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May 19, 2017 48 Comments

Grid Style Gallery Wall | DIY Friday

Filed Under: DIY, DIY Friday, Wall Art 48 Comments

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I’m a big advocate for printing your pictures and not just letting them live in your computer or phone. A few weeks ago I had an idea for a black and white gallery wall for this large blank wall near our fireplace – the blank wall was driving me nuts! I love the look a grid style gallery wall and this seemed to be the perfect wall for a gallery wall so I had some photos printed and went from there.

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Creating a Grid Style Gallery Wall

Grid Style Gallery Wall Tutorial

I had nine 11×14 prints printed from Mpix.com (my favorite photo printing service) and framed them in these 16×20 frames with 11×14 mats. I recommend using frames that are at least 11×14. Otherwise, the frames will look too small for the wall. If you are considering a smaller scale gallery wall, like above a table or a bench, then you may want to use smaller frames like an 8×10 or 8×8.

The tricky part about a grid style gallery wall is getting the frames levels and evenly spaced.

Creating a Grid Style Gallery Wall

My trick for getting the frames level isn’t much of a trick but it does require a super handy tool: a laser level. You can see in the image above, this level suctions to the wall and you can rotate it to get that perfectly straight line.

Creating a Grid Style Gallery Wall

I started with the middle top frame – I measured the wall – found the center and that’s where placed the first nail. For the height, I determined the best aesthetic was to have the frames be level with the opening to the left of the wall.

Creating a Grid Style Gallery Wall

Side note – can you see the mat on the top right picture is like an off-white color? It’s driving me nuts – I got all of the frames at the same place but obviously, one of these things is not like the other! I have to swap it out.

After the first nail was in – I used the laser level to get a nice straight line across the wall – then measured 17 inches from the nail on both sides – that’s where the other two nails went. I did this on all three rows, started with the center frame, then did the two outer ones. This created a perfectly straight grid style gallery wall.

Gallery Wall Frames For less than $20

Creating a Grid Style Gallery Wall

I went around the perimeter of the gallery wall with my level to ensure everything was nice and straight. To keep everything perfectly straight you can use these around the corners of the frames so prevent any movement if say you’re one year old was to bump them 😉

Creating a Grid Style Gallery Wall

This gallery wall is one of those transformational projects that takes little effort but has HUGE rewards. If you have a blank wall – consider trying a grid style gallery wall. It’s a great way to hang and display your photos while also adding visual interest to an otherwise blank space.

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About Chelsea

Chelsea Coulston is the resident decorator, baker, and pillow hoarder around these parts. A wife to an active duty Sailor and mom of two girls, Chelsea's got a knack for decorating even the most challenging spaces (just see her military base house!) She's inspired by cool beach tones and warm natural elements that remind you of a day at the beach. After living in a half dozen rentals, she's enjoyed spending the last few years in a cute ranch style home that she and her husband have almost completely renovated themselves. Chelsea lives in sunny Jacksonville, Florida with her husband and two daughters.

Previous Post: « A Raised Garden Bed + Gardening with Kids
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kenyatta Harris says

    May 20, 2017 at 3:04 pm

    Hi Chelsea, I absolutely love your wall. I’m guilty of not printing and using all the pics on my phone and camera. This post will give me a kick in the pants to do some printing. I especially like the black and white that bumps up the style factor.

    Before you go buy a new frame, try flipping the matting around. Depending on how the matte is made, it may be the right shade on the other side. Hope it works out.

    Thanks

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      October 30, 2017 at 8:57 pm

      Hey Kenyatta! Clever lady! I did exactly that – worked perfectly!

      Reply
  2. Kelsey says

    May 22, 2017 at 9:28 am

    I love these picture frames- where did you get them? Your gallery wall turned out beautiful!

    Reply
  3. Ashley says

    May 22, 2017 at 3:45 pm

    Chelsea, I absolutely love these frames and have gone a little crazy with them in our home. I had to laugh a little bit because I made design plans for our living room on Friday and had the exact same frames in a grid above our sofa! Great minds think alike right? 🙂 You did a great job, it really looks gorgeous and thank you for the spacing tips.

