Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Fear of Commitment

Confession time:  I have a fear of commitment.  If you walk around our house, you will notice we don't really have anything hanging from the walls.  The only art hanging has been placed on a pre-existing nail.

I knew I wanted a collage above the couch, ala YHL's hallway o' pictures.

I went out and purchased a buttload of frames from IKEA and added in a couple of frames I had sitting around



I filled the frames with pictures and mementos of years past and placed them in a  measured out the space I wanted to use on our kitchen floor



 I even made little templates to hang up and check the space



...and then I just sat there and stared.



...and stared some more...

my walls can talk-- and they are extra sassy
I was so afraid to commit to this.  What if I messed up?  What if it didn't look right?  THE PRESSURE WAS TOO MUCH.

So the frames and templates stayed stacked in our kitchen for weeks (not even kidding) until one Saturday evening, I bucked up and grabbed the hammer and nails.


I added a lot of things that I had been keeping over the years.  The red parking pass was from our first vacation to Ocean City, MD.  Below that are sauce packets from Taco Bell (an inside joke between us) and a picture of JEGs' grandfather looking devilishly handsome.  The middle of the set up is one of our favorite pictures from our wedding and a sonogram of the little monster (which we hope to replace with a family picture).


Subway art is super hot right now, so I created a smaller version with locations and dates that held special meaning to us


I even included our contract renewal-  another joke we had from our first year of dating


There are a couple of pictures I really like as well as the keys to Falconhead-- our first place together.


I see this as the bare bones of a project that will take years to flesh out.  As our family grows and we collect things that are special to us, I would like to fill in the spaces and even expand on the sides.


But for now, it's a baby step to help in my fear of commitment.

Always & Forever,
  ME

6 comments:

Kim @ NewlyWoodwards said...

I love it! And I feel you on committing to wall decor. I haven't hung much in our house either. Mostly because I had to fill EVERY hole and paint over at the old house. I may even have a few stacks of frames waiting for me to hang them. You are inspiring me.

I love the use of the parking pass and other quirky/fun pieces. Super cute!

Danielle and Clint said...

Gosh, your wall tells it like it is! You did a great job! Love the mixture of pics and items.

Anonymous said...

Great job. I did a similar idea in my living room..with floating shelves. My desk is in the same room and I find myself "taking a moment" and looking at the display of pictures and imaging adding more frames...adding new pics...adding little mementos to the shelf. Like you said, over time you'll add more. It's a fun project that develops over time and it's constantly growing and evolving.

claire @ a peachtree city life said...

i love this. i think it's so important that art has meaning, not just grabbed from a store. great job!

Freckles Chick said...

I hear ya. I cringe every time I put a nail in a wall....I've even uttered apologies to the wall on occasion. With Baby Girl's pristinely painted nursery walls, I about had a panic attack when it came to hanging stuff.

Your wall already looks fabuloso!! And I love that there's room to grow too.

Hilary said...

I think we need to hang out more often so that my impatience can rub off on you and overcome the commitment fear :) This looks great! I like all the little meaningful items and inside jokes!