Craft from the Past: Bargain Hunting DIY Deer Wall Decor

I have a college kid’s budget, so going to the mall can be kind of heartbreaking when you realize how much money you lack. I don’t get discouraged by this, it just means I have to find really good deals in order to seal the deal with buying something. When I went to Earthbound Trading Company at the Parks Mall a couple of months ago, I definitely didn’t leave empty handed or empty pocketed.

As soon as I walked in, up front and center there was a table full of random items and a buy one get one free sign (aka a sign of hope for me). Earthbound had a sale going on with their clearance items. I’ve seen stores have sales on regular priced items, but a sale on clearance items was rare. I’m all about bargain hunting, and I found my target instantly: a deer head ornament. This ornament wasn’t the same old, plain Jane cardboard deer head you’ve seen on Pinterest. This deer head was made with a simple structure and decorated like a map.

I’m always on the lookout for decoration ideas for my apartment, and I knew I could turn this into something cool and interesting. When I saw the price tag said $1, it was a done deal. I bought four of these bad boys and it only costed me $2 and some change.During one of my shifts at Michaels, I saw some 5×5 frames that were on clearance for $2.49, so I bought three of them and I picked up a sheet scrapbook paper.

 

https://instagram.com/p/xQ3DCYDE1b/?modal=true

 

This project basically took three steps: Trace, snip and place

I began my project by drawing out three 5×5 sized squares on my sheet of scrapbook paper. Once I was done, I snipped out my squares and placed them in my frames. Then, I glued my deer heads onto the frames and I was finished!

*Optional version*

For the fourth deer, I had a wooden plaque from Michaels and I used wood stain and stained it to a darker color. Then, I glued the head on it.

 

Materials: Deer head ornaments, frames, scrapbook paper and E6000 glue

*Optional materials: Wooden plaque and wood stain

 

https://instagram.com/p/xQ3jZWDE19/?modal=true

 

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For less than $15 I was able to make four new pieces to decorate my apartment with!

Cost breakdown

*not including tax

• 4 Deer head ornaments – $1 a piece, but there was a BOGO offer so the total cost was $2*
• 3 Frames – on Clearance for $2.49, so the total cost was $7.47*
• 1 Sheet of scrapbook paper – $1.99*
• E6000 glue – priceless (I already had this, but for future reference it is $3.99 at Michaels)
• Wooden plaque – less than $2
• Wood stain finish – priceless (I already had this too)

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