Have you ever seen a gallery wall and thought you may want to try one in your home? Maybe you have, but you've been too intimidated to start. This post is for you!
We have been living in major project land for several weeks now. I guess you could blame it on an extreme case of nesting. After weeks and weeks of scouring Craigslist on a daily basis, it happened. We have finally said goodbye to our gigantic, pinkish-red, stained and contorted couch! Can I get an "Amen!"? It was a bit sad, I must admit. That couch was the topic of this blog's very first post that I shared publicly with all of you. I'll be sharing all about our new couch in a future post, but first, our gallery wall.
In the process of getting rid of our old couch and bringing in our "new to us" couch, and in the midst of my husband starting my long awaited for kitchen beadboard project, (I know, I know, we are half crazy) this gallery wall just sort of happened. I didn't want to be left out of all the fun, right?
LET'S TALK GALLERY WALLS
Here are a couple of my inspiration photos that helped my wheels start turning. A simple search of "TV gallery walls" on Google or Pinterest will give you tons of inspiration.
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| from emilyaclark.com |
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| from beautifulmatters.com |
BEFORE
Here is what our wall looked like before.
AFTER
Here is the final result. (Between these two photos, I also chalk painted the TV cabinet and small round accent table.)
If you decide you want to create a gallery wall in your home, here are some tips that will hopefully help you out.
Tips For Creating A Gallery Wall
1. Make A Plan On The Floor
Some people get really technical with this. They cut out templates of their frames and tape it all up to the wall in the exact place where their frames will be hung. My personality is just too impatient for all that jazz. I simply create my layout on the floor and switch things around until I like it. The most technical thing I do is take measurements of the length and height of the space I have to work with so I can make sure my layout goes up centered where I need it.
Note: I learned through researching this project that you don't want to center any one piece when doing a gallery wall. (See inspiration pics above and you will notice this.) It is better to offset your pieces over your TV (or piece of furniture or whatever you are hanging over). The entire arrangement is what needs to be centered on the wall space you are filling. I didn't do such a good job at this actually. My "It Is Well With My Soul" picture is pretty dead center, but I think I was aiming for it not to be. Oh well. Maybe I'll scoot the TV cabinet over a smidgen to fix that. Or not:)
I first gathered all the frames and potential items I could use that I had on hand and started laying them out on the floor. I folded an old door mat in half to match the dimensions of the TV.
I laid my tape measure out to the length of the wall space I was working with to help guide the placement of my items. It is helpful to imagine a shape that resembles the space you are attempting to fill on your wall. In my case, my shape was a rectangle. My goal was to fill up the rectangle. My collage didn't end up completely squared off like a rectangle, but it served as a great mental guide as I was working. If you have a smaller space to work with you might envision a square or even an oval or circle. Some people even use painter's tape to create their shape on the floor as they are laying out their frames and accessories. Here is an example:
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| from drivenbydecor.com |
2. Mix Old And New
After about an hour of gathering, arranging, and rearranging I was feeling a little antsy. I decided to run up to Hobby Lobby to get some drawer pulls for a dresser I needed to finish for my baby girl due in March. An hour or so later, I returned home with more than just drawer pulls! I came back with seven new items as a result of an amazing after Christmas sale. Yippee! Everything was 50% off!
My New Items:
Here is a pic of my layout after incorporating my new items. Ah, so much better! Sometimes you just need a few new things to spruce up what you've got:)
My New Items:
- 2 matted feather prints (They both had hardware that only allowed them to be hung vertically. I wanted to hang one horizontally so I got a tiny screwdriver and switched the hardware on the back.)
- "I Love You More Than All The Stars" artwork matted in a NAVY frame. Score! This piece is what started my entire spontaneous shopping spree. I fell in love with it instantly and new it would tie in my large square spray-painted navy frame perfectly.
- Studded burlap "G"
- Mini gold deer antlers
- Striped metallic tree print
- Bow and arrow candle holder
Here is a pic of my layout after incorporating my new items. Ah, so much better! Sometimes you just need a few new things to spruce up what you've got:)
I shopped my house for items I already owned to add to my new items.
The hook and keys were hanging in my foyer. The 5x7 gold frames I already owned. I filled two with photos and placed one around the deer antlers. I also already had a larger gold frame picked up at a yard sale that I placed around my new burlap "G".
As I had been looking at gallery walls online I decided I definitely liked the look of the ones that had large art incorporated into them better than ones that used exclusively smaller frames. I decided to use my large square frame from the mantle to help anchor the layout.
I created my own Kentucky art and "It Is Well With My Soul" art using canvases I had on hand. Actually, they belonged to my 8-yr old son, but he graciously let me use them:)
For the Kentucky art I spray painted a small square canvas with metallic gold paint from Michaels. Then, I downloaded a free outline of KY online and printed it off on computer paper to the dimensions that I needed for my small canvas. Luckily, I had the right size on the first try. Hallelujah! I then traced the outline onto tracing paper that I had on hand. (This came from my mom--I don't know where you get tracing paper...maybe Michael's?) Once I traced the outline it was time for the very tedious job of cutting it out. Slow and steady was the name of the game for that part. After it was cut out I painted it with navy acrylic paint I already had. The last step was to glue it to my canvas. Vola! Homemade modern art to add texture to my gallery wall.
