Our master bedroom has moved leaps and bounds over the last few days in terms of not looking like a big empty room with a bed in it. And by leaps and bounds, I mean frames and curtains. And more frames. Plus a few more frames after that.
Before we started putting a bunch of holes in our walls, this is what the room looked like (and what it has pretty much looked like since we painted it nine months ago). It was in desperate need of curtains at the very least, but we’re not done with those yet, so just ignore those and let’s talk about the frames.
We had long talked about doing a gallery wall over our bed, and after stewing on it for a few months we decided we wanted to go with big dark frames (gasp! not white ones?!?) with nice mats. We have a gradual goal of amassing nicer frames in the house as we go (some real wood ones with nice big mats with glass and not plexi) so after shopping around at a few frame places, these large wood ones from Michaels fit the bill best. At $39 each for the biggest ones and $29 for the slightly smaller size, they weren’t cheap – but thanks to a two-for-one sale, it took the average down to $15 to $20 each, which is closer to what we spend for cheaper frames of that size.
Once home with our original frame haul, Sherry cut a bunch of templates out of leftover rosin paper that we had from projects like this and this, and we taped up a rough, mostly-symmetrical arrangement.
Neither of us was totally sold on it. It just felt a little too perfectly lined up. So Sherry took a stab at loosening up the rows and columns a bit. Kinda the gallery wall equivalent of unbuttoning the top button of your dress shirt. It instantly looked more relaxed and casual than the more formal/balanced arrangement that we had tried first.
Next it was frame-hanging time. Considering the number of them (at this point we had 17), it wasn’t too bad. These frames hang nicely on one or two nails each (there’s a groove on the back lip of the wood frame) and since we had worked out their placement with paper templates it was pretty simple. Since the arrangement is somewhat mirrored from one side of the bed to the other, we used a laser level to make sure the frame on the left side was at the same height of its sister on the right (and we used a yardstick to make sure our side-to-side gaps between frames were about the same).
After we got the initial set of frames hung, we liked where it was going… but the whole thing was feeling a little too much like a stripe across the top of the bed, so we picked up five more frames to fill the space above each night stand for more of a full-wall-of-frames look. So when it was all said and done, we purchased five of the larger frames (they’re 11.5 x 14.5″ with an 8 x 10″ opening in the mat) and seventeen of the slightly smaller 16.5 x 16.5″ size (some of which had 8 x 10″ openings and some that had 5 x 7″ openings). Note: We later realized that the bare spot on the top left (by the curtain) felt off to us, so we inched a few frames around to make it more balanced looking (you’ll see that tweak three photos below this one).
Although we’re big fans of putting just about anything in a frame, we had been looking at our family photos and realized that we had a lot of special-to-us photos that we wanted to properly frame, so a wall of family photos was the goal here. It felt especially right for a more personal space like a bedroom, and we had never seen many of these photos printed out in a nice large size like 8 x 10. So we picked a bunch and placed an in-store pickup order on Target’s website (which we discovered was cheaper for 8 x 10s than our usual go-to, Shutterfly).
Here’s everything all framed up. We really liked going with colorful prints instead of black and white ones, especially on such a dark wall. They’re a nice balance of classic/handsome (wood frames & crisp white mats) + cheer (colorful family photos). And we like how the bolder prints tie into the colorful pillows and our headboard.
The process for picking photos was pretty straightforward: we scrolled through our family photo folders in iPhoto (we have one for each year, ordered chronologically) and flagged our favorites. That produced WAAAY too many options, so we whittled it down to the 22 we needed by choosing favorites from the favorites (for some reason it’s easier for us to pick top choices from the group than decide which ones to nix).
We didn’t keep any sort of color scheme in mind (there’s every color in the rainbow going on) but we did seem to subconsciously choose photos that looked more like a moment in time than a posed everyone-stare-at-the-camera shot. I think maybe we knew that a whole lot of eyeballs staring out at us might feel strange. So most of them feature people looking down, at each other, off to the side, etc. There are only a few with eyes that actually looked at the lens, like the Teddy beach shot in the top left corner.
It wasn’t until we had everything hung that we realized a few other commonalities emerged. We stepped back and laughed about “all that water.” Turns out around a third of them feature us on the beach or in some other form of water (the lake, a pool, etc). It’s probably because a lot of our favorite photos were from trips we took. We actually counted six different states being represented in our photos (from Alaska and Hawaii to Florida and Delaware). Another funny realization was that three of the photos in our gallery were taken on the very bed that they now sit above. So we’re apparently a family who likes to travel… or stay in bed.
