Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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Two Fun Ways To Use Instagram Photos

What’s better than one fast and easy project with family photos? How about thirty. Just kidding. How about two. Cool? Let’s do this. First up, we have Photo Project Numero Uno. We’ve had fun with the little Sherri Conley cards-turned-art that we hung above our sofa in eight Ikea frames two years ago. First with bright paper behind them and then with some textured fabric as the backdrop around a year later…

Living Room2

… but lately we’ve been jonesing for something a little more personal. It all started when Sherry and I were talking about how Instagram seems to capture “real life” better than formal camera pics from a big event. Why? I think because we snap a lot more “day in the life” stuff on Instagram. And when we scroll back through those photos over the last almost-year we’ve been using it, it captures our days in an honest and casual way.

June Stagram Grid

That’s not to say that we don’t treasure pictures of Clara’s party and our wedding and other momentous occasions, but those photos are already represented all over our house (in our hallway frame wall, in our bedroom thanks to an anniversary frame collection, and even in our laundry room by the door). But we don’t have Instagram photos anywhere except for a few on my beloved pegboard in the basement. So we ordered eight more 5 x 5″ Instagram pics from PicPlum (read more on that process here) for our living room frame collection where we can all enjoy ’em.

About a week later these guys showed up. Each picture is just a dollar, so the whole project was $8 total. Well $9.75 when you include the shipping.

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Sherry was so excited to yank each frame off the wall and switch out the old photo cards for actual family photos that I think she did it the second they arrived. The cool thing is that Instragram photos have that nice polaroid-ish border around them (at least the filer we use – called Sierra – does), which adds to the whole casual and not-too-stuffy vibe. When it came to picking the photos, we tried to represent each member of our family a few times and toss in a nice mix of things that we like to do. For example, there are a few pictures of Clara, a few more of Burger…

Instagram1

… and a few of us doing things with them together – like swimming at the river or going biking. And you know we get random, so we added a scenic shot that we took of the state fair this year since that’s sort of a family tradition at this point (we go every year).

As for how Sherry adhered them to the fabric, she just used scotch tape since that was what worked for the other prints that we had in there for the last year. So it was easy to peel off the old prints (which we saved just in case we want to use them in another spot someday) and tape up the new ones in their place. They’re slightly larger which is nice, but there’s still lots of negative space around them which is cool since the texture of the fabric and the big white mats are my favorite part.

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So there it is. One project with family photos down. And one to go.

Instagram4

Enter Photo Project Two, stage left. It also could be labeled Instagram Project 2, I guess. (We’re more than a little Instagram-happy these days… is there an Instagrammers Anonymous?). I came up with the idea of ordering a few tiny Instagram magnets for Clara’s play fridge a while ago, and we finally got around to doing it.

Stickgrams 3 Final Stickers

We ordered them through StickyGram and Googled around to find a $2.00 discount along with a free shipping code. So instead of spending $15 for nine customized magnets, we spent $12.99 (making them $1.44 each). You could definitely DIY something similar (our approach would be to print the photos at home, glue them to magnet sheets, cut them as cleanly as possible in little squares, and maybe Mod Podge the front to keep them from getting scratched?). Only reason we didn’t attempt it was that we saw a package of magnet sheets at Office Max for something like $15, so it was actually cheaper to order them. But if you want to get your hands on a bunch of them (like for wedding favors or something) I bet it would be cheaper to make them in that instance.

Stickygrams 1 Order Page

It’s hard to tell their size from certain pictures, so here’s a shot of them with a quarter for scale. They’re about two quarters wide by two quarters tall and you can see the nine photos that we ordered somewhat clearly here. The goal when choosing these was just “photos Clara loves the most” which happen to be these nine since she helped us pick them out herself.

Stickygrams 4 Dime For Size

Here they are in action on the fridge. Clara loves pointing out certain ones, like “Look at Burger being silly with his bone in his mouth!” and “Daddy has funny glasses!”

Stickygrams 5 On Fridge 1

In summary, our house got a little more personal thanks to two easy little Instagram-related updates.

Stickygram 6 On Fridge 2

What are you guys framing these days? Is anyone else ordering Insta-magnets? Do you labor over choosing the best photos to frame or print for hours or just quickly act on your first instincts before you can second guess yourself? I’m Team First Instincts. Sherry and I used to over-think things like photo choices, but we realized that the less we belabor them the easier it is to switch them out or update them over time – which keeps the house feeling fresh and “right now” instead of frozen in the past. We’d actually be happier to spend $22 a year ordering updated photos for a few different spots in our house instead of saving that money and staring at the same photos for so long that they become invisible. So that’s my tiny picture tip for any other photo-overthinkers out there. In the words of Sherry: you’re not marrying them, you’re just framing them.

