Trend Alert: Mark your memories and plan your escapes by decorating walls with maps

Of all the books in the world, the best stories are found between the pages of a passport.

Agree?

I tend to.

Imagine a wall in your home sporting a outline of the world map that is punctuated with several markers. That’s exactly what a well-traveled couple in Portland, Oregon did when they made a garage their home; now, it doesn’t require imagination to guess where the conversations steer towards when they have guests over. Faraway places are intriguing, and if you have been adventurous to have traveled to the lesser known and lived in the wild, the stories you weave around your experiences is sure to catch your guests’ fancy. And if you have not, well, the wall is a perfect canvas to dream and make plans for the future.

Outlining maps on a wall is not a new trend by any measure; it’s one that keeps reinventing itself in the world of interiors like bell bottoms or flared sleeves in fashion.

How to outline a world map on a wall:

There are several options for you to implement the idea. I’m outlining a few here:

Trace it by hand: you may think I’m crazy. But this is absolutely doable. Hire a projector for a day. Load a simple outline of a world map (one without too many intricate details and curves), project it on to a wall, and trace it with a marker. Voila, you are done, and it could be a fun weekend activity with kids.
Stick a decal: Order a decal in a color of your choice, peel it and stick it. Ensure you get one with movable markers.
Sticker: Order a peel-and-stick sticker of the world map with demarcations of countries and stick it.
Wire: use malleable wires to form geometric patterns of continents and the larger countries. Secure them in place with nails or markers.

I’ve been toying with the idea of decorating one wall in our home to seal our memories and make room for new ones. I’ve hit a roadblock for I am not sure what options to choose from.

Here is a collation of some creative ideas to use maps in home decor.