Picture Frame Wall

How to create a picture wall

A picture frame wall is a striking way to display your framed pictures, whether you have snaps of family and friends or a collection of traditional prints.

With thousands of picture frame and mount products creatable through the Picture-Frames website you really can design your perfect picture wall. It doesn't take long but it can make a fantastic difference to your interior space.

These simple rules will give you the confidence to create a picture wall at home.

Design

First of all line up all the pictures you are going to hang and start to think about sizes, colours and themes. Get a pen and paper and make some sketches of possible layouts. You may want a traditional display or something with a contemporary feel. Perhaps it is going up a stairs in steps.

If you feel confident with your design you can hang your pictures directly on the wall. You might want to play with your layout a little by cutting full size paper templates of your pictures and arrange them on the wall until you are happy.

Wall

Choose an area where there is lots of space to display the collection. A large sitting room wall is ideal, or a wide hallway or staircase. Make sure there is enough room for people to walk past without knocking the frames. By using a plain wall rather than patterned wallpaper you will help the collection stand out. Dark pictures work best on light walls and light pictures on dark walls. Take down any existing pictures and ensure your furniture doesn't cause a distraction.

Theme

Always have a common element running through your collection so there is a relationship between the pictures. It could be that they all have the same frame, or if it is a mixture of frames, they might all be the same size. Perhaps they are all black and white photographs or watercolour paintings by the same artist. This way you are creating a collection rather than a general assortment.

Ideas

Here are some designs to help you with your picture wall.

Staircase

This is a good place to display pictures as long as there is enough room for people to get past without brushing the frames. The pictures should be spaced so they follow the line of the steps going up. Measure from the first step up to the bottom of the first frame. Use this measurement every few steps to place the next picture and so on. If they are small frames, create a collection of 2-4 before moving up the stairs.

Growing Display

Start with an imaginary line running across your wall. Place the pictures above and below this line, growing outwards in a circular motion. You can add to this design over time but be careful not to let it get too big. If the pictures start to get too high or low for you to comfortably view it is time to start a new picture wall. This works well with a mixture of traditional style frames, to give a vintage feel, or sharp, clean frames such as aluminium for a stylish contemporary display.

Contemporary Square

Arrange your frames so they fit together to create a square or rectangle design on your wall. Leave approximately 5cm between each frame so you can see the collection without it being squashed. This design works especially well if your pictures have the same style frame in different sizes.

Traditional

The top row should start just above your sight line and be made up of the smaller or lighter pictures in the collection. If your pictures are all the same style and measurement, put portrait shaped ones on this row. The second row should be made up of darker, larger and landscape shaped pictures.