Psst- We announced this week’s lucky freebie winner. Click here for the details.

Comments

  1. Melissa says

    I’m trying to personalize our home too. I realized recently that we have art everywhere- but only one family photo displayed in the entire house! I’m working on a gallery wall in the dining room, so family photos are definitely going up.

    Reply

    • Melissa Shipman says

      Our house has photos EVERYWHERE because we just got married about a year and a half ago and had all these beautiful wedding shots to use. After a few comments from friends, (“wow, you have a lot of photos.”), I’m realizing we have almost no art other than in my office and some printables in the kitchen! We love it though, and until these photos start to feel too familiar, I think we’ll stick with it. And maybe use some art in the rooms we haven’t finished yet!
      Here’s our gallery wall here, if anyone’s interested (http://lovinghere.com/hang-on-and-hang-up/)

    • rachael says

      we don’t have smartphones either. our cell phones still flip open, don’t have internet access and we don’t know how to use the texting option. we’re like old people.

    • Cara says

      I don’t have a smartphone either or facebook! I’m 35 not 85 I promise! I am actually thinking about getting an iphone this weekend just so I can do instagram and get decent pics with my phone. Love pictures although I am still a real camera girl although iphone pics are actually pretty decent.

    • Alisha says

      HA! We are also smartphone-less folks (the cheap-o hubby is very anti-data package plans) but I was just dying inside missing out on all the Instagram fun my friends were having (and flaunting on FaceBook) SO he was a total sweetheart and surprised me by buying me a TURQUOISE iPod Touch for Christmas!! Love it.

      It’s the perfect compromise: no data package plan, but I can connect to Wifi pretty much everywhere AND I get to Instagram and play with Apps–and I can even make phone calls from it, too! And did I mention it is TURQUOISE!?! Amazing.

  4. Kara says

    I have an Instagram magnet project that I’ve been meaning to get around to. I bought these 3×3 wooden squares from Michael’s during one of their sales. Now I just need to pick some photos and print them out and glue them on the wood. Then I plan on covering it with the dimensional Mod-Podge stuff, to make it more “professional” looking than it being too homemade.

    Reply

  5. annabelvita says

    Just this year I made the decision to order photos without worrying about it too much – the digital originals will still be there!

    I find it helps to wait until I see those “100 prints for a penny each” deals from places like snapfish. I also like that it makes me feel more free and easy with the prints themselves (eg I pin them up with drawing pins or use them to try out a corner-rounder hole punch since they’re not “precious” per se.)

    Reply

  6. Kimberly says

    The little magnets for Clara’s fridge are adorable! What a great idea. And I love the way the framed prints turned out as well. Thanks for sharing!!!

    Reply

  7. Sarah | The Accidental Okie says

    What a great idea! I love Clara’s mini magnets for the fridge!

    I’ve been struggling with filling our home with pictures, mostly because I need some more frames. But also, I always prefer our professional pictures to snap shots. Rotating Instagram pics is a great idea.

    Reply

  8. Janelle @ Two Cups of Happy says

    Ugh, your posts about Instagram is making me seriously lusty over buying a smartphone. I know I would love IG! But I’ve decided not to make the switch until my slider phone kicks the bucket. Use it til it no longer works is my slogan for electronics! Haha. You’re so right about just putting stuff up on the walls. We’re working on hanging some art & making a gallery wall around our TV to make it blend in.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Thanks Brenda! He’s made from recycled cardboard by Cardboard Safari! It’s fun to put them together (they’re like a little puzzle when they arrive).

      xo
      s

  11. Paige @ Little Nostalgia says

    We did the StickyGram thing, too! My husband surprised me with some for Christmas, and he chose pictures that “reminded him of me.” One of them is a plate of nachos, which I actually found very touching. (Nachos for the win!)

    Reply

  13. Megan @ Rappsody in Rooms says

    I feel so left out of the world. Sigh. I don’t have an instagram account, mainly because I too stodgy and won’t get a smartphone. But I want those random daily pictures, badly. It’s actually the main reason I want a smart phone!Then I can do cool projects like this!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I am one of those reluctant adapters (I probably wouldn’t have a smart phone if it weren’t for needing to work on the blog while we travel, etc) and I was kinda resistant to Instagram at first, but man oh man, they’re some of our most treasured pics now. I am totally addicted. Who ever would have thought? Not me! Haha.

      xo
      s

  16. Kim says

    Yall only use ONE of the instsagram filters? I follow yall on instagram but never realized. Man I spend sooooo long every time I insta to pick the “best” filter for the photo – it’s really fun but kinda agonizing at the same time.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Haha, we’re such weirdos. We just always seem to prefer Sierra (probably because our phones don’t have the best camera and they look dark so Sierra lightens them up).

      xo
      s

  17. Rachel says

    I will be printing a ton of my Instagram pics tonight when I get home! And, if you haven’t seen it, there is a HILARIOUS video on YouTube that pertains to this post. I can’t figure out how to share the link from my phone, but if you search “Look at this Instagram Nickelback Parody” you should see it right away. Seriously, you guys will crack up!

