A collage style gallery wall is a wonderful way to brighten up a bare wall and hang up an array of your favourite images all in one space. It can help remind you of your favourite travel destination, allow you to hang up some of your favourite memories, or simply be a beautiful focal point in a room! Being a photographer and now running my own photography print shop, I’ve designed a few gallery walls in my time, so I thought I’d share some of my top tips if you too want to create your very own gallery wall and finally get around to that lockdown project forever on your list!

1. ITEMS YOU’LL NEED

A selection of frames of various sizes in 1-2 colours, a measuring tape, a spirit level, a few packs of Command strips and of course, your chosen artwork!

2. KEEP YOUR FRAMES NEUTRAL

To create a visually pleasing gallery wall, it’s always best to stick to neutral coloured frames so they don’t detract from the images. If you’re wanting a symmetrical gallery wall, opt for a set of neutral frames (white, gold, wooden, black etc) all the same colour and size to give that uniform look. If, instead, you want to create a collage gallery wall, go for frames in a variety of sizes and in at least two neutral tones. For example, a mixture of white and gold frames, black and wooden frames, or white and black frames. This will help show off the variety in sizes and give the collage wall a really stylish look. To start off with you could choose three small, two medium, two square and two large frame sizes - lay those out and see what other sizes you might need to add in.

3. CREATE YOUR CANVAS

Creating the perfect layout for your wall space will take some experimenting. Grab a measuring tape and roughly measure out the area you’re going to be filling. From there, measure out the same space on the floor and use this as your blank canvas where you can play around with layouts of frames. Doing it this way gives you the chance to find the perfect layout and avoid ruining your walls if things go pear-shaped!

4. FORGET NAILS, TRY COMMAND STRIPS

Now although creating a collage gallery wall might look like it’s going to make a total mess of your walls, I have a top tip to avoid that! Forget nails and use Command strips. They are sticky back picture hanging strips that can hold up a variety of frame sizes and weights, and won’t leave a mark on your wall! They are held together with velcro and make it very easy to peel off and try again if you do make a mistake!

5. CHOOSE A COLOUR SCHEME

It’s important, as with all home decor, that you choose a colour scheme for your gallery wall. If you have a particular photograph you are dying to hang up, you could begin studying the colours within that photograph and choose which will be your primary colours for your wall. Use these chosen colours to guide your choices in the other photographs and artwork you include. It’s advisable to select one to two main colours and 2-3 secondary, neutral colours. For example, you’ve decided you’d like your main colour to be a lovely, springtime shade of peach. Keep this as your primary colour and potentially choose another spring colour such as light blue to complement it. Ensure some of the other artwork on the wall features these two primary colours. The rest of the tones within the artworks should be more neutral shades such as whites, nude tones and golds/yellows to all support that hero “peach” shade.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my guide to spotting the blossoms of London! Remember to share any you find on Instagram! Make the most of this spring and remember to keep #LIVINGCOLOURFULLY!

6. YOUR LARGE PRINTS ARE THE STARS OF THE SHOW

Once you’ve chosen your colour scheme and begin to select prints, make sure to go for a mixture of both busy and simple images. Generally speaking, the large prints will be the hero prints and the stars of the gallery wall, while the smaller prints and slogan artworks are there to support the theme and vision for the gallery wall. The larger pictures should be the busiest ones. For example, if the large prints are images of cityscapes and engaging settings, you should make sure some of the smaller images feature simple details, such as a doorway, a zoomed in shot of flowers or foliage, images that support the main photos but don’t distract from them.

6. WORD ART WORKS

Typographic prints are a great way to reinforce the feeling of the gallery wall. Let’s say you’ve designed a “Parisian” themed wall, you could have some french slogans and sayings dotted around, to take the viewer on a trip to Paris through your wall. I have a range of different travel-themed slogan digital downloads available to add to your gallery wall, head to my print shop to check them out!

7. GO PINTEREST CRAZY

There is no right or wrong with gallery walls - treat them as a piece of art in themselves and have fun! If you’re out of ideas on layouts, head over to Pinterest and you’ll discover gallery walls galore. There are so many different styles, themes and layouts, you’ll never be short of inspiration!

I hope you enjoyed this article and got some inspiration to create a gorgeous gallery wall! Head over to the Etsy Shop to view my create your own gallery wall sets!