Young House Love

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How To Hang A Gallery Of Frames Around A TV

First things first. Weren’t we talking about how foxes might be the new “it” animal (as in, move over birds and giraffes)? Well, I think this video might be proof that we’re all on to something.

Now that that’s out of the way, on to our regularly scheduled program…

Sherry and I have always been fans of the idea of hanging art around a TV just to soften the big black rectangle that it creates on the wall. And since we have quite the collection of frames to wade through (128 to be exact) it wasn’t exactly a speedy selection process. But after more noodling than I care to admit, we officially hung this house’s first frame collage.

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Here’s the bare wall that we started with:

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Sherry actually did most of the noodling (credit where credit is due) and she used the floor as her work surface. The big gap in the middle is the space she measured for the TV. In addition to paying attention to the size of the frames, our main goal was to choose art that wasn’t too “visually demanding” (i.e. not too bright or high contrast). We don’t want it stealing the show from the, um, TV shows.

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Once the arrangement looked good on the floor, we started transferring it to the wall – starting with the frame right in the middle and being sure to center it on the TV. For some reason even though Clara was sleeping we had Little Einstein on. Nothing like a little Mozart in the background to make frame hanging a joy and a pleasure.

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We slowly built out from there on one side, just holding each frame up and eying it. We wanted to maintain somewhat consistent spacing between everything, but weren’t crazy careful about it. We like a bit of imperfection in a frame collage (plus, there’s always time for tweaking later). For example, after taking this photo we noticed that the frame directly to the right of the TV was too close to it, so we made a mental note to inch it out a little after we finished the other side.

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Here’s what it looked like with almost everything up on the wall. Well, everything except for the bottom frame on the far left because [insert facepalm here] we forgot to account for the light switch. And that little screw up made us realize that [get that palm ready again] we totally should have centered the TV on the ceiling beams first. Oh the things you don’t realize when you map stuff out on the floor…

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We were less than pleased about the miscalculations, plus I was having deja vu. But having foreseen something like this happening, we thankfully had only hung things with small picture hanging nails at this point (i.e. I hadn’t broken out the anchors and screws for some of the heavier items) so it wasn’t a big deal to shift everything to the right a few inches (eight to be exact). All but one of our erroneous nail holes got covered up in the end, so we were only disgruntled for a short time.

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If you scroll back to Sherry’s initial “rough draft” layout on the floor, you’ll notice that everything stayed the same except we opted for two larger frames on the outside edges instead of three smaller ones. It just looked cleaner that way when we eyed things as we got them on the walls.

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This room is certainly far from being done, but it really does feel more personal with some of our favorite stuff on the wall. Everything from wedding photostrips to the lot drawing of our first house and a map we brought back from Hawaii last year made the cut. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if we update a few of the frames down the road just for fun.

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We were most glad to finally hang our pin map in a place of honor (we briefly hung it in the foyer but this art looks better in there). And Sherry’s giddy that she got not one, but two faux white taxidermy items up there. Hopefully the deer that congregate out back aren’t offended.

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So that’s the story of two screws, two anchors, thirteen nails, and twenty nine holes in the wall. Any one else put some holes in their walls recently? Hopefully fewer unintentional ones than us…

Comments

  1. Laura @ Rather Square says

    I like the taxidermy items for breaking up the sea of rectangles. And adding the map with pins is a nice touch of “interactivity”! Curious though… were you really bothered by the uncentered-on-the-ceiling-beams issue? Was it something you’d keep noticing every time you watched TV and it would get on your nerves? I’m asking because I kind of like asymmetry here and there sometimes. It can create a good kind of tension in the interior environment.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I think between the overlapping the light switch issue and things almost lining up but not lining up (it was just eight inches off) it felt a little side-heavy if that makes sense. I think we like asymmetry too sometimes, but it seems to work best when it’s intentional and counter-balanced looking and this just looked like we were close, but not really on center since it was only a slight difference.

      xo
      s

  2. Abbey says

    I’ve been paying too much attention to Miley Cyrus. When I read the part (Plus there’s always time for tweaking later) I read it as “Plus there’s always time for TWERKING later” which gave me visions of you guys weirdly jerking/dancing around in your living room. Which it’s cool if that’s what you’re in to, lol.

    Reply

  3. Sara says

    That looks terrific. We’ve been, well, I’ve been–I honestly think I could hang a mattress on the wall and my better half wouldn’t care–trying to soften our own tv wall. Side note, I have the JA turtle shell in my art room and luuuuuuuuuuurv it.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We wanted the arrangement to build out from the TV so that determined the baseline, but we have talked about how it might be fun to mount the TV on the wall down the line and shift things up a bit. We also could add more frames to build this up and out over time, so we’ll have to see where it takes us!

      xo
      s

    • Karla says

      I was going to ask the same question! I like this look, but I also think it would have looked cool to mount the tv and place the frame around it too. It looks great though!

