MY TIPS FOR CREATING A GALLERY WALL
I love a good gallery wall. It is a perfect way to add character to a space without breaking the bank and gives you a place to display your favorite prints and/or family photos. Creating a gallery wall can be an intimidating task, but with the right guidelines you can achieve the perfect eye-catching wall.
First, you need to decide what kind of wall you would like to achieve – do you want it to look more uniform or asymmetrical and collected? If you are not sure which you prefer, peek around Pinterest and see what tends to catch your eye.
For the Belmont Project, we created a symmetrical gallery wall to highlight family photos
This stairway was the perfect spot for an asymmetrical gallery wall. We filled the entire wall and followed the stairs going down, which made it feel larger and more interesting.
Once you have decided on the type of wall you want to achieve, measure out the space you need to fill. After you have measurements, it is time to collect frames you already own or purchase some new ones that fit your plan. When doing an asymmetrical wall, I like mixing a variety of frame widths and matte sizes. Don’t forget you always have the option to spray paint or rub n buff frames that you already own.
Let’s lay the wall! It is best to lay out the wall and get a feel for the overall frame flow before you choose what pictures and art will go in each frame so that you can print the appropriate sizes. For an asymmetrical wall, I like to start with a larger frame as a focal point in the middle of my wall and build out. As you choose spots for each frame, make sure you’re alternating between the finishes, frame size and matte sizes (White no matte frame next to matted wood frame, etc). A good rule of thumb for spacing an asymmetrical wall would be about 3.5-4 inches between the frames.
Now it is time for art and/or photos! If you are using family photos and doing a symmetrical gallery wall, you will want to choose either all black and white photos or all color photos with similar tones. When doing an asymmetrical wall and incorporating family photos, you can vary black/white and color, but you will want those to compliment any of the art you plan on using. When choosing art for you wall, try to add a variety of landscape, abstract, nature, and floral. Most importantly, take your time and collect pieces that you love!
Some of my favorite frames:
Some of my favorite places for downloading prints: