Here’s a low-cost, almost no-cost art for your wall that is really cute.
Use old maps or free maps from rest stops for this project.
Birds! Cut a bird shape from the map and glue it to a piece of plain background paper. With dark watercolor paint draw in some details like feathers, beaks, eyes, and feet. Let dry and frame!
My inspiration piece has 5 separate painted bird pictures in one frame. The separate pictures stand out a bit from the backing for a slight shadow effect.
You could get this look by attaching the pictures with a good amount of hot glue. Also you would need to make the individual pictures directly on some kind of stiff art board. I like the different colored backgrounds for interest. Best of all, you can use an old frame and arrange the smaller pictures to fit.
Notice some of the birds are partly out of the pictures. No rules. You might like to try other artwork using old maps. The Eiffle Tower? Get the kids involved with your map scraps. Trees? People? Flowers? Letters? Names? Dinosaurs? Pretend creatures? Have fun with it!
If you get good at this you could make gifts or turn it into a side business.
All of these ideas work using book pages, but maps just look more interesting to me.
Here are more ways to use maps to make decorative items and gifts: