5.12.2014

Tips & Tricks to the PERFECT Gallery Wall



I've always loved a good gallery wall because it gives you the opportunity to showcase various pieces of art, styles, memorabilia, treasurers & items that may (or may not) be important to you.  As soon as the new townhouse was purchased (well almost), I immediately started trolling my favorite art sites looking for prints for my future gallery wall


I had originally planned on placing the gallery wall over our couch, but I worried it would make our living room seem more busy than it already was. Instead, I chose the wall on the landing between the 1st & 2nd floor. Given the location, it made taking photographs straight on nearly impossible & the lighting is terrible,  so please don't mind the poor quality of the photos. 


There are so many different ways to go about creating your gallery wall.  I decided I wanted to mix prints, colors, metals, sizes & materials. I liked the idea of creating a space that was eclectic & less match-y because that is more my personality.


Once you have decided you want to embark on creating a gallery wall, the best way to start is by browsing some finished gallery walls & seeing what you like & don't like.  To help figure out what you want, ask yourself these 5 essential questions:

1. Do I want my wall to be all one form of art? Just photos, or abstract art? Maybe I want to mix it up?
2. Do I want my wall to have a color theme? Or would I rather each piece be different?
3. Do I want my art to all be the same size or would I rather mix up the sizes?
4. Do I want all frames in one color or do I want to mix them up?
5. What room/wall am I going to put the wall on?

The great thing about gallery walls is you can constantly change & evolve your wall so even if you initially decide to go in one direction & then change your mind, it won't cost you a fortune to change your wall. 

Up next, start collecting art! This is by far the most fun part. To get you started, here are some great & inexpensive places/artists to check out. You may recognize some of their work from my wall!

Artists from Etsy:
Bethany Wears
Cirque De Art
Hartland Brooklyn
Jessica Illustration
KhristianAHowell
Lana's Art
Made By Girl
Parima Creative Studio
Pearls & Pastries
RiverLuna
Sugar Luxe Shop

Additional Sites:
Society 6
Minted
One Kings Lane
Joss and Main

Some of the art I chose because it meant something to me, such as the framed a handkerchief that belonged to my Nana. 


I also included some photo strips from weddings because I love having photos of my family & friends around. Gives it a more personal touch.


The point though is to get creative & have fun with it!

For framing, I used mostly frames from Target, Michaels, Bed Bath & Beyond & Aaron Brothers. I  suggest slowing collecting frames so you aren't bamboozled all at once.  This way if you're looking for a variety of "white" frames as I initially was, you will have more options.

Once you've gathered your frames & art, it's time to set up your wall!  I do recommend forming some type of arrangement before you start hammering nails into your wall.  There are a few ways to do this. For me, it was easiest to find a large flat surface aka the floor to mess around with the layout & how I wanted the art styled. It was like a giant puzzle, but I had fun figuring it out!


From there, I just used this photo & completely eye-balled the hammering nails. For the most part, it went well, but I didn't want there to be even space between each frame & I didn't want any of them to line up. However, I don't recommend my approach if you want something a bit more even.  Instead, using either newspaper or computer paper, cut out squares/rectangles in the size of each frame & tape to the wall. Once you have all the templates on the wall, you can just hammer a nail right through the paper. Remove the paper & replace with the correlating frame. 

Below are some samples of gallery walls I used as inspiration.

     


    


Sources Clockwise from top right:
1. Unknown

My final wall…for now of course :)



Have a tip, art website or gallery wall you'd like to share? I'd love to see it!



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