How To Create A Gallery Wall
A gallery wall can be a fantastic statement piece in any home. When it comes to gallery walls, there are so many unique possibilities. They offer a brilliant way to fuse color and design and can be used to showcase a variety of objects, from pieces of art and mirrors to personal photographs and sentimental bequests. The gallery wall is a blank canvas of sorts, allowing you to showcase the items and objects that you hold dear and love. While some gallery walls follow a more conventional route, opting for curated prints and angular frames, others feature more intricate trinkets like jewelry, family heirlooms, and floral displays.
If you are ready to create the gallery wall of your dreams, it is time to explore these top tips. While it’s a highly individualized and bespoke creation, some key design elements can bring the wall together with sophistication and style an help you to create a gallery wall built to inspire.
Create a Cohesive Color Palette for A Pulled Together Look
First and foremost, you want to think about color. Color is one of the most critical aspects of design and sets the tone for your room. Your color palette can be as bold or muted as you desire, and there are no rules when it comes to choosing the tones and hues that inspire you. Firstly, however, you’ll want an idea of the direction that you’re going in. Some styles, such as boho, lend themselves to multiple colors and patterns, offering a dazzling and exhilarating gallery wall filled with movement and drama. If you prefer simplicity, however, and prefer the more neutral Scandinavian design, you’ll probably choose muted hues, minimal aesthetics, and a flexible format.
If your gallery wall will be installed in an existing room, consider the current color scheme and use this as inspiration. You can pick out a few colors that are prominent in the room and add elements of these colors to the wall to create cohesion.
Of course, you can also add new elements and colors into the mix, but reflecting on the existing space will help you to establish a color scheme.
Consider the Theme
While you don’t have to be rigid while creating a gallery wall, a loose theme can create a more cohesive space. Themes can reflect an array of motifs such as bold botanical designs, trinkets from your travels, vintage posters, or antique pieces. However, a theme can also be created through the color palette and items used. Perhaps you want to create a gallery wall with an array of mirrors or wall vases, playing with light and aspects of nature to create an alluring wall.
When it comes to finding a theme, it certainly doesn’t have to be uniform. You can play around with colors, textures, objects, and symbols to create something that is truly special to you. Perhaps the gallery wall is an ode to loved ones, reflecting photographs, personal things, and individual artworks. The possibilities are truly endless, making the gallery wall an opportunity to truly reflect that which you love.
Go Big (or Go Home!) – Start with Something Large
A large piece such as a mirror, artwork, or wall hanging can be a great way to kickstart the gallery wall. This item usually serves as the focal point and is the object from which you build the surrounding display. While smaller items are essential, you don’t want the eye to wander across a sea of tiny frames and objects without finding a point on which to focus. In addition, this focal object can draw the whole gallery together, offering cohesion and connection between the various items. This ultimately serves as a great point of departure and gives you a point from which to begin building the gallery of your dreams.
Once you have found your big focal piece, you can start sketching some ideas of where the smaller objects might go. Before you start drilling, make sure you have a clear plan! A gallery wall template might be a good way to start. Happily, many of these can be found online and will allow you to decide whether you want various items centered around a larger central piece, a horizontal alignment, objects aligned to a straight bottom line, or a straight topline. There really are so many possibilities, and exploring the different options is a brilliant way to glean inspiration. Sketch a few possibilities and see which you prefer.
Level Up – Experiment with Levels
A gallery wall offers so much opportunity to harness your creativity and play around. Utilizing different levels is a great way to create movement between the objects and will result in a dynamic display filled with energy and life. A great way to play with levels is to choose items of different sizes and heights. For example, combine tall vases or statues with smaller and shorter items like pots and frames. If your feature gallery wall is going to be behind a sideboard or credenza, you can also use this as part of the display, adding plants, sculptures, or objects to the mix.
Mix Your Horizontals & Verticals
Much like you want to mix up levels, you also want to play around with horizontals and vertices to create dynamism and intrigue. Choose objects and frames of different shapes and sizes and mix and match them on the gallery wall.
While you mix and match these different shapes and sizes, you can also decide whether you want an even number of items or an odd number. Again, this is a primarily personal choice and depends on your preference. You’ll also want to measure up your space and decide how much distance you want between items. Do you want the spaces to be uniform and perfect, or do you want some asymmetrical elements? Consider spacing and distance between the various objects. Again, this is personal and about finding a balance that works for you and the room.
Don’t Be Such a Square
Square or rectangular frames look fabulous on a gallery wall and certainly have their place. However, they don’t have to be the only shape that you use, and they can work well with softer curves and intricate designs. Round mirrors can add diversity to the mix, as can items of various shapes. You can think out of the box here, opting for vintage teacups, striking sculptures, and asymmetrical shapes in-between the more conventional frames. You could also play around with wall lights of different sizes to illuminate the gallery wall.
Add Something Personal
Gallery walls offer a chance to show your personality and what is truly important to you. Sentimental items such as family photographs, graduation certificates, personal artworks or crafts, or family heirlooms can add a personal touch to your wall, making it a space that honors those that you hold dearly. Mixing up artistic pieces with personal memories is a fantastic way to create a stylish and sentimental wall that speaks to your personality and fondest memories. If you are an avid traveler, you might want to add some pieces from your travels too. Remember, the gallery wall is a curated space with things you love and is a chance to truly celebrate everything you adore.
Hang It Up!
Once you’ve planned a color scheme, theme, bespoke pieces, and where they will go, it is time to start putting those nails into your wall and hanging your pieces up. You have two options here. You can either take the leap and put the nails where you think they should go, or you can use some specialized tracing paper. If you decide on this option, you will need to trace around each object that is going on the gallery wall, cut it out, and stick it on the wall with some painter’s tape (so as not to chip the paint). This is a great way to make sure that everything fits if you want to be extra cautious and will give you an idea of what the wall will look like once everything is up.
Begin with your focal or centerpiece, and work your way out, securing the different frames and objects. If your gallery wall will be above a sideboard or sofa, place some painter’s tape above the item before moving it to ensure that your gallery wall is above the furniture piece.
And there you have it! An eclectic and exciting gallery wall showcasing your most loved pieces. Excitingly, no two gallery walls are the same and they can be used in a variety of rooms from bedrooms and living areas to kitchens and bathrooms. Once you get the hang of curating the perfect gallery wall, you will be hooked! You can create a unique and personal design in every room of your home if you wish.
Have you ever created a gallery wall? Let us know how it went and share any décor hacks below! We can’t wait to see what you have created.