    • Pamela says

      We have a fox behind our house and those recordings are pretty accurate. Sometimes the screaming is a bit louder and sounds like the poor animal is being tortured.

      On a different note, for the past week or so, the blog posts have been appearing as much as a half hour after they appear on facebook. Is this some technical brouhaha that the cloud is spewing forth?

    • YoungHouseLove says

      It’s just a weird caching issue (if you clear your browser’s cookies/cache/data it should pop right up immediately when we post it at 10am). For some reason some people’s computers are set to “cache” a site every 30 mins or so, so the post can be sitting up there but their browser doesn’t “refresh” and see it for a while.

      xo
      s

    • Katie O says

      Pamela:

      This happens to be on my computer, but I just refresh the website (instead of clicking it from my “favorites”) and the new post appears.

  9. Rachel says

    Shut. Up. Petersisks! This is EXACTLY what I planned to do at our new place. We have the same reasonably sized tv on a huge ass wall…but all my frames are black. You’ve motivated me to actually maybe hang the frames instead of leaving them in the pile on the floor for another month or three.

    Reply

  10. rachael says

    That tortoise shell from NB taunts me!! I lurve it, and we fiiiiinally got a Target here in Canada but they don’t sell it in the white. I practically ran to the store on opening day and every week since only to be disappointed. Oh well, at least Nate’s pretty face is still on posters around the store :)

    Reply

    • Iz says

      I have to agree with you, Renee – to my eyes, the white frames kind of make the black TV stand out more…although I am generally a fan of disguising TVs this way. I think I’d go for darker frames.

  13. Chelsea @ Riding Escalators says

    This looks great! And while I’m always a fan of natural wood, that’s a lot of wood-on-wood action going on with your TV dresser/entertainment center against the wood paneling. I can definitely see wanting to paint one or the other!

    Reply

  16. Matt says

    I was curious why you weren’t mounting the TV on the wall – that’d seem to center the pictures a little bit more. (Then I saw your comment above talking about doing that very same thing.) TV mounts are pretty easy. I’d recommend monoprice.com, they have a huge selection, and you’ll have a hard time beating their prices. (And stock up on wire and iPhone cords and speaker cable and… while you’re there.)

    Reply

  17. Brenda says

    Haha, I just watched the fox video this morning. I’m a fan of combining catchy and quirky/straight up strange. I dig the faux taxidermy. Makes every home a little better. :)

    Reply

  18. Sara says

    I’m working on this around my tv, I am collecting things I love along the way I don’t just want to throw up things that have no meaning, so it is still unfinished but getting closer. I’m completely happy with half of it, the other half is going to need to be moved around. But I’m loving having my favorite things on the wall in front of me when I relax at night!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Those are from HomeGoods. I’m apparently no longer allowed to buy pillows or baskets there (I have a small problem/addiction). John has forbidden it. But aren’t they cute?!

      xo
      s

  23. Laura says

    I think I was way too distracted after watching that video to absorb anything I read or saw from the post. It was almost overwhelming in its ridiculousness, yet somehow sort of awesome…

    Reply

  24. Tracy says

    The wall looks great! I’ve been oddly attracted to fox art lately. Society6.com has an awesome selection of whimsical fox art. I have no need for fox art at the moment unfortunately, but should you need some, I know a website. ;)

    Reply

  25. Anele @ Success Along the Weigh says

    Foxes and hedgehogs are having their day. Revel in it my furry friends!

    I’ve been meaning to ask how things with The Nest are going? The Mr put one on his list for Christmas and I was curious if you thought after a few months of using it if it was worth the green and/or if a follow up post was in the works. (Light hint) :)

    Have a great weekend!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We’re in love! The monthly reports are straight up addicting (we love seeing how much energy we’ve saved, and what percentage of use we’re in – which is usually the “you use 90% less energy than the average household”). Completely addicting.

      xo
      s

    • Shay says

      Oh, good–thanks for the update. I’d been wondering, too. The Nest is on my Christmas List, as well. Can’t wait to get your full take on how it’s working for you guys!

  27. Allison says

    omg, that video!!

    We have lots of fox in our yard/woods. You wouldn’t believe the sounds we hear during mating season. Sounds like a screaming banchee or an animal being ripped to shreds. Really scary. We heard it one night when we slept with the windows opened. You can google foxes sounds and hear sounds bites. That’s how we figured out what it was. So weird!

