several months.  I just couldn't figure out what to do about the empty space.  I could have matted them, though that would have required covering parts of the prints.  So that was out.  I thought about painting the backer boards, but they were just heavy cardboard, and I knew they'd curl up like a cooked shrimp as soon as any paint hit them.  So, we waited.

Until yesterday, when the angels sang from the office supply aisle at the DollarTree.  Foam core!  It was exactly the depth I needed to fill the back of the frames, and I could get four from one sheet.  SOLD!

I hauled that thing home, and laboriously cut (anything done with the help of a 3-year-old is laborious) four backers.  But I wasn't loving the white.

Remember the mixed silver craft paint from the pillars?  Yeah, it called me again.  I used a crusty old sponge brush to dry-brush the outside 2-inches of the long sides of each board.  Because I was dry brushing, the paper did not curl or soak up a bunch of paint, and I could really work the medium, getting a nice, matte sheen, while covering the white completely.

Then it was just a matter of centering my print over the foam core, and pressing the whole thing into the frame.

Some of my frames still had the staples, so I used those to hold the core in where I could.  And, because I'm lazy, the frames that did not have staples got a few lengths of FrogTape along the edges.  With the foam core, the frames are actually lighter than they were before, so I'm not too worried about things falling out.

They are really crappy cell-phone photos (dang camera battery won't hold a charge!), but you get the idea.  I had originally planned to put these in the great room, but I think they will be awesome in the master once we get the room painted.  I love all the blues, and just those few pops of orange & coral.  I think they'll be perfect.

If you are wondering what happened to the fourth frame, it defected.  I found an incredible vintage firefighter graphic, and just had to have it.  Since The Man is a (former) firefighter, we are doing up the large wall in the great room with his memorabilia.  I'm about to tear it all down and re-do, since I scored those yard sale ledge shelves, and we found his vintage alarm bell (it was in the attic at the parents' house).  My mom also gifted me a few vintage finds from her stash of grandma's stuff, so, this wall is going to be in transition very soon!

Yes, it really is that toasty brown color.  I live in a loaf of bread.

(Just ignore the fact that nothing is centered on this wall...there are two matching windows flanking, with the couch dead center.  The ceilings in here are really high, and I haven't decided on window treatments yet.)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

*disclaimer: I was not paid or given product by either Costco or FrogTape.  I doubt they know I exist, I just love their products!