There has been a growing demand for home improvements and renovation, including a trend for photo/gallery walls to fill blank walls with beautiful pieces of art. How do you create a gallery wall that looks great?
It largely depends on the sizes of the frames you want to hang and the wall space as to what the most aesthetically pleasing layout would be. Fear not we are here to help! The best way to determine this is trial and error but not with hammers and nails but by using your own diy templates. These can simply be created using pieces of paper/newspaper/cut up cardboard boxes and taping to the wall until you find the layout that works best for your space. Or alternatively take a photograph of the wall and your artwork and use Paint or similar program on a laptop or desktop.
Step #1: Prepare the templates.
Start by cutting paper to match the size of the frames you wish to hang. Use the frames as a template and either mark the outline with a pencil and cut or carefully score around the frame with a craft knife.
It's important to make sure that your cuts are aligned with the frame dimensions exactly as these will form the templates on the wall.
Step #2: Test the layout.
Now the fun part! Once you have cut all of the frame outlines its time to get testing different layouts, for ease it is best to use a low tack tape such as painters tape/masking tape - this will allow you to easily move the templates around the wall without damaging the wall finish.
Every gallery wall will vary but as a starting point our advice here is to imagine splitting the area into 4. Then, try to balance the template sizes across all quadrants i.e. try to have similar sized frames in each of the imaginary 4 areas. You can then rearrange the templates to suit more easily thereafter.
Step #3: Add fixings to wall.
It's time to drill in the fixings for the frames (alternatively you may use a picture hanging strip such as the Command Strip (Command Strip 3M).
If drilling in your fixings to the wall, you will need to check the back of your frame to determine where it will hang from - it is usually 1/2 to 3/4 the way up your frame. You can drill directly through your paper template to ensure you have the right position. Then pull the template from the wall leaving just the fixing.
If using the command strip, it is a little harder to get this accurate as you will need to partially remove the template to stick the hanging strip against the wall but nonetheless still very easy. Please ensure that you have a sufficient number of hanging strips depending on the weight of your frame - this information should be found on the hanging strip packaging or manufacturers website.
Step #4: Hang the frames.
After you have your fixing/hanging strips in place you can now carefully hang your artwork - make sure that each are level. You can either use a spirit level or even a spirit level app on your photo to get these perfect.
You can add to your photo/gallery wall over time so don't feel that you need everything to get going. Feel free to leave a comment below or message us if you require any further help including inspirational ideas for your next project.
Don't forget to tag us on instagram with your creations @printframeco