You guys know I am constantly on the hunt for budget-friendly ways to fill up our blank rental walls. One of my favorite “tricks” is to make inexpensive, eye-popping DIY wall decor with paper. Not only is paper cheap (like…really cheap!), but it also comes in pretty much any color, pattern, scale, size, and texture you can imagine. This means there are limitless possibilities for creating just the right decoration for your room. Check out these inspiring ideas I’ve made over the years, and then bust out some scissors and glue to make some of your own amazing wall decor with paper!

Collage of Wall Decor with paper

Why Use Paper to Decorate Your Walls?

It’s Cheap!

I love using paper to create DIY wall art projects primarily because it’s so inexpensive. Stacks of cardstock are cheap, allowing you to fill up large frames or blank walls for mere dollars. For someone who has new walls to fill every few years, I love saving serious cash.

It’s Customizable!

Since paper comes in so many different colors, textures, and patterns, you can most certainly create something that matches your space just right. Can’t find a pre-made print in the exact shade of blue you need? I bet you can find that right blue paper at the craft store!

It’s Versatile!

Finally, paper can be cut, rolled, looped, linked, punched, and layered into a wide range of designs. And while electronic cutting machines, such as a Cricut or Silhouette, certainly make paper wall art projects easier, you’ll be amazed at what kind of effects you can create using just a scissors, paper cutter, or even punches!

Helpful Products & Supplies

The specific art piece you make will determine what exact materials you’ll need. But in general, here are the supplies I reach for time-and-time again when creating DIY wall decor with paper!

Types of Wall Art You Can Make With Paper

There are lots (and lots and lots) of different ways to transform basic craft paper into a statement piece for your home. For this post, I’ve grouped ideas into the following categories:

  • Full Wall Installations
  • Cut Out Artwork
  • Typography Artwork
  • Ceiling & Wall Hangings
  • Printable & Printed Artwork

Full Wall Installations

If your room needs some serious color or you have a big blank wall space to fill, consider a full wall installation!

These 3D Paper Wall Flowers can be made in any size and taped up in any arrangement to fill a wall, big or small.

Orange and Pink 3D Paper Flowers on a white wall

No fancy machine needed here. This 3D Abstract Art is made from folding up square sheets of paper and taping them to the wall in an ombre pattern.

3D Wall Decor with Paper in shades of blue

There’s no need to cut apart paper if you can find an amazing pattern! Considering Covering Your Wall in Wrapping Paper for a budget-friendly alternative to wallpaper!

Flamingo wall decor with paper hung on a laundry room wall

Large sheets of colored paper can also be used to frame out your artwork rather than be the artwork itself Here, large sheets of craft paper make a vibrant gallery wall!

Quantico Virginia Base Housing Family Room

Cut Out Artwork

Complicated patterns and designs are made possible with the help of a cutting machine (e.g., Cricut), but don’t despair if you don’t have one. Even the simplest of shapes (e.g., strips of paper, chevrons, circles, etc) can look like high-end artwork when cut from stunning paper and arranged just so!

State Silhouettes cut from pretty gold-and-white cardstock are a clever way to show off all the places you’ve lived or traveled.

State silhouette wall decor with paper

Large Silhouettes Cut From Wallpaper are a unique and fun way to use up samples or remnants!

Nature silhouettes cut out of wallpaper and hung on a wall

Paper flowers don’t have to be large or on the wall. Miniature versions can be layered into frames (without the glass) like this Falling Paper Flowers Artwork.

Red, blue, and green 3D flowers in a white frame

No fancy tools or craft stash needed here either! Use a circle punch to clip circles from paint chips to make this adorable Owl Artwork.

Owl made from paint chip circles

This Abstract Chevron Artwork started out as a handful of colorful paper strips. You won’t believe the fun and oh-so-clever way this wall decor with paper comes together!

Chevron wall decor made from paper

Quilt blocks often use basic shapes such as squares and triangles (which are both easily cut with a paper trimmer!) to achieve really intricate patterns. This DIY Paper Quilt Artwork started out as a bunch of colored and white squares but were cut and glued together to make a fascinating design.

