Framing your greeting cards and postcards is one of the best ways to treasure them and enjoy them for years to come. But where do you start with transforming your old greeting cards and postcards into unique wall art?
As the owner of a sustainable greeting card business, Jess A Little Creative, I am passionate about ensuring special, meaningful greeting cards from friends and family are kept and treasured for years to come. And framing those special greeting cards is certainly one way to ensure they will be enjoyed for a long time.
It all comes down to three things: choosing, positioning and displaying. Follow this guide to ensure you have the most beautifully framed greeting cards on display to enjoy for years to come!
1. Choose the right frame for your greeting card
Your special greeting cards can really be brought to life with the right frame. This includes choosing a frame that is the right size, colour and style to compliment the greeting card you are framing.
Choosing the right size frame
- Make sure you measure your greeting card before buying a frame, and check it against the size specifications of the frame (double check if the size allows for a mount if you’re using one).
- For example, Jess A Little Creative greeting cards measure either 150mm x 150mm, or 105mm x 150mm. The square cards (150mm x 150mm) fit in a 6 x 6 inch frame, and the rectangular cards (105mm x 150mm) fit in a 6 x 4 inch frame. Both are common frame sizes you will find in lots of shops.
Choosing the right colour frame
- If you are framing a super bright and colourful greeting card, you may want a simple white frame with a mount to give it space and allow the design to really pop. Or if your greeting cards have minimal colour or are black and white, a brightly coloured frame could really make them stand out when displayed in your home.
- When you go shopping for a frame, be sure to take the greeting cards with you so you can see how it will look, it’s often hard to visualise in your head.
Choosing the right style frame
- This again depends on the greeting card you are framing. If it’s a fairly simple, minimal greeting card design, you could pick a frame which has some embellishments or decoration, maybe a frame which feels more ornate or vintage. But if the greeting card design is quite detailed, a simple, contemporary frame will compliment it better and allow the design to sing.
- Important to remember that the greeting card needs to be the star of the show, not the frame!
- Lots of high street stores have plenty of choice of frames these days, at affordable prices. And don’t forget to look in your local charity shops or at car boot sales, to find more quirky or unique frames too.
2. Position the greeting card correctly in the frame
There is nothing more annoying than taking the time to buy a nice frame, and within days see the greeting card within it slip out of place, not fit the frame properly, or sit unloved and gathering dust as it just doesn’t look how you wanted it to. All these problems are easily solved by positioning the greeting card correctly when you first frame it.
Firstly, ensure the greeting card is the right size for the frame (trim down to fit if needed). If your frame is too big, you can either buy a mount or insert, or make your own. Mounts can often make wall art feel more luxurious, as it gives the artwork room to breathe, so do consider getting slightly larger frames so you have space for a mount.
To avoid the greeting card slipping out of place, blu-tack the greeting card to the backing sheet that came with the frame when you bought it. This will ensure it is positioned centrally, as well as keeping it in place and avoiding any slips.
Similarly, if you are using a mount, you can secure the greeting card to the mount by attaching it with blu-tack or masking tape (I’ve suggested these as they shouldn't damage the greeting card if you decide to take it out of the frame in the future). Again just ensure it is central before sticking with tape or blu-tack, and you are good to go.
Once the greeting card is held securely in place in its frame, it will be there for you to enjoy for years to come.
3. Display the framed greeting card in a suitable location in your home
The finishing touch, once you’ve framed your greeting card, is to find a lovely place for it to live in your home. A location that matches the mood, styling, and emotion of the greeting card. It’s also a good idea to pick a spot with good light, so your framed greeting card isn’t hidden away.
For example, say you have a large red sofa in your lounge, and a few special greeting cards that heavily feature the colour red, it would make sense to frame and hang them near the red sofa for some nice colour coordination. Or maybe you have a sage green office, and want to bring more nature into the room, you could frame some lovely floral greeting cards, to compliment the sage green colour scheme and add to the natural, calming vibe of the room.
Also think about the mood created by the greeting card. Is the image on the greeting card romantic, food-based, humorous? That can have some influence over where it will best live in your home.
Special greeting cards are also sometimes kept for emotional reasons. If a greeting card will make you feel sad, or stirs uncomfortable emotions, but you still want it on display as it is important or special to you, place it in a room that you don’t spend lots of time in, or a room where you don’t often entertain guests. Just because you have framed your greeting cards, doesn’t mean they can’t remain private and personal to you.
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I hope this has been helpful for you! Framing your special greeting cards and turning them into unique wall art for your home really is a great way to enjoy them, and liven up your living room walls. Choosing the right frame, positioning the greeting card correctly in the frame, and then finding the perfect spot to display it in your home really helps you make the most out of your special greeting cards, and enjoy the memories they evoke for years to come.
If you are looking for some unique greeting cards to send to your loved ones, that they might like to frame one day, do check out my shop, where I have over 120 unique greeting card designs.
Thanks so much for reading, and happy card-framing! Jess x