    Reply

  28. Sarah says

    This looks great. I’ve been struggling with how to arrange art around a flat-screen TV for a while, and it’s nice to have some inspiration!

    Have you considered switching the map art with the piece on the other side of the TV, hung in the same spot? When I looked at the photo of the whole installation, I noticed that there are only 2 pieces with colored mats, and they are hung next to each other.

    I feel a little awkward even suggesting a change, since I think everything y’all do rocks!

    Reply

  30. Helene says

    Stop using nails! We’ve switched over to Velcro hanging strips and haven’t looked back. Your walls will thank you and your frames will never be crooked again.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We use those occasionally too, although I have to admit that somehow in my DIY mind something feels stronger when it’s nailed in (sometimes our velcro hung frames would pop off the wall – only on very rare occasions, but enough to keep me on my toes, haha!).

      xo
      s

    • Helene says

      The opposite is true for us, at least on our plaster walls which crumble from nails. Just make sure you buy the correct strip for the correct weight you are hanging.

    • YoungHouseLove says

      So smart! We had plaster walls in our first house and used screws and anchors everywhere, which was a nightmare. Command strips would have been an awesome alternative!

      xo
      s

  32. Cathy says

    Well, on the bright side, at least centering the TV under the beams moved you away from the light switch and not into a light switch that hadn’t previously been an obstruction! This looks fantastic!

    Reply

  33. Lisa E says

    Looks nice! Have to say I immediately noticed it wasn’t centered with the beams, because I’m anal like that, sorry! We have tray ceilings in our living room, yes plural. Three going across. I made sure our dresser turned media console and t.v. were centered under the middle one and to me it makes a huge difference. I also put a gallery wall earlier this year around our t.v. and I absolutely love it. I, however, used black frames. It adds so much to the room.

    Reply

  34. Jenny says

    What are the red pins for on the map? I know black is both of you, yellow is with Clara. Love this idea and I’ve been meaning to make one for our home!

    Reply

  35. K says

    I’m a fan of the “collage to incorporate the tv” idea. But something is just a bit off I think. Maybe it’s because all the frames are white and the tv is black? I wonder if mixing in more colors or some black frames among the white might help balance the big black box of the tv.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We’re definitely open to that over time as the room comes together! I think once some of the wood is painted white the white frames will fit right in like they did in our last house’s frame wall (we love the subtle tone on tone look of a soft neutral wall with white frames). We’ll have to see where we end up!

      xo
      s

    • Sally says

      I agree with K, darker frames and/or content would definitely help the tv blend in better. I think you didn’t understand what K meant, Sherry? It’s not that the white frames stand out and look weird against the woodwork…that aspect is fine. The white frames just don’t help the big black tv fit in, because it doesn’t blend in with white frames surrounding it. The black tv will stand out even more and look even more stark against everything else if you paint the woodwork white!

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh yes I mentioned in some other comments that we’d love some darker mats in the mix, but darker frames could work too! We’re definitely expecting this to evolve as we go!

      xo
      s

    • Jackie says

      I agree that a mixture of frame colors or black frames (or darker mattings?) will look better. Since you’ll still have dark colors, wood and other natural elements in your furniture and accessories after you paint the rest of the beams and the wall white, this seems like a great place to tie everything in together using a mixture of tones with the white in the frame wall. Also, because your ottoman is off-white I think it would blend better with the couch, the curtains, and the brick wall with a mixture of frames vs. a crisp-white palette. You did a good job of compiling all of these same pieces in the living room of your last home where the white shelf of white frames you had above the tv in H2 was anchored by the black curtain rods and dark gray beams above the TV. In this room of your current home, I think there also needs to be something else black on that wall/area to make it work.

      I did a google image search for “tv gallery wall” and really liked this one:

      http://emilyaclark.blogspot.com/2010/09/building-gallery-wall-around-your-tv.html

      Also, LOVE this one that was posted in your Forum:
      http://forums.younghouselove.com/discussion/703/diy-tv-gallery-wall

      It took me a year before I perfected my current “wallery” as I like to call it – I’m kind of obsessed with them and would talk wallery strategy all day if I could :)

  36. Jodi says

    Have you guys tried 3M picture hanging strips? I am kinda addicted to them and have used them all over our house for our ridiculously large collection of Ikea Ribba frames and other odd shaped/lightweight items we’ve hung on the wall (e.g. trays as art like you did in your old house!)!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We do use those occasionally and I generally love them, although I guess I’m old school because somehow in my mind things are more secure with nails (a few of our 3M things have randomly popped off the wall- and although it’s a really rare event, it keeps me on my toes, haha!).