    Reply
  4. Marly @ A Brick Home says

    May 24, 2017 at 2:22 pm

    Love this gallery wall. And those frames are beautiful!

    Reply
  5. Kayela says

    May 25, 2017 at 1:47 pm

    Yes!!! Where did you get your frames?!?

    Reply
  6. jill says

    May 28, 2017 at 2:37 pm

    I would love to know where you got your frames! Thanks!

    Reply
  7. G says

    June 5, 2017 at 9:22 am

    Love what you did here! it’s gorgeous! where did you get the frames?

    Reply
  8. Allie says

    June 12, 2017 at 12:48 pm

    Looks great! May have missed it but where did you get those frames? Thanks!!

    Reply
  9. Elizabeth says

    July 29, 2017 at 3:02 pm

    Hi Chelsea!

    May I ask what size this wall is? Thanks!

    Reply
  10. Stacy says

    August 6, 2017 at 11:37 pm

    Beautiful! Have you ever tried Persnickety Prints ? Better than Mpix and cheaper

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      August 8, 2017 at 4:42 pm

      I haven’t tried them – I thought they only did Instagram prints? I’ll have to check them out.

      Reply
      • Katherine says

        September 3, 2017 at 2:49 pm

        Where did you those frames?

        Reply
        • Chelsea says

          September 4, 2017 at 9:14 pm

          They’re from Target 🙂

          Reply
  11. Autumn says

    August 20, 2017 at 1:02 pm

    Love your gallery wall! I keep coming back to take another look as I plan out a wall in my bedroom! I have ZERO pictures of my kids hanging up and we just had pictures taken, so no better time!

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      August 21, 2017 at 9:43 pm

      yay!! Print those pics!

      Reply
  12. Cassandra Veillon says

    September 14, 2017 at 12:17 pm

    I purchased these frames for my babies room, I attempted to start handing them. Do you have any tricks for measuring where to put the nails for each frame. Since these frames have 2 hooks and unfortunately they are not all perfectly aligned. Do you have any tips on hanging these specific frames? Did you use the 2 hooks or did you just put a tail in the middle and hang it from the metal frame? Any advice would help. I have a second set of these photo collage going in my living room and dreading the project.

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      September 14, 2017 at 10:03 pm

      Hi Cassandra, no I didn’t follow the 2 hook guides. I just used one nail in the center (like I showed in the tutorial) and hung them on the ledge of the frame. They don’t get touched so it’s not an issue but you could also use some command strips to secure them to the wall. If you want to use the 2 hook guides you can just measure between the hooks, and use a level to make sure they are even. Hope that helps!

      Reply
  13. Emily says

    September 25, 2017 at 2:14 am

    Hi Chelsea! This is beautiful! I was wondering if having say 12-16 of these frames on one wall would be too heavy for dry wall without putting them in studs? Or would it be fine since each individual frame is 4 pounds and the weigh is being spread across the wall? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      October 30, 2017 at 8:59 pm

      Hi Emily, the weight shouldn’t be an issue at all!

      Reply
  14. Courtney says

    October 26, 2017 at 5:47 pm

    I noticed you measured 14 inches from the nail on either side, but what about up and down?

    Reply
    • Kim Oberman says

      October 30, 2017 at 4:49 pm

      Same Question! I am totally using your tips for a Gallery wall I am working on in my newly remodeled home!! Thanks so much! Kim

      Reply
    • Chelsea says

      October 30, 2017 at 9:03 pm

      I measured 1.5 inches down from the bottom rim of the frame. You’ll only have to do that once per row since you’ll use the laser level to get them all even.

