I like to think of our hallway frame wall as a permanent “work in progress” since the art inside the frames can be swapped whenever we want. But one spot always felt unfinished — can you spot it?
Yep — that placeholder photostrip in the center. We didn’t have a frame to fit that slot yet, so for a while it was just a strip of paper held up with painter’s tape. Our plan was simple: cut a small piece of wood, paint it, and mount the photostrip on something that looked intentional rather than temporary.
We picked up a thin craft plank at Lowe’s for a couple of dollars and used the paper placeholder as a template to mark where to cut.
Next I took the plank to my workshop and made a quick slice with the miter saw. Zzzzzzrripppf! That’s the noise my saw makes when it gets to work.
As I stared at the little cut piece, an idea popped into my head. I remembered an episode of Secrets of a Stylist where Emily used floral decals as a stencil by sticking them on, painting over, and then removing the decals for a stenciled effect. I decided to adapt that idea, but with a more personal twist.
I didn’t want florals, so I made a custom stencil. I found an ornate number seven online — a meaningful choice for us since we started dating on 7/7/05 and were married on 7/7/07 — and stretched it in Photoshop to be long and skinny so it would fit the plank. Then I printed the number on cardstock in a light gray to save ink.
To create the stencil I covered the wood with painter’s tape, smoothing it down with my fingers so it adhered tightly. Then I taped the printed seven on top and cut through the paper and tape with an X-Acto knife, pressing firmly so the blade slightly scored the wood — which actually helped create a crisper edge.
After cutting, I removed the paper guide and carefully peeled away the tape from the area that would remain the wood grain, leaving the taped border intact to prevent paint bleed.
I pressed down the remaining tape, especially along the edges, to make sure no paint would seep underneath and blur the shape of the number.
I painted two coats of white paint over the taped plank — leftover Olympic semi-gloss that we keep for trim touch-ups worked perfectly.
Before the second coat fully dried, I carefully peeled up the stencil to reveal the wood beneath. Removing the tape while the paint is still slightly wet helps create a sharper line.
Once the plank dried for a few hours, I attached a small sawtooth hanger to the back and hung the piece in the frame wall.
We love how it turned out. The wooden seven feels more intentional than another photostrip, especially since there’s already a photostrip frame next to it. The project was inexpensive too — everything but the wood was already on hand, and the plank cost under $2.
If I’d planned this from the start I might have chosen a piece with a more interesting grain, but the light wood tone works well with other items on the wall — like a tan map with travel pins and a canvas hung with the frame facing out — tying the whole display together. We might wax, stain, or outline the number someday to tweak it, but for now the subtle natural wood feels right.
Have you tried using tape as a stencil for a similar project or for glass etching? Do you have a favorite number with special meaning? In our house, 7, 14 and 43 all have little stories behind them, and simple homemade touches like this make our space feel personal.