Basic Guidelines for Decorating Your Walls

Art, photos and wall installations can imbibe lots of personality and visual interest to an otherwise drab and boring room. Rather than leave your walls empty, make the most use of it and infuse your room with memories and color.

Here are some guidelines in decorating your walls:

• Choose quality picture frames. Picture frames do not simply hold your pictures and artwork. They add visual impact to what you want to display. When choosing your picture frames, you need to consider the overall look that you are going for in the room, the color of the walls, as well as the color and theme of the photos and artwork. For instance, a room with traditional Louis XVI furniture in muted tones, you should match it with antique picture frames in gold or white finish. On the other hand, a rustic themed room with wooden furniture calls for picture frames in wood finishing.
• Consider adding a picture frame ledge. For one section of the room, think about putting in some narrow shelves that are ideal for picture frames. This allows you some freedom to move the picture frames around and layer the frames one atop the other to create more depth to the display. You can also add other decorative elements such as flower vases and small statues. These shelves must be securely installed and able to hold the collective weight of everything you will place on them.
• Ratio of display to wall. Generally, smaller picture frames best suit narrow walls while larger picture frames suit big walls. For an empty wall, the rule of thumb is that the picture frames/display should be about half to around 60% of the width of the wall. For a grouping of frames, the width of the entire cluster should be 50 to 60% of the wall’s width. When you are placing picture frames over the fireplace or above the sofa, the width of the entire display should fall within 75% to 85% of the width of the sofa or fireplace opening. The goal is to not overcrowd the walls, which results in making the room feel smaller.
• Make a wall plan. When poking holes into your wall to hang your picture frames, it is not a good idea to wing it. You should plan your display before picking up your hammer and nails. Trace and cut the outline of the frames in butcher or craft paper, labeling each piece to match the right frame. On the floor, lay the paper versions of your picture frames and move them around until you are able to get the right.
• Don’t forget the conservation aspect of your placement. Do not place the picture frames near air conditioning vents or areas that have a lot of moisture. You can try to minimize the effects of the presence of moisture by incorporating bubble glass, frame spacers or matting boards in your frames. In addition, do not place framed photographs in areas with a lot of exposure to the sun.
• The height of the display. The center point of a single picture frame or a group of a gallery display should be at the eye level. If you place it too high, the viewer will end up straining his neck. Placing it too low and the viewer will have to bend his head. For displays that are situated in seating areas such as the living room and dining room, you should adjust and place it a bit lower than the standard “eye level” since the viewer will usually be seated when he views the display. When hanging over the sofa or fireplace, hang the picture frames about 15 to 25 cm above the sofa or fireplace mantle.