4 Cheap Marble Alternatives
Want that fancy, upscale marble look without dropping dollars on real, solid marble? You can get the look for less! Here are four of my favorite cheap marble alternatives to use in your next photoshoot.
Vinyl marble sheet
You can find vinyl marble sheets online!! There are lots of cheap options on amazon, but Club Backdrops and Stile & Co versions are my new favs because they are higher quality and lay flat (without needing to clamp or tape down)! Vinyl marble sheets got a shoutout in our 11 Nontraditional Photo Backdrop Ideas blog because they look pretty and they’re so easy to use.
They’re not rigid, but a bonus is that they can easily be rolled and stashed away.
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IKEA faux marble table top
Want an option that’s a bit more permanent? An IKEA faux marble table top looks gorgeous in photoshoots! The Ekbacken Countertop is made out of laminate, but it looks like the real thing. It starts at just $79 for a little over 74”.
Laminate countertops are super durable and easy to clean and maintain. Even if you’re not shooting food, liquid, or any other product that can spill and stain, you’re working with a lot of messy items, like tape and glue and gel and water.
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Plus, this countertop can give your studio space a little extra sparkle and shine. Why not make your workspace functional and nice to look at?
Marble wrapping paper
We’ve talked about using wrapping paper as a backdrop before on the blog. Remember that wrapping paper doesn’t just mean holiday gift wrap! Marble wrapping paper can be used for all occasions in all seasons. And that means you can use it in all kinds of photoshoots, too.
All you have to do is tape your wrapping paper roll to a table, countertop, cabinet, or wall. You can even clamp it in place so it’s easy to reroll and reuse again.
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(Okay, this was a holiday themed photoshoot, but still, you can use marble wrapping paper any time!)
Marble contact paper
Talk about an affordable marble alternative! This marble contact paper can be found on Amazon for about $11. To make it easy to reuse, you can apply contact paper to a piece of wood or foam board found at your local craft or hardware store.
Marble contact paper is also water resistant, so it’s pretty durable for any potentially messy photoshoots! Like this fun milk and cookies shoot I produced for a client.
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Looking for more styling hacks?
As you can see, being a stylist takes a lot of creativity and bargain-hunting skills. There are so many ways you can DIY your props and backdrops for less!
If this inspired you to become a stylist/photographer and you want to learn more about the biz, check out my course, Slay the Flatlay. It’s perfect for small business owners, aspiring photographers, content creators, bloggers, and others in the creative industry!
With Slay the Flatlay, you get access to over 4 hours of instruction and over 20 modules on photography, styling, props and backgrounds, gear, and tons of other fun stuff.
Save $50 on the course with the code SLAY and head over here to learn more!
