How to display your child’s school art

Oct 11, 2012 9:00 AM by Maria Mora

Posted in Parenting / Age by Age / School Age Kids

Go Beyond The Fridge

If you’re trying to avoid a cluttered fridge, you may need to rethink how you display the masterpieces your child brings home from school. Discover innovative ways to decorate your home with your child’s school projects.

Not sure what to do with the adorable artwork your child brings home in her backpack? Whether you eventually store it or toss it, consider putting together a way to temporarily display the art. Kids love sharing school art with friends and family. With a few simple steps, you can display your child’s school art at home, at the office or online.

Mix and match with curtain wire

For a modern gallery feel, install curtain wire on the wall in your home. Try easy-to-install DIGNITET curtain wire ($12.99, in IKEA stores). Install one long string of wire in an eye-catching area of the home or create a larger display by stacking two or three wires for a wall of art. Curtain wire and clips allow you to change out art instantly. Try hanging a mix of school art and photographs for an ever-changing ode to your child’s creativity and development. Ask your child to help you choose what pieces to hang and when to switch them out.

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Scan and post to a photo sharing service

If hanging up school art and assignments isn’t really your thing, fire up the scanner and archive school art online. Free photo sharing services like Flickr allow you to set security levels so that you can share with friends and family. Schedule time once or twice a month to scan your favorite pieces. Have your child help you pick what he’d like to share online and enlist his help when it’s time to load the scanner. When you’re ready to upload the scans to your favorite photo sharing service, make sure you let your child see his special online art gallery and any encouraging comments from your friends and family.

Create custom clipboards

For a unique way to display art in your child’s room, use clipboards to create dynamic displays. Begin with plain brown clipboards from your local office supply store. The ultimate goal is to fasten the boards to the wall to serve as frames, using the clip portion of the board to hold the art. The fun part is decorating the boards. Take a look at the existing decor in the room where you’d like to hang the boards. Use fabric and colors as inspiration. You can hot glue fabric to the boards, spray paint them with bright colors or use dictionary pages and decoupage glue to create an inspiring surface.

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Display in colorful frames

Traditional picture frames give school art fun flair in your home. When choosing picture frames to display art, keep in mind that you’ll probably want to change the art a few times a year. Avoid frames that are difficult to take apart. Try mixing and matching antique frames from the thrift store and spray painting them white or in bright colors. Allow older kids to help paint the frames and offer advice when it comes to hanging them. Go simple with a few larger frames or decorate an entire wall space with lots of frames. For a different take on picture frames, remove the backing and glass and attach clips to the top of the frame for hanging art.