Things are finally cooling down here in the Midwest after a long, hot summer. The school year is well under way, and I spotted some pumpkins at a roadside stand just the other day. Summer is officially over. But for all of you who are having a hard time saying good-bye to a summer of fun–especially if you took a road trip or two–I’ve got some great ideas to share. Keep the memories of your summer travels alive with these crafts made from (or of) maps!
1. A Map from Scraps
Love this colorful map of the U.S. created by See Kate Sew. A detailed tutorial makes it easy for the rest of us to recreate. Imagine how fun this would be for next July 4th in different variations of red, white, and blue, or out of scraps from clothing worn on vacations!
2. A Decoupaged Map
At Today’s Creative Blog, a decoupaged map transformed a plain tray into a real conversation piece.
3. A Framed Map
Printable maps and glittery heart stickers easily became a crafty work of art by Kayla Danelle. This is an easy, interesting way to display places that are important to your family.
4. A Gift Wrapped Map
Silver Boxes used maps to embellish a plain white gift bag. Genius! I think those pinwheels are pretty much the cutest addition to a present I’ve ever seen.
5. A String Map
String art is super trendy right now, and combining it with a map makes it even more fun! I think it’s so cool that this map from Feel LOVD Everyday is on a wood slice.
6. A Knock Off Map
Speaking of wood…The Happier Homemaker figured out how to knock off a Pottery Barn piece with amazing results! See how she recreated a cool piece of artwork for waaaaay less than the $475 Pottery Barn price tag.
Have you jumped on the map craze, yet? What have you made out of a map? For map decor inspiration, check out this post.
Featured picture and Pinterest-friendly picture from Martha Stewart.
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Do you have a link to where you got the last photo from?
Whoops! Thanks for catching that, Nicole. I’ve fixed it so the link shows up, now, above. You can find that nifty map at The Happier Homemaker.
I love the idea of using maps for decor! I actually embroidered a map of Ireland with the 10 day trip we took for our honeymoon, and I marked the sights we saw and places we spent the night. It turned out great and now we have it hanging in our room, the perfect reminder of how much fun we had on that trip! http://practicallyfunctional.net/2012/07/embroider-a-map-to-commemorate-a-trip/
Jessi, This is beautiful! What a great reminder of such a special time in your life. Just Love it!!
I love the whole symbolism of maps! they make such great deco pieces – thanks for the roundup!
Stephanie! Thanks for stopping by and checking out my Maps roundup! Appreciate your kind words! {happy dance}
I love the US map made from scraps. I did a whole book page wreath made from atlas pages. It is one of my favorite projects ever.
Karen, I’ll have to check that project out! I love this too, thank 😉
I haven’t done anything yet, but these are sure inspiring! Years ago, I made cards and envelopes from old atlases- those were fun.
Bettsi, Girl let me know if you try it out and how it goes!
Thank you for featuring my wood map Beckie!
Melissa, You are SO welcome!!! Just love it! 😉
While I appreciate you highlighting my string art map, I’d greatly appreciate if you could link back to my blog. I noticed mine is the only one that doesn’t have a link-back on the words “feel LOVD everyday”. Here’s the link and thank you, again, for your feature.
http://www.feelLOVDeveryday.blogspot.com
LOVD tidings,
Lilly
I’ll get right on that……Sorry about that 🙂