I want art for my house

dllive

Hi all,

Ive recently moved into a cottage. The walls are very bare and need some art!

Does anyone know a good website to buy framed art from? Im not (obviously) talking about expensive masterpieces, I just want some colour on the walls.

Ive got a couple of old frames, so in true MSE spirit I thought I might buy some nice-looking wrapping paper or a cheap print and try framing it myself. But in addition to this I do need to buy some framed art from somewhere.

Any suggestions would be welcome.

Thanks

borkid

Why don't you try charity shops or local art exhibitions, some amatuer artists are very good. Alternatively some books shops sell prints.

DigForVictory

Car boot sales often have art canvases that are no longer cherished, and they recover with whatever you choose & a stapler pretty easily. PVA glue if desperate.

Charity shops may be burdened with large wood & glass framed things which they do not sell by the kilo - a few phone calls, a visit with your budget in cash, several old newspapers, a handful of luggage straps, (possibly even a cargo net) and a planned taxi ride back and you can start playing Hunt The Joist in earnest.

When last faced with a large blank wall, I cheated, & hung a small carpet. (Also sourced from a car boot or charity shop or relatives.) Definitely a hooks-on-two-joists job but big, bright & bonus mildly soundproof. Not something the Old Masters offer!

For serious hits of colour, you could fasten a taut wire as your picture rail & from it peg (in artistic swags & swathes) assorted saris. If you do not feel you have enough colour after that, you may have overdosed in the sari shop. (It's where I go when feeling down & broke - ten minutes in a sari shop has a similar effect on my nervous system as three hours vigorous sunshine - just you then have to spend another half hour recalibrating as colour perception has been nudged rather hard.)

Not all cottages lend themselves to saris - but do have fun!

Jackmydad

I've picked up decent art by known artists in the past from charity shops.
Keep looking is the answer, and buy what you actually like.

PurAsc

Charity shops, ebay, facebook buy/sell/swap groups, get creative and make your own?

naf123

You should only buy art that inspires you. No point wasting money on art that doesn't have any meaning :-)

bouicca21

A friend decorated her staircase with framed bits of wallpaper. I know this sounds totally naff, but it was stunning. Mind you she was a bit of an artist herself and had a very good eye.

DaftyDuck

Two excellent sources: visit the nearest art school/college where works from young students are regularly sold, or the auction houses, where art auctions will be held every so often.

With the former, if you are lucky, you may not only help a budding young artist on their way, you may genuinely hold a piece of future value. With the latter, you can buy outstanding works and get them at bargain prices.

WeAreGhosts

Whistlefish have a varied range of cheapish prints and canvas. (There's offers on at the moment, too)

Fire_Fox

Buying framed art online will likely be costly for P&P due to the size and fragility.

Charity shops, Home Bargains, B&M, PoundStretcher, The Range, IKEA, Wilko, Dunelm, Lidl, Aldi, Asda Home, Argos all have framed art or photographic canvas prints for cheap. Many of these have an online store for some items.

Mistral001

If you are into old books an magazines, then buy them on ebay or at car boot sales and frame pages from them. Often the adverts look good. I have a series of magazine adverts for early 20th century tools and weird gadgets on some of my walls of the upstairs landing. I think they look good.