One thing that I have noticed since I have started doing interior design is how difficult it can be to master the seemingly simple task of hanging pictures. Sure it seems easy, you just grab a nail, a hammer and away you go. But do you ever wonder why your beautiful piece of art doesn’t seem to look right on the wall? I’m covering some tips to help you in your design blunder-don’t worry it’s easier to master than you think!

SPACE

This first thing you want to do before you even select your painting or picture is to look at the space you want to place it. You want to asses the SIZE of the space, is it more square, or rectangle? For example, the chair in the pictures below will allow for a square or a circle shaped image, but both cover the same amount of space.

The example below requires a more rectangular sized image. You can use one large rectangular shaped piece, or several put together to cover up the same rectangular space.

What’s important to remember is the open space that you are looking to cover-you want to match the size and shape of that area-how you do it is up to you-get creative!

HEIGHT

Another tips for hanging pictures is to hang them at eye-level. Consider an average height person and where their eyes would meet the wall if they were standing in front of it. This is where you want to hang a picture. There is a desire to hang it much higher or much lower depending on what is centered with the wall. Think about it this way; you want your art to be seen and the best way for it to be seen is at eye-level. Remember that when hanging your pictures and you can’t go wrong.

TEMPLATES

My last tip is one that has saved me and my walls countless unnecessary holes. If you want to try placing a piece of artwork before you commit then create a template. What I do is I take the frame that I am using and I trace it on a piece of paper (I like to use paper bags or old cardboard boxes.) Then cut it out and tape it to the wall. You can rearrange it, move it around and try options out before you start hammering holes in the wall.

Once you have the paper template where you want it then measure from the top of your picture to the hanger on the back. Now that you know this distance you can mark the same distance on your paper template that is still taped to the wall-This will indicate exactly where you need to drill your hole. Once your hole is drilled you can remove the paper and hang your real artwork-Ta-Da! No more guessing.