Hallway Gallery

            So, this weekend I had a burst of energy and wanted to do something in my house and of the laundry list of questions and things on my To Do list, I settled on this question: What do you do with an odd little pooka in your house? Decorate it! Add some interest and give it a visual function. I have an odd hallway in my house that is all of five feet long. One side has a doorway and the other just has a light switch. It also has a light that didn't really seem to have a purpose, and I felt that I needed to give it one. So I decided to hang a small gallery.

If you want to achieve a look similar to what I have done, take two frames that are square and three that are rectangular. They don't have to be collage frames like the ones I have used. You could make it larger or smaller, use square frames that are either hold a collage or a single photo, or you could go a step further and use pieces of art. The main thing that you are trying to achieve is visual interest and balance. 

If you can, plan out your layout on paper before hanging any frames on the wall, this is to minimize the amount of holes you put in the walls. If you aren’t able to lay it out on paper, you can lay it out on the floor and transfer it to the wall the same way. This also allows for you to try out different groupings or even frames without damaging your walls.

Here is a picture of the layout that I did on paper. Knowing that there is a six inch gap between all of the frames and that I wanted to have the bottom of the grouping set at the top of the light switch, I mainly used the diagram as a visual frame of reference.

When hanging your frames, it’s best to begin with the bottom one since it has a reference point. Measure from the bottom of the frame to where the hanger is. On the wall, find your center line and use either tape or sticky notes to mark it on your wall. (Though it is easier to just mark on the wall and it will generally be covered by your frames, if you do decide to change it down the road at some point, the marks don’t clean off the wall very well…) Use your reference point to set the bottom of your frame; then along the center line that you already marked, use the measurement for the hanger and mark where to put your nail with your tape or sticky note. From this point you can either use your measurements for the gaps and hangers that you included in your drawing (or floor layout) and put the gallery on the wall with your markers, or you can measure as you go (which is what I did). And there you have it, a simple, balanced, and visually appealing gallery for your home.