A fun way to decorate a room in your home or office is to choose a large wall and turn it into a gallery wall. A gallery wall is just a fancy way of saying “lots of different pieces covering one wall” and is a great way to bring personality and style to your space. The beauty of a gallery wall is that it can take many forms and truly be whatever you want it to be. What do you love the most and how can you express that in your space? It can be your family, your travels, your favorite place, anything you dream up.
One way to get started planning your wall is to make a list of things that bring you joy. A list could include more generic things like:
• Family
• Nature
• Travel
• Books
Or could be more specific like:
• My kids playing outside
• Spending time in the woods
• Traveling to the Sierra Nevada in California
• The writing of John Muir
Pick one or more things from your list you want to highlight. Look for ways to represent the things you love in print, whether that’s through a photograph, a piece of art, a passage from a favorite book, or whatever else you dream up.
Having trouble imagining how everything will fit together on the wall? Try cutting out pieces of paper in various sizes to represent the elements you plan to include on the wall and moving them on the floor in various arrangements. This will help you select the best sizes for the pieces you have yet to print.
Once you have all of the pieces you plan to include in front of you, you’ll also want to arrange these on the floor before making any holes in the wall. Moving things around and deviating from your original arrangement is part of the fun!
Once you’re feeling good about your design and you’re ready to start the hanging process, you’ll want to have all of the right tools on hand. In addition to a hammer and hanging hardware, it’s helpful to have a measuring tape, a pencil, and a level on hand to minimize errors and keep the holes in the wall to a minimum. The kind of hardware you’ll want will depend on the weight of the picture and the type of the wall, which could be plaster, drywall, concrete or masonry. Your local hardware store will likely have good advice for the hardware to pick up, depending on your wall type.
Now you’re ready! Choose a large piece to start with and measure from there, taking care to measure the distance between the pieces. Note where the hardware is on the back when measuring out where to hang. And don’t stress if you end up making a couple of extra holes- that’s what spackle and paint are for when you’re ready to reimagine your space.
• Don’t be afraid to incorporate pieces you already have into your gallery wall. Arranging items in a new way can bring life to old pieces and cut down on the cost of styling your space.
• Start with things you love or know you want to include, like a beloved photograph, and go from there.
Looking for a quote to include or a piece of art that won’t break the bank? Etsy.com is a great resource for filling out a gallery wall! Downloadable purchases are particularly versatile because you get to decide how you want to print it, whether that’s on canvas, wood, metal, or in a frame. You can often choose the size as well, making it easier to fit into your design.
• In search of a cleaner, sleeker look? Ditch the mixed media and choose just one thing you want to feature. For example, select black & white photographs and print them in a variety of white frames or choose a selection of photos to feature on Metal Prints. A mix of sizes will still give the design that gallery feel.
• Keep in mind that a gallery wall is not permanent and the shape that it takes can evolve over time as you update photographs or add and remove pieces.
Above all, take your time, have fun, and go with what makes you happy.
The Wall Art section on our website is a great place to check out a multitude of printing options, including everything seen on this wall, listed below.
• Two 8x10 Modern Framed Prints
• Two Santa Cruz Frames (wide style)
• One 5x7 Metal Print
• One 16x20 Canvas Print
• One 12x36 panoramic Wood Print
• One 8x10 Wood Print