After we were all done hanging and framing everything, our formerly nondescript bedroom wall had sort of morphed into a photographic celebration of our family, which has been pretty awesome as the first and last thing we look at every day. In fact, as much as we loved the frame hallway in our last house (we didn’t think we’d ever love a frame arrangement more), our new family-gallery is right up there with it.
Oh, and even though it looks like those pictures behind the lamp are impossible to see, they’re actually some of the ones we see the most from bed and/or when we walk into the room. It’s all about the angle y’all.
We hope our new family wall will encourage us to keep breaking out the camera and documenting family moments. Heck, it doesn’t even have to be the nice camera. We realized almost half of the pictures up here were from our iPhones or our old point-and-shoot.
Clara was napping when we finished hanging everything, so we stole the opportunity to give Teddy and Burger some brother time in front of the camera. And knowing our penchant for framing the photos taken on this bed, there’s a chance this shot could end up on the wall at some point. So meta, I know.
We can’t really picture the “before” of this room in our heads anymore without pulling up the actual before photos…
… but we’re certainly grateful for how far it has come. It’s looking a little busy to us right now, but we think a few other to-do list items should hopefully fix that. We’d like a better bench at the end of the bed and a proper set of end tables so we can use the dresser on another wall. We also still have to finish the curtains, need an overhead light, etc. Slowly, slowly.
Anyone else doing bedroom updates? Or hanging a collection of family frames? Have you noticed any subconscious themes afterwards, like a love of water, travel, or being in bed? What about eyeballs? Are they all staring out at you? Do they follow your every move, Mona-Lisa style?
Psst- Wanna know where we got something in our house or what paint color we used? Just click on this button:
Leah says
Looks awesome guys!! Love every bit!! What color paint did you use for the walls? Great color!
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Black Pepper by Ben Moore.
xo
s
Lily says
Love this! it looks and feels so cohesive!
x Lily
http://whilemyboyfriendsaway.blogspot.com/
Pascale says
Love this wall! Where did you find the rug?
YoungHouseLove says
That was from Joss & Main a few years ago.
xo
s
Lynz says
Well. I thought this might be the first thing that you guys had done (ever!) that I was a bit “meh” about. And THEN you took out the b&w sample pictures, popped in your own awesone family shots and there you go. Total perfection! Clever kids.
Kristin says
Love the room, the yellow pops of color are beautiful.
Can you tell me where you got your curtains from and the name of them? We just moved into a new house and you would not believe how hard it is to find plain white curtains!
YoungHouseLove says
They’re the nicer linen-like white ones from Ikea. Very nice and thick! But boy do they need some finessing (ironing, etc) to look good when they’re hung! More on those when they’re finished :)
xo
s
Maddie says
Love lovity love love it! (so much that words must be made up to convey this point) So sweet, fun and different! Love the staring eyeballs comment…so true!
Paula M. says
Interesting idea. I’ll be curious to see how the room continues to evolve. (And, wow, the Before and After photo comparisons, from when you first bought your place, never fail to knock me out, with the contrast!)
Can you remind me – where did you get your bedside lamps? I’m really digging how they look in those photos. Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
Those are from HomeGoods a few years back.
xo
s
Mary says
I had quite a collection of wooden gold frames some with oil paintings so I did a gallery wall of paintings and family photos in our bedroom. The bedroom is painted grass green so they really pop. Some frames are simple and others ornate.
My husband and I recently hung crown molding in the guest room. Thanks to the pre-made corners from Lowe’s it was easy to do. No miter cuts!
Love the Burger/Teddy pic! That Burger is such a ham :)
YoungHouseLove says
Whoa! So cool!
xo
s
Hilary says
Where are the curtains from? Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
They’re the nicer linen-like white ones from Ikea. Very nice and thick! But boy do they need some finessing (ironing, etc) to look good when they’re hung! More on those when they’re finished :)
xo
s
Dianna L. says
OMG a laser level?! That’s awesome! I needed one of those when I did my gallery wall (if three pictures counts as a gallery) this weekend. Well, I just needed a level period. Do you remember where you got yours?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Black & Decker and it was from Home Depot (or Lowe’s – can’t remember).
xo
s
Diane says
This turned out really great.
Inspiration for me to do something with our “bed wall”.
Barbara says
Gorgeous frames- outta my price range tho!
What caught my eye was the striped(?) night stand. When did you get that…and where? It’s gorgeous!
