Hi friends! Are you a fellow blogger? Maybe a small shop owner? Or maybe you just want to step up your game on Instagram! Well either which way – I’m so glad you are here to check out our SUPER EASY DIY BACKDROPS post!!

Learn my secrets today! #gluedtomycrafts

So let me introduce myself. I’m Stacey the crafty gal behind Glued To My Crafts. I’ve been blogging a little over six years now. We’re military and have moved SEVEN times in a short period of ten years. We have gone from big houses to small apartments and my blog has followed me along the way. Fortunately for me, hard work pays off and I have turned this little space of mine into a paying full-time gig {thank you for every click you make on our website!}

Currently we live in a 1050 sq ft 2-bedroom apartment in sunny Tampa, Florida. Although we didn’t have to live here per say, we decided to call this tiny space home for now because we are only here for a short period time, until the Air Force sends us on our way again. It was a money saving decision for our family, as well as a time saver for my husband {it only takes him 10 minutes to get to his seat at work and he avoids the expressways & morning bridge traffic.}

Although it’s not fun at times {especially with an active 7-year old little boy} we make it work for our family.

Now you are probably asking yourself, why is she telling me all that? Well… because as a blogger {and crafter} I’ve made it work in my situation. When you look at my pictures on my blog, you wouldn’t know that most are taken on our small enclosed patio. When I can’t use our patio, I use the parking lot in our apartment complex {Seriously! A nice shaded area does wonders!} If that doesn’t work? We have a beautiful pond area right outside our building, that has great tree coverage and beautiful flowers all year long. Like I said, I make it work and I get crafty with it!

Although I still wish I had that “dreamy craft room” I had in Wyoming before we moved here, I have to remind myself, that it’s not the space per say that makes the awesome crafts come to life. It’s ME and how I make it happen! Perspective is everything!!! 🙂

So now that you read a little background on me, I just wanted to say I hope our post comes in handy for you. All these ideas are tested and used by me 🙂 See the highlighted links for my pictures as examples. Whether you are a blogger, shop owner or just a person who was curious on my backdrop tips, these ideas can be used by YOU! Even if you are just looking for a way to “step up” the pictures you share on your various social media sites. These aren’t elaborate backdrop ideas {and I know I’m not a professional photographer by any means!} I just wanted to share some tips and ideas that work for me and won’t break the bank either. They are just perfect for ANYONE who just wants to take some prettier pictures of their creations!!!

Plus some of these tips might surprise you too! Just keep scrolling to see what I’m talking about.

BTW – this post is in no way sponsored by the companies I’m linking to. I just love their products and I thought you might too! In case you do purchase from these companies, just know I might get a small kickback but your price will not be affected by any of that all. These referral credits just help Glued To My Crafts run!

So now – the backdrop ideas!!! #gluedtomycraftsinspiresyou

My first and most creative backdrop idea is WRAPPING PAPER stapled on FOAM BOARD!

Yes, inexpensive {affiliate link} wrapping paper!!! You can see examples from my blog HERE, HERE and HERE.

Christmas time is my prime time to stock up on various “backdrops” for the year. I personally have found that Target is really good for this. I usually look for prints that are non-traditional and not Christmas-y {like the shades of pink, blues and modern prints} I also look for ones that not really shiny or have glitter on them. Target can be pricey for this {$5-10 a roll} BUT just think of the return value. A good backdrop these days from reputable websites range from $50 to over $200. A roll of $10 wrapping paper is A LOT at first glance {sticker shock} BUT it pays off. Plus with a couple of rolls, you will have multi-backdrops for the price of an expensive vinyl backdrop.

Marshalls and TJ Max is another place I like to pick up good quality wrapping paper, in fun prints. These rolls are typically found towards their checkout lines, where the gift bags and cards are. They are usually super thick paper and range from $3-5 for a roll. I have found some great flamingo and unicorn prints from there.

