One of the things I absolutely could not wait to do when we walked into our new home was to hang art on walls. We only allowed ourselves to put one or two things up (with these ingenious hooks) in our rental properties for fear of marking the walls - this meant a lot of wistful gazing at artwork in street fairs and boutiques and murmurs of, "When we have our own house."
And now that we finally do? I can't decide what to put where!
It also means that I'm in the market for a lot of new art (we have a lot of walls to cover!), so I've been trawling Pinterest and Etsy like nobody's business. A lot of my favorite sellers and artists are in the US, but most of them ship to the UK.
It's always been my dream to put framed artwork up - not only in bedrooms and the living room - but in communal areas like hallways, stairwells, and little random nooks and crannies. Even bathrooms. The ability to curate a beautiful gallery wall of all my favorite prints is the ultimate goal.
Here are some of my favorite picks from Etsy that have recently caught my eye:
For the kitchen:
I mean, this is my life mantra anyway, but I loved this funny, irreverent print from Watersounds and thought it'd be perfect for the kitchen. So much truth.
For the entrance, where we leave our keys:
I'd love to put this sweet illustration by Blancucha right above the new shoerack we bought - where we grab our keys in the morning. I love the busy commuters rushing about, which is SO London! I think this will be my next purchase.
For the bathroom:
I love whales and I come from a place (the Pacific Northwest) where whale watching is very common! I wanted to have a oceanic (but not nautical - there's a difference!) theme for one of the bathrooms, and would love to see how this watercolor print from CactusClub would look in there.
For the hallway:
It's important to me that people know where I'm from and this beautiful watercolor blueprint from SummitRidge in Colorado really caught my eye. It's so simple, but it also a great reminder of a city that I miss (even though I'm actually from a town just a few miles south of it!).
We also bought an old map of Leicester (where John's from) which I'm really looking forward to framing and displaying.
For our bedroom:
I fell head-over-heels in love with this lovely print, which I bought from artist CarolinaBuzio yesterday! It's on its way over to me from Berlin and I can't wait to show you what it looks like once I have it framed and up on the wall.
What do you think? Do you have a lot of artwork in your home, whether you rent or have your own place? Who are some of your favorite artists and illustrators, and where do you like to buy your art? I'd love some ideas!
Your house is going to look beautiful when all this artwork is up! I particularly love the print of the people coming and going - it's perfect for your hall!
ReplyDeleteLauren xx
The Lifestyle Diaries
Thank you, Lauren! It is taking all the restraint in the world for me NOT to buy everything in sight! :) xx
DeleteI Love your "eye" for pieces !! I also love bathroom art haha ! Luckily I will inherit beautiful artwork that my mother has been collecting for years .... I already received some as "wedding gifts" from my parents and can't wait to hang them up one day!
ReplyDeleteThank you! You're very lucky. :)
DeletePS- you "do" know what you're doing in the kitchen - your cakes are delicious !
ReplyDeleteHaha, thanks!
DeleteSome lovely pieces, Jaime :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Angie - I'm glad you like them! xx
DeleteLove all of these pieces! We're renting now so I'm a little scared to hang art but I'm getting sick of blank walls
ReplyDeleteThank you, Bridget! I'm glad you like them too - you can try the Command hooks for hanging stuff up on your blank walls. We used it on our last two flats and they didn't leave any marks (even though it made us a little nervous at the time!).
DeleteLove these! I have this one on my wishlist, which is pretty similar to the whale one you feature: https://www.etsy.com/listing/98456569/large-a1-whales-canvas-poster-vintage?utm_source=OpenGraph&utm_medium=PageTools&utm_campaign=Share
ReplyDeleteI also have a house on my wishlist. :)
Love both of your suggestions, Ruth! I have such a hard time finding stuff I like. There's just too much bad art to wade through out there!
DeleteAlso, this: https://www.etsy.com/listing/105884818/oh-darling-lets-be-adventurer-screen?ref=related-1
ReplyDeleteWe have a selection of much discussed artwork, prints and our favourite photos. I had a dream at one point of a black framed gallery wall in our kitchen, bought the frames but never quite got any further...
ReplyDeleteI'm jealosu that you already have a collection started! Maybe it could be your summer project? ;)
DeleteThat last print for your bedroom is my favourite. I created an artwork for our paper wedding anniversary, it's cutout hearts, folded and as it's a map print, featuring some places we've visited
ReplyDeleteSuze | LuxuryColumnist
I'm so glad you like it, Suze! I can't wait for it to arrive. :) It's lovely that you have something that you created in your home! Such a sweet sentiment.
DeleteI LOVE that first one, and I've also been having an eye on Blancucha's illustrations for months. Maybe one day I'll choose one. I just love them all! :)
ReplyDeleteNo way, Charlotte!!! I love that we have been looking at the same art - and I love your taste in design (and basically everything), so I'm glad that you liked her illustrations too!
DeleteYou have lovely taste Jaime. That's all I have to say. Lots of love, Andrea xxx
ReplyDeleteAndrea's Passions
Aw ... I don't know about that, but thank you so much for saying so! xxx
DeleteI love art and have lots ready to put up in my flat, though I haven't yet...need frames. I have a gigantic list of visual artists I love, but a few of my favorites are James Jean (gorgeous illustrations), Jeremy Geddes, and Silvia Grav. Hooray for your home coming together :)
ReplyDeleteOh, frames. The ultimate issue when purchasing art. In the US, I could rattle off a list of at least 3 places where I could buy the perfect frames of any size, immediately. Here? HAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHA. Maybe one of those rare trips to IKEA. Everything else is overpriced and doesnt' fit.
DeleteI'm a sucker with beautiful art prints too and cannot hang anything either as my landlord is really strict about it! Etsy is my go-to place too - it seems that there are sooo many cute staff there :) Can't wait to you how your flat is coming together!!
ReplyDeleteSandy xx
www.smarksthespots.com
THanks so much for reading, Sandy! It is so hard to find good art on Etsy, as you have to comb through so much bad stuff! But I'm getting there ... :) xx
DeleteI absolutely love these! So original :)
ReplyDeleteSophie Loves Food | Recipes & Reviews
So glad you like them, Sophie! Thanks so much for stopping by. :)
DeleteThose are some absolutely beautiful pieces of art. I am utterly impressed. Sometimes I am shocked when I walk into people's homes and see a true lack of any artwork. They just have pictures of their family up. Now I love family pictures, but I have never had any desire to gaze at other people's family photos in their homes.
ReplyDeleteJulia Stewart @ Daytona Buyers Agent
Very cool artwork that you picked out. I know Pinterest and Etsy are reliable marketplaces but don't forget to scour your local thrift stores. I have found some amazing original artwork at these places, some true hidden gems that I picked up for dirt cheap. You never know what you might find locally.
ReplyDeleteMargaret @ Boston North Shore Real Estate