apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Why not cover a door with them - an inspiration board sort of thing? I have some pretty images taped up on the inside of our medicine cabinet...

I have had a similar display in each college bedroom I've had. And in my first post-college apt. did the same thing. Now I'm moving and starting anew... I've gotten a few Ribba frames from Ikea... nice and cheap. And I've started getting random-sized frames from the Goodwill that I'm sanding and painting (a quick couple of coats of spray paint can do wonders). You can mat the odd-sized pieces to easily fit any frame. It is a quick and inexpensive way to display your sentimental collection attractively.

Put corkboard in a nice large frame, then attach items.

I buy old post cards from the 1920s-1950s and group them in themes (mostly by location), then arrange/mount them on a black piece of art paper from Michaels/Hobby Lobby, generally 16x20, and frame them in a simple black frame. When Hobby Lobby has its sales I get 16 x 20 frames that are generally $35.00, 50% off and the paper is a couple of dollars.

You could do the same with some of the more sentimental postcards/small prints. Otherwise, I agree with Janel about the framing in different frame thicknesses. To detract from the "clutter", I stick with frames that are the same color, that way the frames themselves don't distract from the artwork/photographs.

i think with some variety of frames you could accomodate these items in a cluster, but i also think once framed you might end up using them in related clusters. I see some that are of a similar size... depends on how much open wall space your next place has.

I'll second IKEA for cheap reliable frames.

Frames will make all the difference.

If you don't want to frame all of them, pick some favorites for your wall and use the rest to decorate your refrigerator or your cube/office at work (if you have one).

Also, adding some original artwork to your decor can make the place feel more "adult" though obviously there's more of a cost involved, so it's one of those things where you'd probably want to add one carefully-selected piece at a time.

you could use the clip board or the binder clip techniques, for small groupings, that has been discussed previously on AT.

In order to make cheap frames of different styles from the dollar store and thrift stores look cohesive together, paint them all the same odd color. I did this with a turquoise. It really pulls together the look and at the same time shows off the textures and styles of the various frames.

Aaron Brothers regularly has a "buy one get one for a penny" sales on its frames, many of which are very nice with a simple and clean look. Buy a bunch of frames in a similar style and then put your art in them. It will give your collection a much more grown-up look and you can easily switch the art whenever you want.

I'd choose to frame some or all of them, but place them in different little groups around the apartment instead of clustering them on one wall, or display a few at any one time and not all together. You've been looking at essentially the same grouping for a long time yet. Another thing I would do is get some other pieces, maybe less cheap? Mix them into the different little groups. Collect things in a more advanced direction, real paintings or drawings, or wall sculpture, even though you can keep working with your college dorm pictures as well, but if you matte and frame them, they won't look so much like you're still living in a dorm.

I think framing them and rotating your collection is a good idea. But if you don't want to commit to frames, you could put up horizontal wires, and hang smaller items with clothespins or similar. That way you can change the groupings, and add or subtract, at your whim. It may not sound very nice the way I'm describing it, but I've seen pictures of some really elegant displays of "inspiration" pictures hung this way in designers' workspaces, for example.

If you didn't want to go out and get a whole buncha frames right away, I have another simple solution that may grown-up-ify your collection a bit, without changing it! Simply take down all of the posters/pictures and paint that wall with a fresh coat of happy-colored (and grown-up looking) paint, like a turquoise. Then put all of the items back up on the wall, but instead of using icky sticky tape, use some classy pins, like the ones that bug historians use to mount their collections to shadow-boxes.I love those. Or, if you think that would be too many pin-holes in your walls, pin them to the inside of shadow-boxes and cluster!

Art stores (and many craft stores) sell pre-cut mats in many colours standard sizes for just a few dollars each - here in wickedly expensive NYC, a 16x20 is still only about $6. All one colour mats can unify a collection of different prints, or choose multicoloured ones for a more eclectic look. You can easily mount them on the wall with masking tape or binder clips. If you have more budget, you can put the matted prints in inexpensive glass or plexi clip frames, also available at art and craft stores.

yep, i second all the other ideas here - framing, corkboard, etc. however, i especially second the binder clip idea (carolyn and enamorada). Choose a space that will be devoted to rotating art, plan a versatile layout and stick in the pushpins/pins/nails, then hang your prints from the pins with binder clips. this makes it super easy to change 'em out periodically - not getting rid of them, but not displaying all of 'em at once either.

(i've had the same problem over the last few years - the 'oh no i'm a grownup!' moment - and this has helped me both cling to memories and shed the adolescent feel.)

Please don't get rid of them if they have sentimental value!!!! I would suggest organizing the smaller items in a few collage frames like these:

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/furnitureandhomedecor/frames/collages/PRD~251233/Malden Manhattan 3Opening Black Frame.jsp

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/furnitureandhomedecor/frames/collages/PRD~251225/Malden Southlake 7Opening Black Frame.jsp

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/furnitureandhomedecor/frames/collages/PRD~246414/Kingston 14Opening Black Frame.jsp

You can put the larger images in coordinating single-image or poster frames like these:

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/furnitureandhomedecor/frames/black/PRD~321918/Montego Matted Frame Black.jsp

http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/furnitureandhomedecor/frames/black/PRD~329559/Malden Floater Frame Black.jsp

You can even intersperse them with photos of friends and family. Personally, I love homes that reflect the personality and interests of the resident. Don't get so focused on creating a "grown-up" apartment that you end up with something too "done" or by-the-book. In the end, your comfort is the highest consideration.

i'm an art student and can't really afford frames, so at shows i usually opt for T Pins (like the ones they use for dissecting)
when displaying my prints. they make the smallest holes that can be remedied really easily by burnishing the back of the hole. or combine them with binder clips.
or a clip them to a clothes line/wire/string.

Collage! In addition to framing out some of the images, you could consider cutting up, layering, and generally combining some of the images you have into a single unified collage. Work on mat board or foam core, and then have the result framed.

I would buy lots of interesting frames (you can get various sizes, shapes, depths, and details at IKEA for cheeeeeeap) and get them all the same color. It will bring uniformity to the whole grouping and highlight these pieces as "special" instead of just a random collection thumbtacked to a wall.

Two thoughts:

A few years ago I saw a lovely wall of children's artwork in those cheap, clear, box-frames. The wall was covered in different sizes in a collage arrangement. Each box could easily be switched out as you discover a new favorite picture. If the picture isn't as large as the frame, use colored papers to fill the empty space as a mat.

Or, paint a wide stripe around the room at whatever height you like best - around 4-6 inches wide. Then continue to pin/tape/stick/tack your assorted pictures either directly above, or directly below the stripe. This makes them look uniform orderly and artsy all at the same time. (all the tops, or all the bottoms in line with the stripe)

Good luck!
~k