I’m really excited to share this project! This week the project is inspired by Jacqueline Kennedy. What I think is so unique about Jackie is that she lived a very stylish and fascinating life, but she didn’t say very much about it. As she told her press secretary Pamela Turnure, “I want minimum information given with maximum politeness.” In these times of rampant oversharing (I’m just as guilty as anyone,) this is just such a fabulous notion.
A printable I made of this quote touched off an entire project to create a large gallery wall for my office. It’s one of the first rooms you see when you walk in our front door, so I want it to have a little character.
When we moved to the new house I quickly saw that none of my old décor or wall art worked anymore. I found myself with a big pile of old matted and framed artwork I couldn’t really get excited about.
Now enter metallic spray paint and a simple quart of white interior paint. Did you know you can paint old mats? Somehow the idea just never really occurred to me, but my mum taught me this trick! It’s such a great way to create custom colours or repurpose matting you already have for a fraction of the price of custom framing.
I’ve also been scouring recent yard sales for ugly art with “good bones.” I used this awful sailboat print with great matting to make my new framed quote. It’s unrecognisable after a little paint job.
I am in the process of spray-painting all of the frames with various shades of silver, and covering all of the mats in flat white Valspar Ultra Paint + Primer.
I’ve made a dent, but still have some work to do as you can tell.
I’m planning to include this fabulous framed quote, wedding and rehearsal dinner invitations, family pictures and black and white photos from my brother, who is an amazing photographer. I can’t wait to be able to look at all of these precious things every day instead of keeping them in a drawer.
I’ll be back to share all of my steps and tricks as soon as I get this monster done.
See some more of my DIY posts here
Becky is the voice behind Life in Velvet, an organised, intentional living blog focused on practical food, calm homes, thoughtful projects, and everyday systems that make real life feel easier. A mum of 3 living in the UK, Becky writes from lived experience, sharing what works, what doesn’t, and the decisions that make family life run more smoothly.
With a background in marketing and content writing, and over a decade of blogging experience, she brings a thoughtful, structured approach to everything from baking and home projects to routines and decision-making. Life in Velvet is where planning meets creativity, with ideas designed for real homes and real life.