Wood is the most popular material for picture frames of all sizes because originally they were made of it and the tradition continues. But a usual photo frame of wood is kinda boring, so why not try to spruce it up somehow?
The first and easiest way to do that is to paint or spray paint your wooden frame. It’s important that your frames be unfinished. If you already have treated frames, but want to give them a makeover, you’ll need to sand off any sealant. Apply with a sponge brush just like you would if you were painting. Let dry and then add another coat if needed. Keep in mind, the more you dilute the dye, the lighter your color will be, and the more coats you might need. Because you aren’t using a primer, the colors will come out a touch different than if you were using paint. This way you do color blocking or stenciling also if the frame is wide enough.
Wood burning is another cool way if you don’t want any color. To create a polka-dot effect, use the standard round attachment that comes with your wood burning kit. You can freehand your design or draw out a pattern with a pencil before going over each pencil mark with the tip of your wood burner. To create a starburst effect, use your pliers to switch out your round tip with the pointier tip. When placed flat, it will create a short line that you can use to make a variety of patterns.
Love Polaroid? Make Polaroid wooden frames then! Use a vice to grip the wooden blocks so that your hands are a safe distance away from where you’ll be sawing. Next use the handsaw back and forth across one side of the block to create a groove about a quarter of an inch deep that’s just wide enough to fit the wooden frame. Once the groove is cut, you can add a little punch to them by colorblocking sides of the cubes with different colors of your choice with craft paint and a foam brush.
If you have a wooden box, you can turn it into a dimensional photo frame and add not only photos but also some other decorations inside. Got some dried herbs, flower buds, shells or maybe stones? Attach to the frame using a good adhesive and then spray paint the whole piece with some cool paint to get a unique frame. Find more cool tutorials below!