Quilt block wall decor with paper

When you have access to an electronic cutting machine like a Cricut, you can make even the most intricate designs with paper! This series of Star Wars Artwork was entirely cut from colored cardstock and carefully glued together to make the iconic images!

Star Wars artwork hung in a gallery wall

When you cut intricate designs from paper, it can be tricky to glue it all back together in a way that looks clean, polished, and perfect. But I have an easy hack for getting perfect layouts…every time. See how it works with this Cricut Heart Art piece.

World artwork made with paper hearts

Typography Artwork

Letters, numbers, and phrases not only add some visual interest to your space but can hold a lot of meaning too. Incorporating special numbers (e.g., zip codes, birthdays, etc) or personal phrases can be easy thanks to the availability of peel-and-stick letters and a plethora of free fonts!

Pretty lettering (by hand or by machine) can be used to convey any message or phrase that resonates with you, like this Hey Ya’ll Artwork created using the foiling tool on a Cricut machine…

Hey Ya'll artwork made with a Cricut and paper

…or this simple Gold-Foil Typography project, with the message cut out of white cardstock and backed with a shiny gold paper.

White cardstock wall decor with paper

This Number Typography Print below is just an array of numbers in a fancy font printed onto large paper!

Wall Decor with paper

Likewise, this Hello There Artwork was made by pairing colored cardstock with gold peel-and-stick letters, resulting in a simple-yet-classy design.

Need some quick and budget-friendly artwork solutions? These 2 inexpensive artwork ideas cost just a few dollars and can be done in mere minutes!

Ceiling & Wall Hangings

A paper wall hanging or ceiling fixture will not just add some color to a room but whimsy too, thanks to their movement and 3D nature.

This Paper Star Mobile combines lots of colors, textures, and sizes to create a dazzling display for baby.

Paper star mobile

Patterned scrapbook paper can easily be turned into charming pinwheels with nothing more than a scissors. You can then fashion them into a Pinwheel Mobile or 3D wall display.

Pinwheel mobile made from patterned cardstock

Printed & Print-Your-Own Artwork

Printing your own artwork is another (often easier) DIY project that opens up lots of possibilities but still keeps the cost low! Whether you find free printable artwork on your favorite blogs or download a print/photograph from an online shop, you can still get custom results for a faction of the cost of commercial artwork!

Printing Photos Onto Post-It Notes can turn your favorite phone snaps into groovy artwork that can be stuck all over the home or even loaded into collage-style frames.

Black-and-white photos printed onto Post-It Notes

Cards, gift tags, magazine pictures, book covers, or even these little Home Inspiration Cards can be transformed into cheap (or even free!) artwork. If your item is too small for a substantial frame, simply back it with some pretty patterned scrapbook paper!

Printable Sewing Machine phrase in a white frame

You will be amazed at what you can find online for free! So many of my fellow bloggers have amazing digital artwork, photographs, and designs that you print yourself. These Star Wars Prints add serious visual impact but cost mere dollars thanks to printing them onto oversized paper at a local copy center.

How to Help Kids Be More Organized

Stumble upon an amazing remnant of fancy or high-end (or even cheap but fantastic) wallpaper? Learn How to Frame Wallpaper as Art for a one-of-a-kind addition to your home, no cutting or matting necessary! You can also frame up pretty wrapping papers and scrapbook papers too (shown below).

How to Frame Wallpaper As Artwork

Finally, fall in love with a peice of clipart? Learn How to Turn Clipart Into Printable Artwork to make your own custom printable art!

Artwork with Clipart

I hope this roundup of ideas for making wall decor with paper inspires you to look at the cardstock sitting in your craft stash or some old wrapping paper in a whole new way! Whether you cut it apart, stack it, layer it, or frame it as is, I think you’ll be amazed at what truly stunning and unique artwork you can make with these inexpensive materials!

See You Soon!
Megan