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Barbara! That was from West Elm back when we moved in.
xo
s
Rachel says
I love how the pictures on your wall just pop with color :) Such a fun idea!
xoxo
Rachel
Vanessa says
I love the pictures, frames and gallery-style! I’m thinking of doing the same on the wall by the stair case. Keep up the great work!
Alicia says
It looks great! I love the idea of surrounding yourself with happy family images while you sleep…seems very Zen :)
Nicole says
Wow, this looks GREAT!! I love how colorful it is. I am also loving the wall color… I recently did a mini-gallery “us” wall in our bedroom with a few photos — my husband and I soon after we started dating, a framed wedding invitation, a framed Valentine’s Day card, the floral pattern of which I loved. Our wedding photo is in the middle. That is directly across from our bed, so we can see it. I read that it is good romantic feng shui to keep kids’ photos out of the bedroom (they fill the hallway in white frames :)), and while I don’t necessarily agree with that, it gave me some guidelines for the room. I am trying to keep it just my husband and me. So, for above the bed, after considering several things, I decided to have three 8×10 canvas prints of photos taken on our honeymoon, all of flowers — a lavender field, poppies, and a wall of roses. They look really good with our very neutral bedroom!… Anyway, I LOVE reading your site. Great work!!
YoungHouseLove says
Sounds so sweet!
xo
s
Sandra Tsimis says
This is just a big no to me….way too busy, way too much going on! Maybe great in a hallway or someplace similar but above the bed , not a good look!
Rachael says
Sorry, but I agree. The master bedroom should be an oasis away from the kids (even if you’re co-sleeping, which we did for all 4!) so no kid and family photos are allowed in our room. I just can’t imagine ‘getting down’ and looking up to see my kids photos grinning at me!! :D
Sorry x
PS This is meant as respectful and constructive. Honestly!
Jacqui D. says
I love it! I don’t think it looks busy at all, I think it looks like you’re capturing precious moments of your life as you live it. Nothing wrong with that.
Emily @ Life on Food says
The first thing I noticed was all of the water. Looks great!
Eri says
Lookin’ forward to seeing what idea you guys have up your sleeve to fix the “business.” My guess is build a new (perhaps some reclaimed wood-ish) headboard? Because that’s what I would do haha.
Kerrie says
sorry if this has already been covered in other comments but i have to ask about the previous built ins around the bed plans. Is that a phase 2, or have you changed your minds?
YoungHouseLove says
Now that we have built-ins that flank the bed-wall in Teddy’s room next door, we thought they’d be a little repetitive in here :)
xo
s
Betsy says
Wow, looks fantastic! The room is shaping up and becoming more you.
Anyone ask for source of drapery rods? Are they black or bronze?
Thank you, Betsy
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Betsy! They’re oil-rubbed bronze from Lowe’s.
xo
s
Dawn says
Fantastic gallery wall! So colorful and joyous. And Teddy’s gotten SO BIG already!
Shirley Haugen says
Love the look of your gallery wall! It’s not good Fung Shui to have children’s pictures in the master bedroom, but I love the personality it adds & don’t think it’s too busy. Love your style & look!
Sally G says
It’s just beautiful. I’m inspired to do a variation of it in our master bedroom. I love how bright and colorful all of the photos are! It is as it should be. :)
Jill says
Your wall color is soooo delicious. It reads kind of blue…does it look like that in person or is it my screen? Just love the depth of it!!!
YoungHouseLove says
Yes, I’d call it mostly blue with a little gray, like deep slightly faded denim.
xo
s
Alyssa says
One word. Love.
Farook @ Handyman Mississauga says
The frame wall is a great idea and can be used in a number of different situations. The end result looks stunning.
Erin says
I love these frames, they are exactly what I’ve been looking for, for my house portraits I just got done from etsy. I hope my local Michaels carries these because I don’t recall seeing them there and I can’t seem to find them on their website. By one get one free, even better :) Love the photos!
Elizabeth says
Adore your master bedroom! Have the same window configuration, would like to know how you did the curtains for the window closest to the wall. The before picture is showing the window but no after pictures. Thanks.
YoungHouseLove says
We’ll cover the curtain details in a future post for ya (not quite done and still have to take pics & write it up).
xo
s
Brandi says
Such a nice idea! The frames look so nice.
Erin says
I want a gallery wall (stairs) but I’m just too indecisive. Choosing frames, to match or not match?, b/w or color, then choosing the arrangement and the pics…SO many decisions to be made. And then, once you’ve made all of those, how do you decide which pics would go where on the wall and be large pics vs med or small? I am paralyzed w indecision–how do you push past it?
