“Who has two thumbs, an Instagram habit, and just bought a pile of jewel cases?” Yep — guilty as charged. I had a little art project brewing.
I joined Instagram in April and have been meaning to get some prints made. We didn’t have a specific place for them and were hesitant about print quality from different services. Then I found a Facebook coupon for five free Instagram prints from Picplum and decided to give it a try. The freebies were solid, so I ended up ordering more at $1 per 5×5″ print.
What sold me was a happy accident: with a tiny trim on two sides, these square prints fit almost perfectly into the front insert of slim CD jewel cases. I only noticed because my free prints were sitting on an old CD case and they matched up size-wise.
I picked up a bulk pack of slim jewel cases at Office Depot — thirty for about $10 — and slid some favorite prints into a dozen of them. I went with the thin cases because I thought they looked cleaner and less bulky for a wall display.
I’m not making mixed CDs or covers — though this would work for that too. My goal was a low-cost, easy way to display photos in the basement workshop — the “Man Cave Complete With Pegboards,” as I’ve started calling it. It’s a space where dust and tools rule, so I wanted inexpensive protection for photos I still wanted to show off.
This approach is simple and forgiving. If one frame gets cracked by a rogue screw, it’s cheap to replace. They also pop nicely against the navy pegboard background.
Cost per framed print, including the photo: about $1.30. Hard to beat that for wall art. Sherry likes to say geek is the new black — maybe CD cases are the next mixed tape or eight-track in a retro kind of way.
To hang the grid I used 3M Command strips, the velcro-style “damage-free” picture hangers. I attach the strips perpendicular to one another rather than stacked — that gives a bit more flexibility to shift the case up/down or side/side after both pieces are stuck to the wall.
The pegboard holes also helped line everything up neatly as I pressed the cases into place.
Ta-dah!
Pro tip: I tucked extra photos behind a few of the front images. If I want to refresh the display, I can simply open the case, swap photos, and close it again.
Since I have spare prints and cases, the installation can easily expand across the board. For now I left some space to hang other items on the right — you never know when something else will turn up to “dude up” the basement. Surrounded by hammers, drills, and saws, I’m a happy guy either way.
Every time we post photos we remember more basement projects to tackle. On the list:
- Stain some of the wood elements (like the burned shelf and the lightweight counters).
- Consider staining the concrete floor to help hide wear and brighten the space.
- Repaint the scratched basement door — we’re thinking yellow to match the front door.
- Figure out a plan for the exposed ceiling. There’s ductwork and plumbing to work around, so this will take some planning rather than just drywalling.
Anyone else using Instagram prints for art projects? I’d love to hear ideas — especially recommendations for quality printing on paper, canvas, or other formats. And if you want to follow along on Instagram, you can find us at @younghouselove.
Psst — a note about yesterday’s Cultivate quiz giveaway: it’s been running slowly and some users have experienced crashes. Hopefully they’ll resolve the issues soon. There’s still a $200 gift card for one lucky winner, so fingers crossed for everyone!