    Reply

  18. Jessica says

    My fridge is covered in magnets from Sticky Gram. Love them! I keep ordering more. :) Instagram is my fave. Like you, it’s what I use to capture daily life. My husband is disgruntled that I prefer the iPhone camera over my once beloved Canon Rebel, now known as a dust collector.

    Reply

  22. Hilary says

    I love the little insta-magnets! I think my little man William would love some of those to play with in our fridge. Do they only come in that little size or can you order bigger ones?

    Reply

  23. Stephanie Oh says

    I love this! My husband got me big white frames for Christmas to hang family photos behind the couch and I finally ordered my pictures last weekend (I’m a belaborer, I admit). I can’t wait to hang them!

    Reply

  24. Gil says

    So cool! And love Clara’s refrigerator pics! No smart phone and no instagram… maybe someday:-).
    Enjoy this leg of your tour but too bad no San Diego while you’re already in California…not fair.

    Reply

  25. Wendy @ New Moms Talk says

    Both ideas are awesome!

    We thought of taking photos we have of flowers from the local Botanical Gardens and cutting out our daughter’s name with them as it means “lily.” (One letter per pic of course.) The goal would then be to frame or display them somehow behind her crib.

    Reply

  26. Karen says

    Love the StickyGram idea. Do you think they would stick to a magnetic strip (like those found at office supply stores). Thought this would be a great idea for my family room or kitchen. A few magnetic strips and change up the photos often. Thanks for the great post.

    Reply

  27. Kim says

    I had the craziest dream last night that I was friends with Sean Lowe and we randomly traveled to Atlanta together for your book signing and Sean somehow knew that yall ALWAYS ate at chic-fil-a before book signings so we went and found yall at chic-fil-a and hung out with yall before the signing. We went to this warehouse store another blogger had told you about that had wall to wall white ceramic animals (but Sherry you didn’t buy one – I guess that’s how we know it wasn’t reality). Then we were in the parking lot and Sean was loading a bench he bought me into the car and my alarm woke me up! Hahaha that almost sounds completely made up but I swear that was my dream – so weird and realistic! But also awesome, I mean come on how badly do yall want to go shopping with Sean Lowe and me in a warehouse store that has wall to wall white ceramic animals?

    Reply

  28. Jess says

    Oh we are all about the Instagram art in our house, too! We love how personal it is … and so easy, too! We have never done the mini magnets, but we’re definitely thinking about it now :) You guys have such fun Insta-ideas! Thanks!

    Reply

  29. Beth says

    So disappointed, “two quarters” but no 50 cent rap reference. $herdog is losing her edge.

    Super cute project. I wish Instagram was around whn we got married, I would never have hired a photographer.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Aw thanks Gabriella! Our best tip is just to try to have your phone around in case something funny or sweet happens. We miss a lot of shots, but get our fair share of them too :)

      xo
      s

  31. Kathleen @ Home Wasn't Built In A Day says

    Ordering and framing photos is the hardest thing for me to keep up with! I feel like I have to know exactly where the picture will go, what frame, and what size it will need to be before I order. And then once I get them all up and we take new pictures, I can’t stop thinking about how that one isn’t framed yet! Cool ideas with the instagram pics!

    Reply

  33. Karen F says

    cute ideas! I had forgotten that you made the front of Clara’s fridge magnetic, but it must have been in the back of my mind, because when we painted my daughter’s room this past weekend, I used that magnetic primer on her closet doors (side note – I thought I might die from the smell of that stuff – I know it says it’s non-toxic for kids when it’s dry, but wow, when it’s being applied…yikes!) anyway, I found that although I did 4 coats of the primer, it’s not super magnetic (and I stirred it like mad inbetween coats), so I need to find some lightweight magnets for the doors – I think this is a super cute idea! Off to order some magnets :)

    Reply

  35. Sara says

    Farkle…nice. Our family is farkle crazy when they get together. Someone even put together a “family farkle” kit with sets color coordinated dice so you don’t have to pass them everytime :)

    Reply

  36. Adrienne says

    I’m a photographer, so as you can imagine my home is completely filled with photos on the walls. That said, I COMPLETELY agree with you! It’s nice to spend a little more often to switch things out because if you don’t they absolutely DO become invisible!

