How to Make a Rustic Coastal Layered Burlap Frame Mat

Happy fall Remodelaholic readers!  Emily from Table + Hearth here again with a quick and easy project to add a little rustic flair to some framed art.

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As you may remember from last year’s driftwood Christmas tree skirt project, we live on the Texas coast and have a casual coastal style inspired by our nearby beaches.  One of my hobbies is making botanical presses out of marine plants and algae and I’ve been wanting to find a unique way to display a couple of my smaller pieces together.  I had an extra frame and a big roll of burlap ribbon which was all I needed to make the perfect backdrop for my prints!

And, in keeping with the Creative Christmas series this week, it’s so easy to swap out the two prints for one Christmas printable, like this Mrs. Claus Cookie Company freebie here on Remodelaholic.

Be sure to subscribe by email or RSS and follow along over on Facebook, Instagram , and YouTubewith #CreativeChristmas so you won’t miss any of our new Christmas tutorials, recipes, and printables!

Layered Burlap Frame Mat Tutorial

I used a simple white frame and natural burlap but this can easily be customized for many styles and artwork by using different frames and burlap ribbon in different colors or patterns.

Materials Needed

There are just a few supplies needed to make this and it takes all of an hour, tops.  And if you’re anything like me you’ve got about 2374 extra frames around the house you can use.

• Ready-made poster frame – glass removed, keep cardboard backing
• Burlap ribbon
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun
• Double-sided tape or other paper adhesive
• Art – anything you can put tape or adhesive on the back of and stick to the burlap. Check out the entire free printable art collection here at Remodelaholic for some great options!

Instructions

After disassembling your frame, lay the cardboard down and start cutting strips of ribbon that are just a tad bit wider than the cardboard.  Keep going until you have as many as you’d like to put on there.  I did five on each side layered towards the middle with one across the very middle.

Use your hot glue gun to carefully glue down the edges of your pieces, layering in the pattern you desire. I say carefully because the weave in that burlap is really open and I may or may not have received a few good burns, ha!

Once all your strips are glued down, run a line of hot glue across the top and bottom to further secure them to the cardboard. Once dry, flip the board over and trim the ribbon flush to the edge of the cardboard.

Re-install the cardboard to the frame, making sure that all edges of the burlap get tucked under the outer frame.  It will be snug… the frames with the little metal tabs on the back seem to give the best wiggle room.

Use a strip of double-sided tape or other paper-friendly adhesive on the back of your prints and gently press them into place on the burlap.

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For such a simple and quick project I think the updated look makes quite a statement and brings a lot more interest to the pieces, all while bringing in the coastal vibe we love.

I couldn’t decide if I liked it on the wall or on our entry table better, so it frequents both places 🙂  I can also change out which prints are in it at any time with just a little double-sided tape, either to another piece I’d like to display or a fun seasonable printable.

I’m also super excited to use this as a display for some of my favorite holiday printables!  (find this one HERE)

I hope this gives you guys a quick little project idea for this fall that you can customize for your space and display all your favorite pieces in!  You can also find a few more of my favorite DIY wall decor projects below too:

Hanging Book Storage

Rustic Typography Date Art

Seashell Monogram Wall Hanging

Beach Collection Shadowbox

More changeable wall decor for holidays and year-round:

set of 10 holiday printables in 13×19 or 8×10 — store the others in the frame for easy swappable decor!

build a decorative window frame and add a seasonal wreath

swappable triptych frame

DIY chalkboard + tips for perfect chalk lettering and art