Just Another Priceless Work of Art in His Gallery

Please tell me some of you got that reference? Hypothetical High Five for throwback music. I mean what's better than a little Mario Vasquez singing about how amazing you are? Turning 21 at an Aaron Carter concert? Oh yeah, that'll do it ;P Spoiler: That's what I'll be doing in a couple of weeks, anyways....

I love gallery walls. I kept seeing them on Pinterest and knew that I had to do one once I got my own apartment. Of course, once I got here I had a dozen things to do and decorating just couldn't be a priority (aside from my desk). There were some minor setbacks, like realizing I didn't bring a screwdriver to school, but as of this morning I can say that my gallery wall is officially complete.

Living on a tight budget in college made decorating a gallery wall a challenge. I would fall head over heels in love with a print and then realize it just wasn't where I wanted to spend $25 (J. Crew Factory being 50% off today is more my cup of tea) and it was getting discouraging. Then I decided to search for free printables on Pinterest and now I can proudly say that the only things I purchased for the wall were frames, a clock, and the wooden symbols. I decorated my wall just how I wanted to, but for a fraction of the cost. Of course, finding prints was the easy part, planning the wall is a whole different story:

How to Decorate a Gallery Wall 101

1) Pick a vision.

I realize this seems like a big step, but do you want crisp white lines? Do you want an antique vibe? You need to know what your end goal is (to an extent) before starting. I actually changed mine a bit, but it was definitely helpful to have a starting point.

2) Get frames.

I highly recommend BigLots. I got 3 of my big frames there for $7 a piece. Since I have so many big, white walls, I wanted frames that weren't totally flat. I like the dimension a simple border can provide. Also, color doesn't matter because you can always paint them. I still might paint some of mine.

3) Make a layout.

This is really important to do before you go on a crazy journey picking out prints. You want to have an idea of what size, color, and images to put where. I knew that I didn't want all text on one side of my wall and images on the other, etc. Plus this is a great time to incorporate any other accents you want to put on the wall. I got the cheap wood symbols from Michael's and just glitter painted them (see here). 

4) Pick out the prints.

This will take a while and it should. I basically did this in all the free time I had on a Thursday a few weeks ago. If you are saving by finding free printables, definitely block out more time. It will take longer to find the free ones, but on the plus side you get to instantly print them instead of waiting.

5) Scramble.

My idea for my wall kind of evolved through the print selection process and the placement of prints changed as I added more. Find a balance that works for you, after all, you're the one who has to live with it.

6) Hang them up.

Ideally do this with a hammer and nails, but as I have proven, thumbtacks get the job done too.

7) Enjoy.

There is such a sense of pride in seeing something you took the time to decorate (hello, mantle) and this is one of those things.

Do any of y'all have a gallery wall?

xoxo,

SSP