One of my all-time favorite gifts to give and receive is a beautiful frame…and I extra-love it if it contains a photo. Especially coming from a close friend or family member: it’s always special to be handed the gift of a beautiful moment that some loved ones want to share with you.
What Kendrick and I are getting for his parents this year (don’t worry, I already told them to avoid RG for the next couple of days; such are the perils of pre-Christmas blogging):
This photo (one of my favorites taken all year, from our September trip to the apple orchard), transformed into a personalized 16″x20″ piece of art.
Why I chose this image: It’s a photo of Indy (or part of him, anyway), and definitely a moment that I want to remember (he tried to fit that entire apple into his mouth about five seconds after this shot was taken)…but it’s not exactly a “family photo” per se; it works as “art” even if you have no idea whose hand that is.
Where I’d put a similar piece: The kitchen, or maybe the foyer (to bring a little bit of the outside in).
– Try clipping an oversize print to an easel (to quite literally transform your photo into a piece of art).
– Get crazy with your frames: I love the look of a simple black-and-white image in an oversized, ornate gold setting.
– Tuck photos into clear glass vases for an unconventional display.
– Give varied images a sense of cohesiveness by placing them in matching frames.
– Intersperse framed images with mismatched mirrors to create visual interest.
(Check out the above JITH segment for some more DIY Gallery Wall tips.)
Art.com (where I ordered my print from) makes transforming your favorite photos into gifts (or artwork for your own walls) easy: the Photos to Art tool and mobile application allow you to access and upload your Instagram photos, and let you check out a Room View so that you can see what your personalized art will look like when hung on a wall (you can even upload an image of your own space and adjust the perspective from 5-15 feet away from the wall).
My favorite part: the app only shows you sizes that are appropriate for your photo’s quality (this is important if, say, you’re using Instagram or low-light photos that may have lower resolution).
Oh yes: and they ship anywhere. All over the world.
Fantastic gift idea.