As for the foam board – good ole’ DOLLAR TREE! For a $1 you get one simple white foam board. Doesn’t need to be fancy material for this!!! You can do other colors for the foam board but keep in mind, that sometimes the wrapping paper can be slightly see-through, so a dark color could change the appearance of your paper. I have also used large white poster board in a money pinch  {I currently have several on poster board right now} but the foam board is my preference for long term storing}

So once you have both supplies {wrapping paper and your foam board} just cut a long piece of wrapping paper and staple along the edges, to secure to the foam board. Trim down the edges, if needed. Easy peasy!!! Remember – you can do both sides of the foam board 🙂 so it’s two fold for the price!

For storage, I just lay/stack all my foam boards in my closet for safe keeping.

I also like doing this idea with speciality gift wrap paper I get from Paper Source. Now these are expensive – fair warning {I spent $150 the other day just on paper at Paper Source – I’m a hoarder on backdrops!} BUT again, it’s an investment for me. These typically range in price from $5-12 a single sheet BUT I feel like the patterns/materials are worth it. These are prints that not everyone is going to use, so if you are wanting to stand out from the crowd, this is my go-to place!

Again, I just staple the speciality gift wrap paper {affiliate link} to foam board to use. You can see examples of prints I have purchased at Paper Source, HERE and HERE.

Next up – 12×12″ Scrapbook Paper from various craft stores.

For smaller crafts and my Instagram posts, I’m a hoarder of {affiliate link} scrapbook paper. Not because I craft with it BUT because they make for easy & cheap backdrops that I can change out whenever and not feel guilty. With the price of scrapbook paper being less than $1 a sheet, this is an investment you can make and really not break the bank! Plus with all the fun prints out there at the moment, this is an “idea” that you can really stockpile on!

So now – outside the box… Painted Canvas Decor Pieces!

I use large printed canvases that are typically used for home decor {for on the wall} as my backdrops. See examples HERE, HERE and HERE.

These canvases I have gotten at Hobby Lobby, Tuesday Morning and Tj Maxx, in the past. They can range from $20-60 a canvas, depending on the size. I was fortunate and I actually got my favorite one {and the one I use the most} from Hobby Lobby on clearance for TEN DOLLARS! My investment on it has paid off. So be sure to check out the aisles of the home decor clearance at Hobby Lobby!

And because of the patterns on these particular canvases, although they are kinda big for my patio/apartment, I can put my finished crafts in various spots on the canvases for pictures and have different looks/angles of the print {if that makes sense!}

Again, I just stack these nicely in my closet for easy storage.

Have you thought about hitting up Lowes or Home Depot for backdrops?

From wood to tile – you can find backdrops pretty much all over the store if think outside the traditional. See examples HERE, HERE and HERE.

My husband built me TWO basic white platform/backdrops for about $40. We just bought some wood slabs and glued them today in a fence formation. Then we painted it. Easy peasy! These store nicely in my closet, next to the canvas prints. When I get bored of the white I can also paint them again.

I also have medium sized tile squares {the sticky kind or heavy real tile kind} for smaller projects and food posts. If you are a food blogger, tile is great for easy wiping if you spill food on them!

You can also find wood/tile contact paper that you can easily trim down and adhere on white foam board. Contact paper these days are so realistic in print, no one will know the difference and you just saved yourself the money and extra weight.

Before we moved to Florida {in our larger Wyoming home} I also had some wood flooring slabs for backdrops. So another idea for you to try!

You can also find pretend green grass “carpet” for backdrops there. Although I didn’t purchase mine at Lowes or Home Depot {Target had some in Dollar Spot one spring season} it’s the same material. The grass is great for spring and/or football themed crafts!

Look around your house – find a tray or a flat decor item that you love!

I bought this particular wood tray at Michaels in the clearance aisles for $10 – SCORE! You can see how I styled it in my pictures HERE. I have plans of using it more in the fall again.

I don’t have the orange chair anymore BUT you can see this example and never know that it’s actually a patio chair seat as a backdrop. The picture is just cropped to hide it 🙂

You can also use quilts, printed fabric from the fabric store, small decorative carpets or even sheets ironed real good, as as a backdrop. I have even seen people use those white shag rugs for their instagram pictures.

Use various scraps of ribbon for a backdrop!

