Updating Home Decor: Transfer Art to Canvas for a Contemporary Look

Hey friends! I’m sharing some tips today for giving your decor a contemporary look by ditching the frame and having your art and photos printed on canvas.  Now, don’t go saying “Adrianne, this is nothing new!” until you see what I’ve done – I’ve got a great story to share.  I know printing your family photos on canvas makes for a beautiful photo gift, but it’s also a great way to give your prints a fine-art look in a modern way.

CanvasDiscount.com is sponsoring today’s post, where I’ll be showing you a few tricks and tips to bring classic pieces to life in a new way.  I’ll let the difference speak for itself on this one!

I started with a beautiful charcoal sketch that was a gift from my sister from years back – I almost hate to say how many!  It’s a timeless image, though.  The frame though… well, that is another story.  Of course I took care of my gift, getting it matted and framed in the style I was decorating with at the time!  I increased the footprint on the wall by using a larger 24×36 frame, but on the large, empty wall in my bedroom (three houses later, I might add) it just wasn’t being done justice as a true focal piece.

So I had an idea.

I looked for some options for cheap canvas prints, and the reviews from CanvasDiscount.com were good.  I reached out to them, and they let me place an order for my dream canvas in exchange for an honest review to all of you.

And they didn’t disappoint!

I took a photograph of the original artwork, and did a little digital tweaking to the file.  I wanted to lighten and brighten it up to match the mood of the room.  Now, because I’m an artist myself (not in my sister’s league!) I have experimented quite a bit with photographing art.  It will take some practice, but I’ve found that the following steps are crucial to getting a great image:

• Before you begin, MAKE SURE you have the artist’s permission, if you are not the original artist.
• Use a tripod, and position your camera at the exact height of the piece.  Make sure it faces straight on – not at an angle.
• Use as much indirect light as possible: I find that first thing in the morning or last thing in the evening when the sky is light but the sun isn’t shining through windows is ideal.
• In low light, using a remote will ensure the crispest photos.
• Photo editing can assist with the rest if you have a straight, sharp, clear photo without glare.

From the original image, I was able to photograph and edit, giving me this file:

Note: while I got my sister’s permission for this project, I’ve marked the file with her copyright. If you’re interested in using this image, leave a comment below and one of us will get in touch with you.  

Once I had the digital photo, all I had to do was upload it to the CanvasDiscount website, select my size, crop it the way I wanted it, and place my order!  It came VERY well-packaged.  You can add mounting hardware to your order, but you’ll still have to attach it for yourself.  I also recommend using art wire instead of string for mounting, but that’s the artist in me!  (The only thing not 100% flawless with my order was that the mounting string was only 42″ long – for my 48″ canvas.  But as I recommend wire anyway, it wasn’t an issue for me!)

So NOW I have a true focal piece, at 30″ x 48″, and the prices are excellent as well!  I spent over $150 to have the original artwork matted and framed – and this HUGE canvas was considerably less than that!  If you’re looking for smaller sizes, you can save even more over going the traditional mat-and-frame route.

So, I could not be any happier with this home decor decision, and now that I know how easy it is, I will be using CanvasDiscount.com for decor in other rooms, and for photo gifts as well!  They have much more than just canvas. There’s a great selection of other items to add your photos to.

And if you’re wondering what I did with the original?  I gave it back to my sister!  She gave it to me years back as a housewarming gift in my very first house, and I gave it back to her as a wedding gift, to add back to her personal collection.  So now we can both enjoy the best parts of her art – she’s got her original labor of love back, and I can still enjoy it in a bigger way.

Thanks for joining me for this project that was close to my heart!  I’ll see you guys again soon!