Pots, Pans & Paintbrushes: DIY Chicken Wire Frame

Today's trash to treasure is a DIY chicken wire frame I made to (a) hold wedding and party invitations (b) use as a prop for photographing my Kitsy Co invitations.

This used picture frame that I salvaged from my MeMaw's garage sale toss pile was the perfect size for the project.

Project Materials:

Old wood picture frame (no glass needed)
Acrylic paint (color of choice)
Chicken wire (enough to fit your frame)

Project Tools:

Pliers (if frame has any unwanted nails or hardware)
Sand paper
Paper towel or cloth (for cleaning)
Wire cutters
Staple gun and staples

Instructions:

1. Wipe down frame and remove any unwanted nails, screws or hardware, so that you have a clean base to work with.

2. Prepare for painting by quickly sanding all sides of the frames. This will help the paint adhere.

3. Wipe off unwanted sawdust.

4. Paint frames with rough, quick brush strokes. No need to coat completely because the next step is sanding the paint. If done well, the result should already look a bit distressed.

5. Distress the frame by quickly running over the paint with sand paper. You can do heavy sanding for a more distressed look or simply just rub over the corners and edges for a lighter distressed look. I think mine is somewhere in the middle.

6. Using the wire cutters, cut your chicken wire to the size of the frame, and then attach it to the back of the frame with a staple gun, stapling every couple of inches. Make sure your chicken wire is pulled tight (assistance is beneficial on this part) and that all lines are straight.

7. Finally, cut off the excess chicken wire with wire cutters.

At this point your frame is complete. Adding hardware to hang it is up to you. I did not have to add anything extra to mine as it either hangs by the ledge of the frame or is used propped against a wall. The project turned out great and will be the perfect prop for my invitations.