Last week during the blogiversary celebration, readers asked for more quick and inexpensive projects—especially ones renters and homeowners can finish in under an hour. Here’s a charming under-$10 idea that literally took me ten minutes to assemble.
There’s a hidden little story in the arrangement: one tall key, one medium key, and two small keys—one horizontal and one vertical. They became our little key family. The horizontal one is “Burger.”
I found a bowl of keys at an antique shop for $2 and spent a few minutes staring at them, imagining what to do. When I noticed different sizes, the idea came together: dad key, mom key, Clara key and Burger key. For about eight dollars I had my tiny key muses. A trip to the craft store yielded a sheet of thick wood-grain paper (60 cents at Michaels) that made a lovely natural background. I trimmed the paper to fit a spare IKEA frame I already had.
I taped the paper behind the mat that came with the frame to secure the background.
Next, I laid out the keys in order of height and tipped Burger sideways to match his character. After a little giggle at my tiny key family, I applied a few dollops of Gorilla Glue to the back of each key and pressed them onto the paper, holding them in place until they adhered. Do this over cardboard or a drop cloth in case glue seeps through—nobody wants to glue a table by accident.
Tip: when gluing heavier metal objects to paper, use thick paper or mount the paper to a sturdier backing like cardboard or cardstock. That extra support prevents buckling or sagging. Our wood-grain paper was thick enough to hold the keys without issue.
Ta-daaa. The best part is how easy and customizable this project is. If our family grows—human or canine—I can unglue the keys, switch backgrounds, and add a new key or two from a thrift shop.
There’s still glass in the frame. I initially worried the keys might be too thick, but the frame closed with the glass in place, which keeps dust off the keys. If your frame is too shallow, use a shadow box or remove the glass for a 3-D effect.
I hung the piece in the laundry room near the door we use every day, alongside a few favorite family photos and meaningful objects. It fits in with other small decorative items and personal keepsakes.
Nearby we display an iron bee hook that nods to the bees on our wedding invitations and a metal number 7 to mark our wedding date—little touches that give context to the wall grouping.
What are you framing lately? Textured papers like the wood-grain sheet make great backdrops and are fun to shop for in the craft aisle. Do you have old skeleton keys that still open doors in your home? That’s one of those small, delightful things I’ve always loved imagining—along with spending more time in the paper aisle.