I have not done a home reveal blog post in a while and excited to share with you our living room gallery wall. I knew I wanted a gallery wall from the minute I laid eyes on this room and knew it would work well with my leather sofa. I wasn’t feeling a large piece of art or a few larger pieces above the sofa and wanted a gallery wall to add a touch of sophistication with a variety of images and frames since this room is more formal than our family room.
I found inspiration for the wall on both Instagram and Pinterest and saved those images to reference. Once I found a look that resonated with me for the room, I stuck with it and really did not stray from that vision. While I knew what I wanted for the wall, I did need the help of my designer, Kristin Conrad, who really followed the look I was going for. It wasn’t always easy, and it took way longer than I expected, but this gallery totally makes the room.
Kristin and I started the process by going over art and photographs I already had and looked how we can incorporate them into the wall. We also scoured my travel images and my Instagram to see what could work from my feed. Kristin always likes to incorporate your own art or images, which I thought was really nice and meaningful, and happy those are included. We then went back and forth with color and vision a few times and narrowed down some photographs that I had to print and frame. I also made a few purchases at One Kings Lane, HomeSense, Etsy and Minted. After some art and images came in, Kristin and I placed everything on the floor and played around with layout. From there, she made templates of each piece for size and hung it up on the wall. There was paper on my wall through holidays and hosting friends for dinner, but I wanted it right and we took time finding the best fitting pieces.
I also wanted the wall to have pieces that did not look all the same. I love a mix of photographs and different types of artwork with a mix up of frames that compliment each other rather than the same type of art on the wall. There were some pieces that I thought would initially work well until they were printed out and we had to find replacements.
I asked Kristin of Kristin Conrad Designs to share her tips on creating a gallery wall at home since she did such an amazing job at helping create my wall. Here’s what she says:
- Determine your gallery wall style. Do you like a neat grid format? Do you prefer frames of all the same size? Or do you prefer a more random layout with an eclectic mix of varying frame sizes? Looking at inspiration images on Pinterest is a great source to help you find the style for you.
- Consider your subject matter. If you are going for family photos, be sure to vary kids ages and shoot sessions. Balance close up shots with far away ones.
- Art having sentimental value is a must for the wall. Art you picked up on vacation or a landscape photograph of a special place will create a story.
- Determine your palette — black and white? warm or cool? Your images should complement one another. And not all pieces can be of the same intensity. Balance bold with softer images.
- Frame selection is another way to bring balance. If using a grid layout, I stick with all matching frames. For a more random arrangement, mixing frames to compliment each individual piece helps enhance the collected feel and add to the story telling of the wall. I prefer to not mix more than three finishes.
- Gather all your images on the floor and arrange a layout. Then snap pictures so you can see what works best.
- Once you determine your layout, make paper templates of each piece and arrange them on the wall. This help determines proper height and allows you to tweak the layout before making any holes in the wall. Make sure the entire gallery compilation feels proportioned to the wall and furniture around it.
So if you are thinking of taking the plunge on doing a gallery wall in a room or hallway, I always think it’s a great look and one that will never go out of style. Hope these tips help you if you are planning on incorporating one in your home soon. If you want to see more of my home, please let me know in the comments below.
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