Old Picture Frame into Barn Wood Frame

Who doesn’t love barn wood?

Every time we visit somewhere with more history than our lovely California, I would go gaga at the sight of every old barn!

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The easiest way to bring a piece of that rustic charm into our home is to make a barn wood picture frame. And this DIY is so easy because all the hard work of making a picture frame is actually already done – we are using an old picture frame or a Dollar Store frame, and transform it into a gorgeous DIY barn wood frame in a few easy steps!

As you can see, making a picture frame from scratch is more work , like in this cool concrete picture frame we made using a cereal box!

Make unique and fun Concrete picture frame! Perfect for industrial, chic homes!! - a Piece Of Rainbow

*Some resources in article are affiliate links. Full disclosure here.

or this (inspired by ) reclaimed boat wood picture frame-

DIY picture frame from fence wood - apieceofrainbow.com

But today, we don’t need to worry about the little details! Just cut and glue, that’s it!

Materials and Tools:

  • an old picture frame, I used a simple 8×10 frame here. Frames that don’t have too much bumps will work better for gluing, as you will see in later steps
  • hot glue sticks and a hot glue gun
  • barn wood: since we see no barns in San Diego, these weathered fence wood are almost just as beautiful, right?
  • tools for marking 45 degree angles, and a saw for cutting the wood. Miter saw would be perfect, but even a simple hand held carpentry sawcan do the job!
  • Wood Glue
  • a couple of small screws for attaching picture frame hanging wire
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Step 1: measure the wood.

The opening of a standard 8×10 picture frame is about 7.5″x9.5″, like the one I have here. Measure the wood so the finished opening of our wood frame is no bigger than 7″x9″, smaller is fine.

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This will give extra room to accommodate the irregularities of the reclaimed wood.

Step 2: Cut wood.

If you are using a miter saw, it will be more accurate. If you use other saws with a guide, then cut 3 of the 4 pieces first, use them to mark the 4th piece.

Be easy on your self! The frame is meant to be rustic looking, so even if it does not fit totally perfect, it can still look amazing!

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Step 3: Finish wood frame. Now that you measured the last piece according to the first three, it will fit snugly. Use plenty of wood glue. The key is to glue the pieces one at a time, wait till the glue dries before gluing the next piece. You can use staples to add some extra support.

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Step 4:  Isn’t it great we already have a picture frame with the backing and glass?

All we need to do now is to use hot glue and glue it to our wood frame. Center the old photo frame, flip them over carefully, hold the frames down, mark with a pencil and use plenty of hot glue to glue it to the wood frame.

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The final step is to add a couple of small screws for the hanging wire / string to attach to. Now we have a beautiful diy barn wood frame!

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Can you recognize this frame from before? This would make a lovely gift too and would look great in almost any style homes!

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If you love reclaimed wood for the home, you will love these pallet wood storage crates!

Make gorgeous pallet wood crates inspired by vintage orchard and farm crats, & transfer images to wood easily!| A Piece of Rainbow


For an entry wall, this reclaimed wood and faucet coat rack would be so fun!

make faucet handle coat rack - www.apieceofrainbow.com

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