Hanging Your Memorabilia

Don’t let your memorabilia sit in a drawer – hang it on your walls! There are many pieces that you could put in a nice frame and enjoy right on your walls instead of keeping them hidden away. Start a collection and display the in groups or hang one focal piece. Either way make sure you hang them properly to get the best effect.

In your collection, you have a wonderful framed vintage menu that you know would look wonderful in the kitchen. So now you have it at home and you hammer a nail into the wall beside the table and slide the framed vintage menu onto it. Viola!

You take a step back to admire your new purchase. You tilt your head from one side to the other and back again. You squint at the vintage find. It just doesn’t look right, but you have no idea why.

If you have found yourself staring at something you have just hung up trying to figure out why it doesn not look right, your not alone. There are a few common mistakes that look funny to the eye, but that you don’t quite know how to fix. Here’s some tips that might help when trying to hang wall art on a wall:

Hanging Large Pieces Of Memorabilia:

Large pieces can be the focus of your décor so you must make sure you hang it in a spot that is appropriate for the size and focus. Where do larger pieces look the best? Try over a couch, behind the dining set, over a fireplace or on a feature wall. A feature wall is where the placement of furniture or the layout of the home naturally guides the eye to a wall - a great place to feature those special pieces of memorabilia.

Hanging Small Pieces:

Grouping smaller pieces can add interest and keep them from getting “lost”. Use a common theme like, color, framing or style to pull them together. A smaller piece can look strange if you try to put it in the middle of a wall so you should hang it lower on the wall and near a piece of furniture.

Grouping Memorabilia:

Whether you are creating a grid of equal sized frames or composing a collection of various sizes the rule of spacing is the same. Space them about 3” away from each other. Lay the pieces out on the floor first so that you can find the perfect arrangement. Then measure carefully and make your holes for hanging.

HEIGHT:

Framed memorabilia should be hung with the center of the picture at eye level. That means the center should be about 60 to 66 inches from the floor. If you've visited a gallery you will see that the frames are not lined up by their top or bottom edges but that the pictures are all centered at the same height.

If your framed art will be viewed from a sitting position – like from the couch or dining table, you should hang at the eye level of the sitter.

Décor hung behind a couch should be no more than 8 to 10 inches above the back of the couch.

Use these tips to create a designer look on your walls!