Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Photo Shadow Box

 

I’m always drawn to old windows. Not only do I simply like the look of them but I often wonder what their story is? Who all looked through them and what did they see? How many wishes upon a star were made through them? Or how many saw a loved one for the last time through an old window? Being a lover of the great outdoors, I could never have too many windows in my home. They do bring the outside in. For me, looking through a window brings joy to my heart. It’s where I spot the first Phoebe in the springtime. Or where I can watch a mother robin feed her young from atop the pergola. Sitting inside a window during the winter and watching snowflakes lazily falling from the sky while sipping a cup of hot chocolate can never be beat. Or watching a nice spring rain come down, turning everything greener by the minute…

Anyway, back to the subject at hand… I snagged a cute window at a local antique mall for a cool price…

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It measures around 26”x18”. I took it out to the shop and pinned some sides to it and also cut a piece of plywood to slide in between the sides. This piece is where I taped the pictures onto. (sorry, I didn’t get a picture of it)

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It’s hard to tell from the picture but I added strips of wood along the inside to hold the piece of plywood. (I can slide it in from the top or bottom since the box doesn’t have either)

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 Next, I added string lights. I stapled them along the inside bottom.

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Now here is the impressive part – I went to staples and printed out three 11”x17” pictures for around a dollar each! They are black and white and on regular paper but with good quality. I had forgotten to measure my window panes before going to Staples, so I just guessed on the measurements. I did need to cut them down some then since they were too big to fit the panes. And finally, here it is… a picture shadow box for about $7.00!

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                         Because the box is on top of the entertainment center, you can’t see that it doesn’t have a top and that the pictures aren’t all the exact same size…

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The lights don’t really show up the best in the picture above, but when the room is dark it does look pretty neat with the lights shining on the photos.

There’s probably about a two inch space between the window glass and the pictures.

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I hope you enjoyed this and are possibly motivated to make your own shadow box!

Have a great week!

5 comments:

  1. Love this! Dee from My Painted Stuff

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  2. I think that is fantastic! I adore black and white photos, but this really adds some extra shabby chic pazzazz!

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  3. I love this! Great use for an old window. Love that you used black and white photos... which just adds to the fabulous vintage look.

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