Inexpensive Art Online
by in
There's no excuse for living for months or years on end with bare walls because you're waiting to find the perfect pieces of art. Those pieces await you on these sites, and for such low prices that it doesn't matter if they're not perfect next year. Enjoy these sites and, more importantly, use them to help you love your space!
These are my favorite sites for buying inexpensive art online:
1. Art.com
This is where you go for the well known stuff, from Monet to Klimt to your favorite cover of Rolling Stone magazine. Allposters.ca is actually the same company with the same merchandise, in case you were wondering which one was better.
I love browsing the black and white photography archives. I recently purchased this print for only $24.99 (less, actually, because they were having one of their 20% off sales).
Rock 'n Roll sur les Quais de Paris, $24.99
I do love that you have the option to "Frame it" on art.com. They have a great tool for selecting from the hundreds of framing options they offer and the variety of mats. Best of all, it allows you to view the piece on a colored background that mimics your walls, which is something you should do, whether you're going to buy their frame or not.
Some of my other favorites include their wall murals, like this one, for major impact:
Ella Fitzgerald - Nice Work If You Can Get It, Wall Mural, $156.99
Steven and Chris like these vintage horror movie posters:
Frankenstein print, $14.99 and Dracula, 1931 Giclee Print, $49.99.
You can check out a bunch of my favorites in My Art.com Gallery.
2. Posterjack.ca
For price and quality, this site is quite unbeatable. You can get a poster-sized print of one of your digital images for under $20!!
You can also turn your photos into canvas art, as we did with two of Steven and Chris' vacation photos.
The site is so easy to use because it gives you lots of print size options, including sizing according to your digital camera, and it tells you whether the image you've uploaded is going to look good at the size you want to print it.
Remember, if you want to avoid pixelated prints, you should use the highest resolution settings on your camera when you're shooting and you should also upload the original file (or at least a file the size that you want to print) to this site. Something copied from Facebook just won't do!
Steven had some great tips for shooting your own art photography, which is something he loves to do, especially while on vacation. He says:
Check out these photographs Steven shot on vacation. Two were turned into canvases by Posterjack and the other was printed to fit this Ikea Ribba frame, which was only $34.99.
Click on the images below that we used on the show to view the full size, then right-click to save them if you want to to print them for your home.
A closeup of the canons outside Les Invalides in Paris.
The peonies in the garden of the Rodin Museum in Paris.
You can even go so far as to create a custom wall mural using Posterjack's Peel n' Stick panels.
Happy shooting!
3. Grace Announcements
This site offers the most adorable original art for children's rooms, ranging from 8" x 10" prints for $10 to 24" x 36" for $70, and best of all - they're customizable!
Here are just some of the styles that you can order with your own child's name or as a thoughtful (and inexpensive!) gift for someone else:
Using this image from Lonnymag.com as inspiration, I think two large scale Grace Announcements prints would look wonderful in a shared bedroom:
Inspiration photo
Grace Announcements' color and size selection and name customization allow you to create your own personal creative statement.
4. Etsy.com
Last, but certainly not least, Etsy.com is my favorite site for buying inexpensive art... and gifts and jewelry and ceramics and vintage clothes and housewares and much, much more! The entire Steven and Chris team is pretty much addicted to browsing the thousands of international artists and sellers who keep virtual shop on Etsy.
Check out our producer Treasury here.
Steven and Chris are no strangers to Etsy either. They're also big fans!
Check out Steven and Chris' Etsy Treasury here.
I love buying art on Etsy because there are so many creative and original works from talented artists and the pricing is unfathomably low. Photography, lithographs, mixed media, papercuts - there are so many really special pieces waiting to be discovered.
The hardest thing about browsing Etsy is finding everything! The are thousands of sellers on the site, so I like to search the favorites of people whose art I like find other artists; I search the Treasury lists; I follow Etsy on Twitter and I hound the people I work with to share their discoveries. There's something new to love and desire every day!
And what's really wonderful about ordering from Etsy artists is that even if print you want isn't automatically offered in multiple sizes, which many are, you can converse with the seller to get the size you need for your space.
Here are some of my favorites that I shared on the show...
irenesuchocki
Her Paris is a Feeling fine art photograph is my favorite example of her art, which mixes digital photography and "digital darkroom" magic. In her profile, she says "I like to explore the ethereal, the surreal, the whimsical, the mysterious, and the beautiful. I enjoy creating little poems for the eyes."
Paris is a Feeling, 8" x 10", $30; different sizes available.
Owl Studio
Our Executive Producer, Susan Taylor, actually brought these repurposed dictionary art prints in. She paid just $10 for each of the prints, bought some large square Ikea Ribba frames in white, had custom mats made for about $12 each and created a gorgeous serious to hang.
The artist behind Owl Studio her favorite materials are paper and ink. No two works will every be the same since the pages come from vintage dictionaries.
I also brought in all the Etsy art I have in my home to recreate this gallery wall for only $200!
Some of the works featured on this wall are:
Pause Art Print by jkldesign
This print didn't make it back home. Chris loved it too much, I just had to give it to him. It was a big hit with the producers too.
The artist, Leigh Viner, created this mixed media print by combining one of her original digital photographs and one of her charcoal and pen drawings, then digitally enhancing the whole thing. It's available in multiple sizes, up to 20" x 30".
Heart Poster by elasticco
I immediately loved this piece because it's simple, graphic and bold. I also love that you can customize the text in the box. I had mine created with a quote from Hamlet: "More matter with less art."
It's poster-size, perfect for framing in that good ole Ikea Ribba poster frame, and is also available in hot pink for only $34.00.
You can check out a bunch of my favorites in My Art.com Gallery.