      Reply
  15. Chaitanya says

    November 13, 2017 at 12:39 pm

    Hi, love your wall. I’m thinking of doing something similar. I have a big wall almost 14 feet x 7 feet. If I follow this grid, I may have to do 15 or 18 (3 horizontal rows and 5 vertical rows) my Q is—> is that too many photos?
    Also how do the photos from your iPhone come out with enlarged prints say 11x 14 as in your post?
    Thx so much

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      November 14, 2017 at 5:52 pm

      Hi there – I haven’t tried printing any iphone photos this size so I’m not sure. If you have a more recent model iphone I suspect that the quality will be good enough for a 11×14 print. I think I might stick to a 4×4 grid, I think anymore might just be too many photos. Is your ceiling 14 ft? Or is that the 7 ft. If your wall is only 7 ft, you won’t be able to fit that many rows.

      Reply
  16. Kyle says

    January 12, 2018 at 2:57 pm

    Thanks for the suggestions, I’m going to have to get that laser level. One question. If the frames are 16×20 that means there’s 8 inches of frame on either side of the nail, at least 16 inches between nails if the frames are touching. So how are the nails only 14 inches apart? Typo? or what am I missing?

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      January 12, 2018 at 10:54 pm

      Hi Kyle, you’re right – not sure why I put 14 inches – I just measured again – the nails are 17 inches apart. I’ll edit the post. Thanks!

      Reply
  17. Amy says

    July 2, 2018 at 12:24 am

    Hi there,

    Love the gallery wall you created! Also, LOVE your rug!! Do you mind sharing where it’s from/name? Thank you!

    Reply
  18. Chris says

    August 20, 2019 at 5:16 pm

    What is the distance between frames?

    Reply
  19. Nayri says

    April 12, 2020 at 4:36 pm

    Love the wall and plan to do one just like it 🙂 Do you mind sharing how man inches apart the frames are, for both length and width? Thank you!

    Reply
    • Chelsea says

      April 19, 2020 at 11:41 pm

      Hi! The frames are probably only an inch to an inch and a half apart. They are pretty close together. If you hang them the way I do with just 1 nail, you can space your nails out 17 inches.

      Reply

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Hi! I’m Chelsea!

I'm Chelsea. Wife to Matt, and mama to P and Millie. I'm a fan of making and decorating things and everything blue + white. I believe that there is no such thing as too many throw pillows. Lover of iced coffee and cocktail Fridays. I'm glad you're here.

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Sitting here thinking about everything that’s go Sitting here thinking about everything that’s gotten me through this last year.
1. My family - having my girls home has been everything I never knew I needed. 
1a. My mom - in those early pandemic days, when we didn’t leave the house, she would meet me halfway between here and Vegas. We would sit in the middle of the desert with our masks on and just visit. I needed that so much and I know she did too.
2. My friends - it’s hard to imagine making it through this year without the friendships I have. They’ve carried me. A small group of neighbors here that would meet at the park for some outdoor fellowship and our weekly dinners made life feel a little more normal. Having regular calls with my best friend in FL was gold especially since we can’t see each other. And regular chats with @bykaithanson got me through especially in those early days.
3. Regular therapy - if I wasn’t already going before all this happened I surely would need to now. This all is very heavy stuff and having someone that is outside your circle to talk to is so important. This saves me again and again.
4. Making bread. I started making last year so when it blew up during that first quarantine I was so excited that we all were baking together. Whenever I’m feeling anxious making dough helps.
5. Exercise - this was the year I finally made exercise a priority. I love how much better I feel when I move my body each day. I’m less anxious and I’m more at peace.
6. All the technology that connects us. Marco Polo, FaceTime, texting, FB Messenger, all of it. Being able to reach all of my loved ones with the tips of my fingers has made it a lot easier when I can’t see them.
7. Television - how many shows have we binged this year? I don’t even know but I remember tackling Friday Night Lights in the beginning of the pandemic and being so sad it was over. 
8. This community. One thing I wanted in 2020 was to CONNECT with you all here and that has happened and its been wonderful getting to know each of you!
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We’ve been through a lot this year what has carried you? Tag a friend that’s gotten you through. 
Hoping and praying for a truly happy new year. 💙💙

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