      xo
      s

  37. Roberta says

    Hello there,

    I have been thinking about doing a map art like you guys have…what is the size of the map itself? Thank you! Love the way by the way :)

    Reply

  38. Mary Beth says

    Looks great, you guys! And I totally cracked up at the Little Einstein reference… I cannot tell you how many times I’ve put the kids down for a nap, settled into the couch with a cup of coffee and realized like 20 minutes later than I’ve been watching Dora or Bubble Guppies the whole time.. LOL
    The house is really shaping up – front hall is still my favourite so far!
    :)
    MB

    http://www.hystericallyeverafter.com

    Reply

  40. Bethany says

    I love hanging art around the TV, I have a gallery wall aound my TV in the living room and always get compliments on it. It’s pretty much my pride and joy. Whenever I get bored with the arrangement I just switch out some pieces or add a new frame to expand the collage. Love the way your rooms are coming together!

    Reply

  41. Ariane says

    Did you have to move the couch along with the TV ? Looks great !
    PS : the only hole for me this week was a needle one in my elbow because I had to receive a shot of medicine after too much time spent PAINTING !! Take care !

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh my gosh, a painting injury! Hope you’re feeling better! As for the sofa, we thankfully didn’t have to shift it more than a few inches because such a slight TV move on the other side of the room didn’t impede our viewing clearance or anything.

      xo
      s

  42. Vanessa says

    Ok Petersiks…truth time! Which one of you stays up late scouring YouTube for these hysterically odd videos?? That was awesome and now I can’t wait to send it to my equally hysterical and odd teenage neices that will probably think this is the best video they’ve ever seen!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      John = BuzzFeed and Facebook addict. So right before bed he digs around on his phone and shows me something weird and hilarious. Every single night. I love it.

      xo
      s

    • VANESSA says

      Hi guys! I just had to tell you that my kids watched this over and over this wknd and were singing the song all weekend long. We were actually on our way home today from my parents house and my son was singing the song in the car and you will not believe what was in our backyard when we got home…A FOX!!!!! no joke!!! We have never, ever seen a fox anywhere around here! I guess he came to answer our incessant questions!! Of course my son sang the song to him and he actually turned around and stared at us as he was leaving! HIGHLIGHT of our weekend..FOR SURE!!! I tried to attach a pic but I couldn’t.

  44. Liss says

    WHERE did you find that video?!? That was so funny & strange. I *wish* I didn’t know the sound a fox makes… it’s a terrible bark/scream. It can be scary until you figure out that it’s a fox and not a person.

    Reply

  46. Amy says

    I fell in love with a fox stuffed animal in a boutique in Norway when we lived there. When I found out I was expecting I decided to decorate the nursery around the cute little guy. It has been wonderful that Ikea has the burnt orange color rug and curtains right now. I finally got the crib today and I am so excited to finish up our foxy nursery just in time for our little man to make his appearance.
    Speaking of putting holes in the wall, we moved about 5 weeks ago and I have yet to hang any pictures. We have had to buy quite a bit of furniture and I have been waiting to get the big items in place before I commit. The problem is now I am afraid to hang anything. I know I am going to have to bite the bullet and start hanging things. I love your gallery wall, I have one of those in the works too. Putting that many holes in the walls is always harder when you are in a rental. Thanks for the inspiration.

    Reply

  48. Lauren says

    I really like the idea of a gallery wall surrounding the tv. Have you considered using darker frames so they stand out more against the light colored walls?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We’re definitely open to that over time as the room comes together! I think once some of the wood is painted white the white frames will fit right in like they did in our last house’s frame wall (we love the subtle tone-on-tone look of a soft neutral wall with white frames). We’ll have to see where we end up!

      xo
      s

  49. Amanda says

    Were the pictures in this post taking by two different cameras? A few of the pictures look darker than usual and the wall color in those photos looks more yellow than it usually does to me. In the lighter colored pictures I like the wall color but I don’t really care for it (particularly where it meets the white washed brick) in the others. I’m just trying to figure out which pictures are more accurately representing the wall color…. or if the difference is all in my head. Thanks!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      The in-progress shots were taken at night when we had the lights on in the room and no light coming in from outside (shooting in natural light usually yields better results, so that’s why the wood looks really dark in those night shots).

      xo
      s

  50. Laurie says

    So glad to know I’m not the only one who makes a lot of holes in the walls to hang only a few pictures. It’s always different when they finally go up on the wall, isn’t it?

    Reply

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