I love photos on the fridge. And my daughter’s artwork. And lists. And coupons. It all goes there. This has always been a source of conflict for me as a designer though, because I very much like a visually clean space. Since I’ve been renovating this Johnson City kitchen, I started looking for ways to incorporate photos that felt more esthetically pleasing to me. I searched everywhere for photo frame magnets that had the look and feel of traditional wall frames, to no avail. So that has brought me to this super simple DIY that solved the clutter issue and allowed me to showcase even more photos. I love and win-win!

But then I thought, why stop there? Why not treat the fridge like a wall and incorporate art as well? So I included this antique oil painting from my vintage shop. It really helps break up the continuity of the other frames and anchors everything a bit.

how to make mini photo-frame fridge magnets

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So let’s get started, shall we? If you are not a crafty person, don’t worry - this couldn’t be simpler!

Materials:

place card holders I used these.

magnet strips You want something flat. I used business card magnets and they were the perfect size. If you don’t have a magnetic fridge, try using 3M tape!

super glue The magnets have an adhesive backing, but I found they needed some extra glue to be able to hold the weight. Use a strong glue here because it needs to be able to adhere to the velvet backing (conversely, you can flip the velvet side into the inside).

wallet sized photos They fit perfectly into this sized frame!

This is pretty self explanatory, but one thing you will need to do to prep the frames is pull the stands off the back so they’re flat. Most of mine came off easily but some left the metal component stuck on the back, so I used pliers to pull them off.

Use glue to apply your magnet and you’re good to go!

I think it could be even cooler if you mixed up the frames a bit. Since stores are closed, I am going pretty monochromatic here. I like the idea of making mini gallery walls for a girls night. How fun it would be if everyone swapped frames?! There are some great vintage options for mini frames if you really want some variance.