The Do’s & Do’s of Gallery Walls

Nope, you didn’t read that wrong. I did mean to say “do’s and do’s”. After I posted my blog post on Monday about gallery walls I got so many emails with questions about them. Most were asking if there are any rules to creating a gallery wall. I’m here to gladly say that there really are no rules to gallery walls. The only “don’t” that I can think of is “don’t” be afraid to experiment and think outside the box.

Gallery walls tend to be very scary to the general public because there are no true guidelines to them. I’m hoping that for those of you who are intimidated by them, this post will help you out a little.

Do #1: Mix and Match Frame Styles

Don’t feel confined to using one style of frame. You can pretty much use any style and size you want. This is the perfect time to mix traditional with modern, square with round and framed with unframed. 

[image via Decorator Dozen]

Do #2: Feel Free to Use the Same Frame Color

To give your gallery wall a more crisp look you can use the same color frames. When using the same color you can do two different arrangements…1.) All the same shape in a more structured pattern, or 2.) Different shapes in a more loose and scattered pattern. 

[image via Elements of Style]

[image – yhl]

Do #3: The More the Merrier

When doing a gallery wall make sure you go all out. Don’t just stop at 3 pieces. Go big! Feel free to fill up an entire wall. It will make for a truly interesting conversation piece in your home. Don’t feel like you have to achieve this overnight though. You can start small, and then add on as you collect new pieces.

[image via Elements of Style]

[image via I Suwannee]

[image via Kentucky Mama]

Do #4: Mix and Match Art Styles

Combine abstract art and still lifes, portraits and line drawings, watercolors and Crayola masterpieces(…from the kiddos). They will all become one big happy family once they are hung together.

[i^mage]

[image – kate spade]

[image via Rusty Hinges]

Do #5: Have Fun! 

Gallery walls are the perfect way to tell a story about your life as well as let your personal style shine through. So, have fun with it. If the spacing between each piece isn’t exactly the same don’t sweat it. Add some quirky pieces in just for the fun of it.

[image – kate spade]

Designer Tips…

Here’s a great tip for creating your gallery wall. Arrange all of your artwork out on the floor prior to hanging. By arranging your artwork on the floor you can see how it all works together, and you can move pieces around to create that perfect arrangement.  It’s much easier than hanging the art on the wall and having to patch a lot of holes when you need to change the arrangement. 

Another tip that I got from John and Sherry is hanging newspaper on the wall in the shape of the artwork first to make sure you hang the arrangement in the correct location.  I used this technique when I hung the gallery wall in my son’s room and it worked wonderfully.

Happy Hanging!

LiveJournal Tags: gallery wall,kate spade,elements of style blog,art