I like big art and I cannot lie. Unfortunately, large, unique art is often rather expensive. When we moved into our home, we had several large walls that needed large art to match our decor.
As I designed our master bedroom, I fell in love with this 6 piece map collage. Since we purchased everything else new in the room, I didn’t have that much left in our budget “just for art”.
So I went to work researching how I could recreate our own version – and I love it even more! The map in the inspiration piece is of Rome. Dreamy, but no significance to us. Our map is of our home and favorite place in the world – Charleston, South Carolina!
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Finding the frames
The first step was to find our frames. I knew I needed the overall piece to be at least 36 inches wide to appropriately fit over our new dresser. Working backwards, the easiest way to make this work was with six 12×12 frames and a 24×36″ map.
I searched endlessly for the most cost effective frames – simple and thin to let the map be the star! In the end, I purchased this set of 9 from Michaels during a special 60% off sale! With the coupon, they came to $4.88 each, or $29.28 total. I used the other 3 for gifts!
Map it out
The map was a fun search. There were a lot of styles and options across many different websites. We loved the unique perspective and colors of this eBay find – and loved the price, too!
Black wasn’t the ideal finish for the frames. I experimented with offwhite and oil rubbed bronze, but decided on a pure gold to accent the colors of the map.
I love DesignMasters for metallic spray paint. The coverage is amazing and it truly looks metallic. Two quick coats and our frames had a whole new look. To tone down the gold just a tad, I drybrushed with a linen chalk paint. It added a bit of texture and gave it a more “old world” feel.
Put it all together
The map was exactly 24″ by 36″ so cutting was easy! Using a mat, straight edge and exacto knife, I measured and cut the map into six equal pieces.
All that was left was to frame and hang! Since I purchased a collage kit, the frames came with an amazing template to really make hanging the frames a cinch. I still used a level to double check, but the template saved me a lot of time! (The template is for the full 9 frame set, I just used the top 2 rows.)
Save BIG
I already had the spray paint (and nails for hanging), so our only purchases were the frames and the map. It came to a grand total of $56.18 including shipping! You’d be hard-pressed to find a canvas for that price! We saved $180 by DIY-ing our six piece map wall art collage – and it’s way more personal to us!
Live like you’re on vacation
The map was the perfect final touch to our master bedroom. It is my favorite room of the house – my oasis! I feel like I’m on vacation (in Nantucket of course) as I look at the combination of textures and finishes. You might ask, “why not do a map of Nantucket since you love it so much?”
That’s simple. Because we want our home to feel like vacation, and we live in Charleston. Vacation doesn’t have to be a feeling reserved for one to two weeks a year – but a sense of comfort and joy we can experience everyday. My motto is “Live like you’re on vacation,” so creating a Charleston-Nantucket room is the perfect way to embrace that stance.
The feeling of vacation isn’t just in the furniture and design. We take special effort to keep our room clean and free of clutter just like the homes we rent in Nantucket. I make the bed every single day and love having a comfy spot to settle in during naptime and after our little guy is in bed.
Where is your vacation happy place? How can you bring the feelings of that place into your home to enjoy on an every day basis?
