birdcage picture display

This is another one of those rare times when I crafted something and never got around to officially sharing it.

Years ago, shortly after getting married, I found this adorable birdcage picture display and I fell in love. However, at the time we we a poor, somewhat-newly married, and fresh-out-of-college couple with a tiny baby, and there was no way I could justify spending that much on something superfluous. I figured I'd keep it on my wishlist and maybe it would go on sale.

Well, not too long after that I was roaming through Ross (you know, back when I only had one kid and it was actually still fun to go and kill time browsing in a store with my little one in tow, now, not so much) and I came across this wall decoration and I thought to myself, "self, you can work with this". By the way, it was less than $10. I can't remember the exact price, but I want say somewhere in the $7-8 range.

I should also mention that this was back when I was hoarding crafting and home decor items when I saw them for a good deal, so it actually sat around in its original form in a storage box for a couple years. You can't see it, but I'm hanging my head in shame right now.

After we bought our house and moved in, I finally took it out of its box and gave it a new life with some white spray paint, which I personally think is a much-improved look. Now it's one of my favorite mantel decorations for spring. Sometimes I use clothespins to clip things to it, but I also love that with this piece the pictures can just tuck right into the birds and leaves. I especially love that I spent a fraction of the price of the original item.

Have you ever saved big bucks by creating your own knock-off item?