My unstyled life: repurposed wall decor

We had friends over for dinner the other night. Good times. I was super tired going into it, but still had fun. It was late when they left and we just managed to clear the table and start the dishwasher before going to bed. The next morning I went in the dining room to gather up the tablecloth and shake out the crumbs, but I decided to take a picture first.

I really like our dining room right now, even if the chairs aren't my first choice. Curtains from our first apartment still work in this space. The tablecloth was a recent find in the 'as is'/fundgrabe section of the big blue box. The wall decor consists of 4 bulldog clips, 2 tiny nails, and a 1.50 Euro sheet of gift wrap. Yes, gift wrap.

There's a fun shop in a nearby town that carries all sorts of fun office supplies, stationary, gift wrap, etc. I'll probably never spend 1.50 on a small-ish sheet of thick wrapping paper just to wrap a gift, but I've been known to purchase a few sheets for decorating purposes. This hand-drawn map of Manhattan is a nice way to remember my/our many encounters with NYC. It's also an attractive and affordable way to fill some empty wall space (bulldog clips at the bottom keep it weighted down). I think we even hung this in less than 60 seconds! 

Michelle from Design Evolution just posted on monochromatic design schemes last week and I must say I'm a total fan. I like the visual peace a primarily monochromatic look brings to a space, not to mention how much easier it is to find accessories. Obviously it's not for everybody, but in a home where diverging tastes collide, sticking primarily to one color certainly helps grease the wheels!

What about you? Anything unconventional decorating your walls? What do you think of monochromatic interior design?