    Reply

  37. Aimée says

    Inspired by your book and in the spirit of JUST GET ON IT, this past weekend I finally started hanging some frames on the walls to personalise our home (we recently moved) I am TOTALLY the type to overthink what goes in the frames which is why they have been sitting on the floor empty since October. So I decided to just print out some of my favourite photos on the home printer, gathered a few special art post cards and just hung them on the walls just “to see how it would look”. The actual ‘doing’ took just over an hour (after a 3 hour trip down memory lane looking through the 18,675 photos in iphoto) and it’s amazing what a difference it makes. We love it, and the girls love looking for themselves in the photos and reminiscing. And the print-job is surprisingly good – although it was meant to be temporary I might just leave them like that for even more guilt-free swapping at will! I also swapped out some of the photos in our 4 little 2×2 fridge magnet frames which I wasn’t even seeing anymore they’d been the same for so long but now they make me smile every time I go to the fridge. A typical case of ‘what took me so long’! so incredibly satisfying – thanks for the inspiration! now to get on the instagram bandwagon…

    Reply

  38. Careen says

    If you’re staying downtown in Tacoma, the Pacific Grill is AWESOME for dinner. I still remember the frites with rosemary and garlic cloves – to die for! – and that was three years ago. Everything there was good.

    Reply

  40. Susan says

    i don’t know if you’re on the flash sale site Decor Steals but they’re selling twelve bee napkins rings for $17.. so cute! thought of you!

    Reply

  41. Kelly says

    Love the picture updates! My prints from Shutterfly just arrived and now I need to get some of them on the walls.

    I made some photo magnets using the freebie advertising magnets that come in the mail. Just cut the picture down to size and glue. Small pics work best. Can’t get much cheaper than that!

    Reply

  42. Katie says

    I’m so bummed I’ll miss your Tacoma signing tomorrow – I’m out of town all day for work. BUT, I would suggest you try to eat at Pacific Grill – a restaurant in downtown Tacoma. You can take the light rail from the Dome. It’s one of the best (if not the best) restaurants in T-Town! :)

    Reply

  43. Catherine says

    Stickygram loves when you Instagram pictures of your magnets and tag them! I have 18 on my fridge from our trip to Europe and a few from the town we first lived in when we were married. I love them! Clara’s are adorable!

    Reply

  44. Jenn says

    You guys need to get the Pic Stitch app if you haven’t already. It’s free and lets you put together 2-6 Instagram (or regular) pictures into one little square by square, so you can share memories like a great picture of your favorite lighthouse from a vacation along with “people” pictures from the same trip. The app allows you to not only upload your mini collage to Instagram/Facebook/your photo album, etc., but also to send it to Walgreens for a same day (usually only an hour later) pick up! Best part, prints are under a dollar each and through March, using the promocode PARTNER25, you get 25% off and no shipping, since you pick them up yourself. It takes Instagraming and Instagram projects to a whole new level. The hardest part is choosing a layout!

    Reply

  45. Amy says

    No framing here, but I did just get our 2012 family yearbook in the mail yesterday from My Publisher and I LOVE it! Thanks so much for the inspiration to do that! Most of the photos I used in it happened to be Instagram as well, because, like you, I tend to use that more to snap daily life shots.

    Reply

  46. Evangelia says

    Great idea – i found a few more websites that print out Instagram photos, but your website is the cheapest. Quick question about your couch table – where did you get it from, did you guys make it? it almost looks like it’s been put together like a puzzle piece. Please let me know.
    thanks,
    Evangelia

    Reply

  47. jenny says

    I’m a photographer and have four children so it is always hard for me to choose the photos I want to hang because there are SO many and I love most of them!
    I like to have some framed that are a little more permanent and then others displayed in a way that I can easily change them out. I am working on a little project about this right now. :)
    love your display…as usual! :)

    Reply

  48. Angelica says

    Well like many of your other posts that I see and instantly feel the need to re-create (regardless if I’m at work or not)I went onto PicPlum and it doesn’t let me upload any of the photos from Instagram that I have saved on my computer. I emailed them about the issue and now I’m just waiting to hear back from them…..which means I have to focus on my work now hahahaha jk well not joking. Keep on keepin on y’all!

    Reply

  50. Anele @ Success Along the Weigh says

    Do you guys have a tutorial on here on how to properly space all of those awesome photos behind the couch? I swear I have some disfunction that will not allow me to hang more than 2 pics in a straight line, spaced properly no matter how many times I measure!!

    Reply

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