$3 and what's on hand...

I love how the kids' schools display their art. Their odd glue and yarn creations, grouped together have added charm and depth. I have framed and displayed stuff from my kids, but a few weeks ago, thinking on preschool crafts I had an idea for wall art. It was pretty simple. It would evoke all the smears and stains I spend too much time cleaning off the walls. -Actually, I was looking at E's handprint from preschool and thinking, I wish I had all the kids' preschool hand prints. Then I thought, I have stamping supplies, and card stock. I could get their hand prints right now... So, one by one I inked their right hands and pressed them onto blank pages. They loved it. Even that Big Kid was game. Interestingly, and to his credit, he was all for it, letting me ink his hand, and grinning, "This is fun!".

Now for the five identical frames needed to fully express the theme. I went to buy them.

I found exactly what I had imagined. But I stopped myself. I did the math: 5 simple black frames for $4 each. At twenty dollars... I decided that was no longer a simple great idea and just an idea.

About five days later I was at a thrift store. I ambled into the "household" section. And saw frames. Perhaps I could find some random frames to spray paint. They just stocked a bunch of them from that day's donations. Lo and behold SIX of the exact black frames I almost bought -for 50 cents each. I snatched up all six and paid for them. I went home. I cleaned the frames, I put the kids' prints, and mine in them. When Dad gets home we'll do his too. Maybe I'll get ambitious, take some card stock into the frame shop and use their cutters (I took their class and the use of equipment is free for me now) to make mats. Yay!