Staircase Landing: Decor and Creative use; Zen Zone Project 2

This Staircase Landing transformation project came into existence because of three main goals. The first was to check if Natural colors could replace art prints for frames, the second was the need to create a small book storage solution, and the third was to repurpose a cracked clay water pot.

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Natural Colors

While exploring the potential of natural colors in art, I created a painting for my kid’s Montessori and framed it as one of the wall art. The above assured me that replacing art prints with natural color paintings could be a viable solution to mitigate the cost and reduce the impact of acrylics and other printing ink on the environment. I decided to recreate a few modern art prints on watercolor paper. I also wanted this displayed in a public space like an eco restaurant or Ikea, as I like their frames. Unfortunately, Ikea does not have a procedure for such a display, and I did not get any response from the eco restaurant owner. Nevertheless, it became part of my very own makeover project. I hope this inspires more artists and businesses to adopt natural color paintings for Interior Decor.

This piece of art meant choosing your path, progressing, growing, shining, and finding abundance. I had purchased four YLLEVAD frames, white, 13×18 cm (5×7 “) Rs 59 each, and one RIBBA frame, white, 30×40 cm (11 ¾x15 ¾ “) Rs 599.

There are a few things I learned in the process:

• Measure your wall area and decide on the space your artwork will occupy.
• Finalise your art designs, the size of each art and the number of frames needed to fill this space. For example, you may want to paint four small and one large painting, or you may want to have two large paintings and so on.
• Purchase the frames at the store, and while you purchase, try various layouts for the best placement of these frames for your space.
• Finally, paint your art on paper as per the dimensions mentioned on the frames. There are various limitations if you decide on painting first and then buying the frames and deciding on the placement.

Since there were no nails on the wall of Staircase Landing, I decided to go with the no-drill method of placing art. I found these Command 3M small picture hanging strips at Ratnadeep. These are available on Amazon as well. Hanging Ribba Frames even on nails can be a challenge due the placement of the hanger hardware on the backboard. The other option is to stick, but it has a narrow frame at the back. I looked up on YouTube for a solution and found this video – 6 Best Ways to Hang Ikea RIBBA Picture Frames. I stuck two pieces of wood to the wall and placed the frame over it like I would if there was a nail.

Book Storage Solution

My initial plan for the book storage was to make customized wooden furniture: a sleek shelving unit, bearing in mind the foot traffic. But on second thought, I decided to look for a piece of furniture in IKEA. I love IKEA Products. I purchased JONAXEL Shelving unit, white, 25x51x70 cm (9 7/8×20 1/8×27 1/2 “) Rs.1,990. This saved me time on making customized wooden furniture and was a cost-effective solution. I also bought two HÖSSLA Book-end, white, Rs 99 each to help keep books in place on the shelf. 

Repurposed Water Cooling Clay Pot

Beside the shelving unit, I placed the repurposed clay pot. While choosing the plants for this pot, I went for the hard-to-kill option. And I was leaning into making this a plant combination container. But since this was originally a water-cooling clay pot, its mouth was small. Therefore, I had to limit the number of plant combinations for this repurposed pot. I did some research and finalized a ZZ plant and a spider plant. I also placed a blue rubber ring underneath the pot. I will post the details of the pot repurposing and the above plant care shortly; that’s a story on its own!

For the final styling touches, I set a wood log slice with two books above it. I also placed candles to fill the gap between the frames and the shelving unit beneath. I love the black candle holder FULLTALIG Candlestick, set of 3, Rs.799. In the second rack, I placed a wooden storage Jewelry box that my brother had got from the US on the stack of books. The bottom shelf has a storage box from Ikea (I bought it long ago, so I’m unsure if it is still available). Above the stacked books, I placed a miniature water can from my kid’s toy set. Wait till this little one finds out I took the toy for a space makeover. HA HA HA..

Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Design is knowing which ones to keep. – Scott Adams.

The mistake I made was to make the paintings first and then purchase the frames, and I kept them. The budget for this staircase landing transformation is roughly about 5k. I hope the above ideas are the ones you are taking home.