Sometimes we can all use a little extra inspiration and motivation, and I'm certainly no exception.  Some days I feel like I need more motivation than most.  So, in my effort to decorate my walls (and to do so on a budget), I've printed off a couple of fun inspirational messages.  The first is my favorite.  I tend to get wrapped up in the kids and the house so much that I forget to take time for myself, so this is perfect for me.  I printed it off as a 4x6 and hung it above my desk where I do my scrapbooking.  It makes me smile every time I see it.

And you can have one too.  Joy at How Joyful has it available in 6 colors for a free download here.

This poster has been popping up everywhere lately.  It was originally a WWII propaganda poster from Britain.  Boy do I need this one.  Calm I am not.  I have this hanging in my laundry room.  It's kind of ironic because my laundry room is about the most chaotic place in my house right now, but I do laundry just about every day, so it's the perfect spot.

This too is available as a free download from Simply Fresh Designs.  You can find it here in 8 different colors.

Finally, I decided to create a printable of my very own.  When I was looking through the ads last week, I saw this print from Target.

They had it on sale for $18.  I'm no Photoshop wiz, but I know enough to make that for free.  So I did.  I changed the colors to match my girls playroom.  I haven't had a chance to print and frame it yet, but this is how it turned out.

It is set up to print on an 8.5x11 sheet, and can be trimmed and framed as either an 8x10 or an 8x8.  You can download it here.  Oh, and by complete coincidence, I wandered onto this blog this morning (following a recipe link, I think), and guess what...she made one too! 

She modified it to have more of an eye chart look, which I think is super cute and a little more adult.  You can download her version here.

There you have it.  Free art.  You can't beat that!

Last year when we listed our house for sale, I was looking through some old pictures of our previous houses.  Instead of feeling nostalgia for my old homes, I felt disconnected.  It was like looking at someone else's house.  It took me awhile to realize why, and the answer was the same thing that has always bugged me about decorating shows.  The rooms didn't reflect me at all.  I had picked paint colors and accessories that looked great, worked together, and had mass appeal, but they said nothing about me.  It could have been anyone's house.   I read a decorating book once that suggested you step outside and then come into your house as if you were a stranger.  Walk from room to room and make assumptions about the family who lives there.  What do they like to do, what are they like?  I'm not sure I'd like what a stranger would assume about me if they came to my home.  I vowed that this time around would be different.  I would decorate with only our family's favorite things.  I would pick colors we love, not necessarily the latest trend.  I would personalize with my photos, my kids' art, and momentos of our family's life together.  Everything would have a purpose or a meaning.  It's been a long journey getting to that point.  Most of my walls are still blank because I'm finding it a bit overwhelming. However, I'm taking baby steps, and I thought I'd share a few ways that I've incorporated my personality with some very inexpensive artwork. 

Our family loves the beach.  We're landlocked here in Indiana, so a beach themed room may be out of place, but it fits our personality.  I decided to use some shells from our trip to Myrtle Beach last fall to decorate our downstairs bathroom.  My first step was a trip to Goodwill from some cheap frames.  I knew I wanted to distress them, so size and shape was important, not color.  Here's what I brought home.

I'll show you why I bought the mirrors later (they're part of a birthday surprise for Bug).  The frames cost $1.99 each.  The white frame was a bit plain, and the back was more detailed than the front.  I didn't need the glass anyway, so I flipped it around.  I then sanded it to distress it and put a quick coat of polyurethane on it.  That's it.  I adhered some scrap mat I had laying around, used some foam tape squares to stick my shells on, and printed out the latin name for the shells on scrapbooking paper that had a linen look.  Simple!

I bought the second frame for a starfish that Bug picked out at a souvenier shop.  I sanded the frame and painted it and one of the mats brown.  I painted another mat blue and dry brushed some blue paint onto the frame.  I backed the frame with some scrapbooking paper that looked like sand and stuck the starfish inside.  Here's the final display with the addition of an old souvenier from The Man's childhood, some store bought starfish that I already owned, and some photos from a 2008 trip to Florida.

Not crafty?  That's OK.  Coming up I'll have some free printables you can download and print to dress up your walls.  Thanks for stopping by!