Colorful DIY Picture Frame From Upcycled Magazine Pages

Do you want a new one-of-a kind colorful picture frame that is very inexpensive and made from materials you have sitting around your house?

Then this project is perfect for you!

For this project you'll need:
old magazines
bamboo skewers
mod podge
foam brush
picture frame, mirror or piece of thick foam
utility knife or rotary cutter

After rolling up strips of paper to make beads, (see this blog post) I started thinking about using paper for a different project - a mirror or a picture frame.  I looked around at Goodwill and Hobby Lobby for an inexpensive mirror, but that didn't work out.  So I decided to make my own base out of a sheet of thick black foam, that way I was able to make it to the dimensions I wanted.  (For an upcoming gallery wall, I sent a bunch of my Instagram pics to Walgreens to be printed 4x4 - .39¢ each and you can choose pics directly from your Instagram account!)  I decided to make it square shaped and make a 4x4 cutout for a picture and two inch border al the way around. So the square I cut out was 8x8. 

Flip through magazines or junk mail.  Find pages with about an inch of color at the long (vertical) edge and tear it out.  Then cut out (horizontally) a 2.5-3inch strip.  Starting from the inside, torn edge, roll the strip around a bamboo skewer.  At the end of the strip, glue the edge down.

Cut each color down to 2 inches.

Use mod podge to glue each piece onto your picture frame.  This entire project is not a quick process, so allow yourself time to work on it.

When you've finished you have a one-of-a-kind, 100% handmade, upcycled, unique, colorful picture frame.  And (depending on the materials you already have) - it could cost you nothing!