YoungHouseLove says
We just did it one step at a time. First we hung the templates, then we hung the frames, then we counted the openings for big and small (and horiz & vert) and we just sort of chatted about which ones we wanted big and small until we had a list, sent it off to Target, and then brought them home and framed them. Hope it helps!
xo
s
Alisha says
Costco does very cheap photo prints, much cheaper than other stores. Great quality, too, at least at our local Costco. Just FYI. :)
Jane Padden says
I love this idea. Would look great down a long hallway :)
Megan @ Our Pinteresting Family says
It turned out gorgeous! I love the frames and pictures. :)
Monnaie Ernakulam says
Nice Interior Designing and Interior Furnishing!
Allison says
Wow! I just love it. Working on a gallery wall myself and this is finally giving me the motivation to just go for it! I’ve never had the patience to put up the paper and end up with way too many nails in the wall:/
Lani says
I literally “Aaahhhh”d out loud. This is so beautiful and I know what I’m doing above my bed now!! Thank you for the constant inspiration
Emily says
This is mostly in response to the line int the post about taking pictures of the new family. That line made me laugh because my parents have hundreds of pictures of my older sister when she was small and about dozen of me, born two years after her. The when we were older they got a dog and there are millions of pictures of him just sleeping.
YoungHouseLove says
So funny! The dog sleeping ones are cracking me up.
xo
s
Steph says
Love the personal touch in a bedroom. So lovely. You’ve done a beautiful job. Question-do you think it’s ok to mix and match frames throughout a home? As long as there is some cohesion?
YoungHouseLove says
Definitely! We have seen (and loved!) mixed frames in a single arrangement or throughout a home. Good luck!
xo
s
Tiffany says
Thanks to you for the inspiration – I had never been to Michael’s for frames before, and found myself at Target last night, right next door to Michael’s. Decided to stop in… Turns out, the large brown frames were on sale for $12.99! And the smaller ones were $5.99 with a green tag for an additional 50% off – score! Hope to get started on my own gallery wall soon and will send you a picture of the finished product! I’ve got my boyfriend cutting out frame templates today, and can’t wait to start taping them up after work. You two rock!
YoungHouseLove says
So glad!
xo
s
Christie says
I love what you have done in this room. It looks so great and cozy! Since you are looking for bedside table options, have you considered floating shelves on either side of the bed? That might work.
YoungHouseLove says
Didn’t even think of that. Thanks Christie!
xo
s
Bonnie @ The Pin Junkie says
Wow! It looks great! I love that you used special family pictures, too. I did something similar (also with frames from Michael’s!)in my living room with my favorite travel photos. By the way, cute little Teddy is getting so big! :)
AnnF says
No surprise that you’ve come up with yet another great idea. Continuing inspiration is what you two are. Thanks for keeping up the sharing and the wonderful work!
JHE says
I think your gallery wall is beautiful (maybe a little busy) but great photos and frames etc. I think I may like it more in a different space. Your children staring at you may not do much for your love life if you know what I mean. I agree that photos of just the two of you are best for a bedroom. Need to have a space for just the two of you. Very sweet pics though and show your adorable, loving family!
Casey says
I love it! Like really really really love it, especially with the wall color. And same here with the water and travel photos. We love to be in, on and around water, so it makes sense to me that not only are those great memory photos, but also they instantly put a smile on my face just to see. Not to mention water tends to make for great lighting and composition… win all around. :)
janine says
Love the look of the darker frames and how they are filled with personal photos! So often in blogland we see gallery walls filled with curated art, but this is much more approachable. So inspiring!
Tirsa says
Love the wall of frames! (Michael’s is my go to place for frames. They have great coupons.) Love how much color and coziness all those frames add. However, I feel that they are competing with your lovely headboard. I can’t wait to see how you tweak things to make it all work together.
Teddy is gorgeous and so big! What a cutie! :)
Stephanie says
I’m sure you have answered this somewhere, but I can’t find…what is the paint color/brand in your bedroom? Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
It’s Black Pepper by Ben Moore.
xo
s
Sara says
How do you get the frames to stay straight and not move or tilt all the time? Also, where did you get the bedspread?
YoungHouseLove says
A lot of these hang on two nails, so they can’t really wiggle or tilt much, but you can use 3M velcro behind yours to affix them if they move. Hope it helps!
xo
s