Need Cheap Art? Enlarge a Photo

 For me, it all started with this picture of giant playing cards in the now-defunct Blueprint magazine. The mag had a feature about photo enlargements, and all the ways a snapshot of an everyday object could become interesting, huge art for those blank walls.

That's the dream for most of us, right? We can't all be dropping $800 on a huge painting or tapestry, but most photo enlargements will set you back less than $50 at Kinkos or online. A big photo also strikes a decidedly modern note in any home, especially with the right photo. It can't be one of you and your friends cheesin' in old timey clothes; instead, it should be a photo with a timeless quality, like a gorgeous landscape, an interesting memento or a classic photo of your ancestors.

 Southern Living featured the home of George Krauth, who enlarged and framed a photo of an envelope bearing his great-great-grandmother's handwriting. So sweet, right?

 The Rambling Renovators framed this big, sweet picture of a little one in the surf. Photos of oceans, forests, canyons and mountains work particularly well when blown up huge. While we're talking about it, remember: you don't even have to get a photo printed! You could have it printed as a poster for less money.

One of my dream fantasies is to turn a photo into a wallpaper treatment. I think mountains or the sea would look amazing in a nursery, like this, or in a rec room that doesn't get much light. I priced it out once...for a wall this size, you're looking at nearly $1,000, so it is NOT cheap. I found this shot all over Pinterest.

I especially love this one, a photo of the homeowner's grandfather as a child. The black and white, with the modern white frame, and classical lamps are edgy and traditional at the same time. Found on Little Green Notebook.

I think it would be a particularly romantic way to remember your wedding by getting a photo enlargement of a wedding bouquet. I might do that some time if I ever have a girly room to myself!

The real reason we're even having this conversation is that I have an 18 x 24-size photo enlargement en route to me, ordered through Poster Print Shop. We'll see how it turns out. I would have gone even larger, but finding the frame is tricky and I don't particularly want to drop a bunch of money on custom framing just yet. I'll let you know how it goes!