Whether you’ve recently moved into a new space or you feel like your living room needs a refresh, a gallery wall will give your home a unique focal point while showing off your favorite artwork or memories.

What’s a gallery wall, you might ask? A gallery wall is a curated display of photographs, artwork, or even furniture accents (e.g., mirrors or shelves) that adds unique character to your walls and creates a focal point in your home.

Start building your own gallery wall with these 6 easy steps!

 

 

Collect artwork and/or photos.

This is the most personal part of your gallery wall, so you’ll want to curate your pieces with lots of thought and care. Do you want to display your favorite memories with loved ones? Or would you rather pick prints that show off your unique taste in artwork? Make sure to take the sizes of your photos and prints into account – usually gallery walls look their best when you’re working with a variety of sizes.

 

 

Play around with frames.

If you’re going for a more creative gallery wall, try mixing and matching different types of frames. Flea markets and other secondhand shops are bound to have a variety of options to spice up your layout. Depending on the frames you choose, you can also experiment with landscape and portrait orientations to mix it up visually.

 

 

Even or odd? Make sure to maintain visual balance.

How the finished product will look depends on your personal design taste. If you prefer a more streamlined, organized look, a grid with even numbers and clean lines will probably suit your home better. If you have an eclectic taste, then an asymmetrical gallery wall will fit right into your space.

No matter what you choose, it’s important to keep a balance so that it doesn’t get too busy. For example, you can pair larger art pieces with smaller items, or colorful prints with more minimal frames. To check that your artwork isn’t clashing with each other, lay your pieces out on the floor and test out different combinations.

 

 

Take your layout for a test run.

Before you grab your hammer and nails, test out a less permanent setup first. Trace your frames on kraft paper (or paper scraps) and hang them up with painters tape. This will help you create a rough draft of your gallery wall, and you'll be able to move things around without damaging your wall. This is also a great time to double-check your spacing.

 

 

Time to start hanging! And get your tools ready. ⚒️

Now that you’ve done all the planning, you can finally start hanging your artwork and photos! Whether you’re doing a grid layout or an asymmetrical gallery wall, you’ll want to have these tools on hand while you work:

• Hammer
• Laser level (or ruler level)
• Ruler
• Pencil
• Nails
• Wall studs or drywall mounts (for heavier items, like mirrors or large frames)

When you’re ready to start hanging your frames, hammer a nail or picture hanger through the kraft paper. Remove the paper and painters tape, and then hang your wall art. Carefully check that the frame is level with a ruler or laser level.

 

 

Last but not least: admire your wall.

After all that hard work, now you can step back and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Remember that you can always fill in any gaps and switch things out later on if you want to make some changes. And if you want to completely rearrange your wall, all you'll need is some spackle and paint to fill in the holes!

Now it’s time to sit back and relax on your couch (preferably our Essential Sofa 😉). Check out our sustainable, BIPOC-founded furniture at sabai.design.

If you'd like to order our furniture and have any questions, feel free to email us at customer@sabai.design or send us a DM on Instagram @sabai.design.