I love eclectic picture walls. Not only are they visually interesting, but they are personal and unique. I started obsessing over picture walls when we moved into our house 6 years ago and was looking for an interesting way to dress up our wall going upstairs. Because it was in a high traffic area, visible from the entrance way, main floor and second floor we decided to employ the help of some interior designers and I’m so happy we did. It’s definitely more sophisticated then the ones I’ve done myself, but it took a lot more work and planning vs the ones I was able to do myself.
The main difference between the one I did and the one we had professionally done is I used Command Strips and art work and they used mainly framed pictures hung with nails. Finding frames, printing pictures and laying out the artwork takes significantly more time, preplanning probably took 3 months and then the actual hanging took close to 4 hours. My office wall took about a month looking for the right art pieces and then only an hour to hang. My daughter’s wall on the other-hand has been evolving for over a year and I don’t think it will ever be done, as there are pieces of artwork I like to swap out to keep things fresh (another reason I love Command Strips).
A couple tips I’ve figured out to make hanging simpler is to use a small light level that you can set on top of your picture to ensure its straight. Also, placing artwork at different levels and distances apart helps make things easier. If you want all your pictures lined up and the same distance apart it becomes time consuming. I also really like to use different dimensions, media types and pops of color to keep things interesting. But most importantly I like to find things that are personal and tell a story. All of my art walls have a picture of a giraffe, because when I was younger I drew one with a huge smile and my Dad hung it on the wall for years and when we moved he kept it, then sent it to me years after. Also, the picture of the otters holding hands I love, because my husband and I went to the Vancouver Aquarium when we were dating and saw otters doing just that, plus otters mate for life. When I stumbled upon the picture in my daughters room that says “I love you more” it brought me to tears, I say that to her every night!
Picture walls can be a ton of fun to create and a great way to share your memories and tell a story. It can also be a lot of fun searching for pieces on your travels to bring back. Don’t let your perfectionism hold you back, art walls can be incredibly easy and a very rewarding project.
A Blog of One's Own 