Remember those canvases I shared above? Well – it seemed like such empty space on the back of them {there’s nothing there – just a wood frame} so I took my HUGE stash of unused random ribbon and stapled/hot glued them to the back of one of my canvases. You can see an example of what it looks HERE and HERE. I also use this for instagram pictures where I have to hold the object. My camera tends to blur out the ribbon and make a pretty “party look” background. You could also do this idea with party streamers from Dollar Tree!

Probably the easiest and no-brainer – VINYL!

There are so many online shops that provide good vinyl backdrops these days. Just fair warning, sometimes you get what you pay for. I have gotten some great ones for $30 but then another shop offers them for $30 & they are super blurry when I receive them. I personally prefer Swanky Prints and HSDbackdrops. I have never had an issue with either and go back to them both, multiple times a year. You can also find them on Amazon through our affiliate link.

I typically spend most of my money at HSD {big money on them} but I really like them and their prints are unique/modern. I also get larger size prints and trim them down to store in my apartment. It’s hard to explain but I choose prints that have various things going on each corner {versus one solid color} This way when I trim it down to an easy storable 2ft by 2ft print, I have four different backdrops. I’ll be sharing a Facebook live with a better explanation soon 🙂

You can’t go wrong with just plain colored foam board and white chalk.

That is what I ultimately started with when I started Glued To My Crafts. In fact, this very BLACK foam board above is the first piece I bought for the blog. It has made it through six years and three moves. I just keep adding white chalk on top to give it life every few months. It’s like a chalkboard but without the extra weight. You can see example HERE, HERE and HERE.

I have also found really good poster board in various colors at Hobby Lobby in their art section. HERE is an example of how I used a bright pink poster board, as well as purple HERE.

DIY your own backdrops! A little paint and a blank canvas!

In the past, I have made my own backdrops by painting an abstract design on the back of my purchased vinyl backdrops {two fold score again!} as well as using various paints on poster board and thick, large watercolor paper.

I have also bought inexpensive canvas fabric from Joanns and painted it as well {this was something I actually did when we were moving from Wyoming to Florida last year, since I couldn’t take my paint with me in the move, I used it up for this DIY} You can see an example of my hand painted masterpiece HERE.

Wood signs and rulers – oh my!

Last back to school season, I scored about 50 rulers for 5 cents each. I envisioned a back-to-school backdrop and after some wood glue, it came to life. I just laid them flat on a wood sign {Michaels for the win again} and glued them down. You can see an example HERE and HERE.

Use your outdoor surroundings!

Fortunately for us, the beach is ten minutes away and it’s nearly ALWAYS sunny here. So I like to go outdoors and use my surrounding for FREE backdrops.

From the beach {example HERE and HERE} to our community pool, to the pond outside our apartment unit, I have used it all. Even flowers that are blooming in the parking lot and a simple tree, makes for a great backdrop.

I even used the concrete ground outside our hotel, while we were moving from Wyoming to Florida last year. When you have to blog, you make it work! You can see the example HERE.

Also keep in mind, sometimes you really need to think outside the box and not spend anything at all – shocker! You can spend NO MONEY by just adding glitter and sequins to any backdrop you already have on hand for a new look {both you probably already have on hand for your crafts}

A plain backdrop or wood piece can be changed up with just a sprinkle of sparkle! And it doesn’t need to be glued onto the backdrop either. Like I said – just sprinkle it on top, add your craft and take a picture. Cupcake sprinkles and crinkle paper also work too for this tip 🙂

I also have some paper rosettes that are in my craft area, hanging on the wall, that I use as an instant backdrop. Since it’s already used as decor, I’m not “losing” anything when it comes to the cost of a new backdrop. I have found these at Michaels, Walmart and even Dollar Tree. I just secured them to the wall with pushpins.

So friends – this wraps up my post for now!!! I’ll be updating it as time goes by – it’s been a labor of love for sure!! I hope you found some good tips and inspiration in this very post. Be sure to check out our Facebook page soon, because I’ll be going LIVE to share a more in-depth look at all my backdrops! Clearly from this blog post, I’m little obsessed! I just like making different looks for Glued To my Crafts! Till next time, my friends!!!

Psst – do you have backdrop tips? Share in the comment section for all of us to see! #gluedtomycrafts