Cheap & Sweet

I love poking around the internet for decorating ideas and tips--you really can find a lot! But, one of the things that frustrates me is that, even when ideas are listed as inexpensive, many of them are still WAY out of my budget. Granted, I'm on a basically non-existent budget, but even if I had a little more to spend, I would not be spending $100 on a corner of my living room and calling it a deal (this was one of the "cheap makeover" ideas I saw today).

I've found that I am able to do a lot with what I have lying around the house, and I rarely spend more than $10 on any one "decoration." I also am not into building things, cutting wood, using paints or stains, etc., so pretty much anyone can recreate my craftiness. What I'm trying to say is...I come up with some pretty sweet ideas for decorating my house and I want to show you so that you (the other normal person here in blog-world without tons of money and a perfect house) can try them out! Plus, if I sort of promise that I'll document my ideas here, they are more likely to actually happen.

And so, here is a $5 project that ANYONE can do!

You will need:

• gardening twine/jute
• upholstery nails
• clothes pins
• a hammer
• old magazines, postcards, pictures, etc.

 I found the twine at Big Lots...I think it was a dollar.

The upholstery nails are from Joann's...they are the most expensive "ingredient" at a few bucks!

 I don't have step-by-step pictures, but you can see what I did. I have a big blank wall on my porch that is not really good for hanging pictures (due to the siding), so I strung the twine back and forth across the wall, securing the zigs and zags with the upholstery nails. Actually, if you want to make this project even cheaper, use regular nails or thumb tacks--I just wanted mine to look finished.

 Adorn your twine with pictures cut from magazines, postcards, old calendars, even family photos. 

 Secure them with clothes pins and enjoy!

Up until yesterday, this line was holding all of our Christmas cards (but I forgot to take a picture!), and now it holds "green" pictures in honor of St. Patrick's Day! The possibilities for something like this are endless--great in a kid's room, to display kids' art, to hold recipes, favorite pictures, and so on. A truly cheap and sweet project for your house! 

Let me know if you use this idea--I'd love to see what you come up with!