2. Posterjack.ca
For price and quality, this site is quite unbeatable. You can get a poster-sized print of one of your digital images for under $20!!
You can also turn your photos into canvas art, as we did with two of Steven and Chris' vacation photos.
The site is so easy to use because it gives you lots of print size options, including sizing according to your digital camera, and it tells you whether the image you've uploaded is going to look good at the size you want to print it.
Remember, if you want to avoid pixelated prints, you should use the highest resolution settings on your camera when you're shooting and you should also upload the original file (or at least a file the size that you want to print) to this site. Something copied from Facebook just won't do!
Steven had some great tips for shooting your own art photography, which is something he loves to do, especially while on vacation. He says:
- Shoot in high resolution
- Play with your camera settings on the spot for the best light or for cool effects
- Leave the people out of the photographs, especially if you're printing large scale. (Steven's waited for up to 20 mins for people to clear out of his shot)
- Focus in on singular objects for more impact.
Check out these photographs Steven shot on vacation. Two were turned into canvases by Posterjack and the other was printed to fit this Ikea Ribba frame, which was only $34.99.
Click on the images below that we used on the show to view the full size, then right-click to save them if you want to to print them for your home.
A closeup of the canons outside Les Invalides in Paris.
The peonies in the garden of the Rodin Museum in Paris.
You can even go so far as to create a custom wall mural using Posterjack's Peel n' Stick panels.
Happy shooting!
3. Grace Announcements
This site offers the most adorable original art for children's rooms, ranging from 8" x 10" prints for $10 to 24" x 36" for $70, and best of all - they're customizable!
Here are just some of the styles that you can order with your own child's name or as a thoughtful (and inexpensive!) gift for someone else:
Using this image from Lonnymag.com as inspiration, I think two large scale Grace Announcements prints would look wonderful in a shared bedroom:
Inspiration photo
Grace Announcements' color and size selection and name customization allow you to create your own personal creative statement.
4. Etsy.com
Last, but certainly not least, Etsy.com is my favorite site for buying inexpensive art... and gifts and jewelry and ceramics and vintage clothes and housewares and much, much more! The entire Steven and Chris team is pretty much addicted to browsing the thousands of international artists and sellers who keep virtual shop on Etsy.
Check out our producer Treasury here.
Steven and Chris are no strangers to Etsy either. They're also big fans!
Check out Steven and Chris' Etsy Treasury here.
I love buying art on Etsy because there are so many creative and original works from talented artists and the pricing is unfathomably low. Photography, lithographs, mixed media, papercuts - there are so many really special pieces waiting to be discovered.
The hardest thing about browsing Etsy is finding everything! The are thousands of sellers on the site, so I like to search the favorites of people whose art I like find other artists; I search the Treasury lists; I follow Etsy on Twitter and I hound the people I work with to share their discoveries. There's something new to love and desire every day!
And what's really wonderful about ordering from Etsy artists is that even if print you want isn't automatically offered in multiple sizes, which many are, you can converse with the seller to get the size you need for your space.
Here are some of my favorites that I shared on the show...
irenesuchocki
Her Paris is a Feeling fine art photograph is my favorite example of her art, which mixes digital photography and "digital darkroom" magic. In her profile, she says "I like to explore the ethereal, the surreal, the whimsical, the mysterious, and the beautiful. I enjoy creating little poems for the eyes."
Paris is a Feeling, 8" x 10", $30; different sizes available.
Owl Studio
Our Executive Producer, Susan Taylor, actually brought these repurposed dictionary art prints in. She paid just $10 for each of the prints, bought some large square Ikea Ribba frames in white, had custom mats made for about $12 each and created a gorgeous serious to hang.
The artist behind Owl Studio her favorite materials are paper and ink. No two works will every be the same since the pages come from vintage dictionaries.
Beautiful Peacock Illustration Print on Antique 1896 Dictionary Book Page, $10.00
Curious Ostrichs Illustration Print on Antique 1896 Dictionary Book Page, $10.00
I also brought in all the Etsy art I have in my home to recreate this gallery wall for only $200!
Some of the works featured on this wall are:
Pause Art Print by jkldesign
This print didn't make it back home. Chris loved it too much, I just had to give it to him. It was a big hit with the producers too.
The artist, Leigh Viner, created this mixed media print by combining one of her original digital photographs and one of her charcoal and pen drawings, then digitally enhancing the whole thing. It's available in multiple sizes, up to 20" x 30".
Heart Poster by elasticco
I immediately loved this piece because it's simple, graphic and bold. I also love that you can customize the text in the box. I had mine created with a quote from Hamlet: "More matter with less art."It's poster-size, perfect for framing in that good ole Ikea Ribba poster frame, and is also available in hot pink for only $34.00.
I LOVE this Toronto-based photographer and he's been great with offering prints in different sizes. I own a poster-size version of his 501 Ghost Street Car. His candy photos can actually print to fit an entire wall! Very cool.
Accordian Turqouise Block Print and World Map Blue Linocut from thebigharumph
First of all, The Big Harumph - what a great name! The colorful assortment of linocuts and block prints from this artist are beautiful to look at and to touch. Every print hand-carved and hand-pressed.
Original Paper Cut Quote from Mr. Yen
Jonathan Chapman is one of my favorite Etsy artists and this is one of my favorite quotes of all time. Even his logo makes me happy.
Accordian Turqouise Block Print and World Map Blue Linocut from thebigharumph
First of all, The Big Harumph - what a great name! The colorful assortment of linocuts and block prints from this artist are beautiful to look at and to touch. Every print hand-carved and hand-pressed.
Original Paper Cut Quote from Mr. Yen
Jonathan Chapman is one of my favorite Etsy artists and this is one of my favorite quotes of all time. Even his logo makes me happy.