I made the word art with acrylic paint and just duct taped it into the gold frame I already had that was previously hanging in my son's room. (He doesn't miss it.) If you are not the artsy type there are wonderful instant download printables you can find on etsy and pinterest for free or for just a few bucks. Totally worth it if you are trying to find original art to add visual interest.
3. Choose a Cohesive Color Scheme
While at Hobby Lobby, my color scheme really came together based on what I saw as I walked the aisles. I decided to stay with white/creams, gold tones, and navy. I thought I was going to have to do a lot of spray painting, but was amazed that when I combined my new items with my old I didn't have to spray paint a thing! This was a miracle of gigantic proportions and sped up the project so much. :):)
When choosing your color scheme keep it as streamlined as possible. If something pushes you beyond three colors consider spray painting it or getting a new item. Of course, this is not a hard fast rule. There are plenty of gallery walls far more eclectic than mine and it totally works. But you usually can't go wrong with a streamlined color palette, especially if you're just starting out.
Here is a colorful gallery wall with a variety of different frames that totally works. Red, black, gold, yellow, blue, and white.
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| Eclectic colorful gallery wall |
Here is one with a more streamlined color scheme of all white and tan frames.
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| from stylebyemilyhenderson.com |
4. Think About Spacing
In some gallery walls, the frames are hung very close together. The end result is almost one large piece of art on the wall. Sometimes the edges of the frames are lined up, like in the colorful gallery wall photo above. In the photo below, the frames are hung close together, but the edges of the frames are not lined up. Both gallery walls look awesome!
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| from lovegrowswild.com |
Some people love consistent, even spacing and lined up edges like this one:
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| from pregnant chicken.com |
Others are more varied and organic in how they place their art like this:
It really is all about what you prefer. No wrong or right here. Just trust yourself and do what you love. I, for one, am not one to measure the space between my frames. Like I mentioned, I just eyeball it and hope for the best. If I stand back and it doesn't look right to me, I'll just nail another hole and move it until it looks right. Fortunately, I have a hubby who is incredibly understanding of the holes in our walls:) Our home is a living, changing, imperfect place and our walls certainly reflect that!
5. Consider Texture
There are many gallery walls that just use framed art or photos behind glass like this one:
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| from apartmenttherapy.com |
I love that simple look, but if you want a more eclectic feel to your gallery wall you will want to experiment with texture. Here is an example that I just love that inspired me a lot. Notice all the variety in texture and the difference from the pic above. There is a lot of variance in the frames as well as circular elements and sculptural elements going on. Yet, the whole look is still cohesive and pleasing to the eye.
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| from drivenbydecor.com |
On my wall, the bow and arrow candle holder, deer antlers, and hook with keys are all examples of elements that add variety through their metal texture. They also add a 3D element that helps so much with the visual interest of the wall. The canvas prints of the tree and state of KY also add texture because they are different than your expected framed photos and art behind glass. The letter "G" brings in even more variety with its studded burlap material.
6. Incorporate Meaningful Items That Inspire
The personal meaning in our gallery wall is probably my favorite part of the whole thing. No one else may know, but I know, and that makes it special and significant. For example:
- The deer antlers. I can't tell you how happy I was to bring some meaning to a hugely popular decor piece right now. They remind me of something I learned about at church a few months ago. Max Lucado was the guest speaker and he told about a bible story where the people blew their rams horns to signal confidence and strength in God during whatever battle they were fighting. Lucado made the application that we should find a "rams horn verse" to counter consistent struggles we face. I can think things to death and want to figure everything out to a fault, so my "rams horn verse" is Romans 11:33-36. In this case, deer antlers are close enough to a ram's horn for me:)
"Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! For who has known the mind of the LORD? Or who has become His counselor? Or who has first given to Him and it shall be repaid to him? For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen."
- The bow and arrow candle holder. This decor element reminds me of the value that God places on children.
"Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of ones's youth." Psalm 127:3-4
- The feather prints. They remind me of Psalm 91:4-5a
"He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. You shall not be afraid..."
- The hook and keys. They represent a truth I try to teach my kids often. The truth is this: The only person you can control is yourself. In a sense, they hold the keys to their own happiness. They don't have total control over their lives, but they do have control over their response to circumstances that come into their lives. (Talk about a lifelong process to apply this truth in my own life.)
- The metallic tree-looking print reminds me to stay in God's Word.
"Blessed is the man...[whose] delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper." Psalm 1:1-3
7. Take The Plunge And Start Hanging
I started by hanging my biggest piece first. In this case, it was my navy square frame. I used my tape measure to mark off with a pencil where the end of my collage should be. I then lined up the right edge of my frame to this mark and had my chair in place to help me know how high I wanted to hang my frame. I made sure there was enough space above my frame for the pieces that would be hanging above it. Once I began hanging things on the wall, the layout changed a bit and I ended up ditching the white shelf. (Partly because I didn't want to have to put screws in the wall.) This may happen with you too. Just go with it. It's kind of like shopping for clothes. Sometime you like things on the hanger that you don't like once you try them on. Make necessary adjustments and keep on truckin.
May you dwell inspired, as Christ dwells in you this new year.
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