Like many homes, our staircase is the first thing people’s eyes are drawn to as they enter the front door. Our bare, neutral staircase has been crying out for a gallery wall. I have been putting off this project for as long as I can remember; the pressure to get it right was just too much!
Yes there’s loads of advice online and oodles of inspiration on Instagram (Lisa Dawson’s staircase gallery wall is an absolute dream) but that only led to a feeling of overwhelm. Cue my old foe procrastination.
Desenio to the Rescue
When Desenio asked me if I’d like to collaborate on a project, I knew it was Carpe Diem for my staircase gallery wall.
Of course if you’ve ever visited Desenio’s website, you will know that the site is vast. Let’s just say that it didn’t exactly help me get over my ‘I-don’t-know-where-to-start’ stumbling block. Fortunately, Desenio has thought of everything and I spent hours pouring over their ‘inspiration’ page.
After much deliberation, I came up with a strategy for choosing and creating. I thought my experience might be helpful for anyone else who sucks at decision-making…
1. Pick a Theme for your Gallery Wall
I know that this probably isn’t for everyone but the only way I could decide what to pick, was to hone in on some things that I love.
I find nature very soothing but am hopeless at keeping plants alive so covering my wall in botanical prints seemed like a good idea. I’m also a fan of typography and the pink/green combo. So those were the three things that I focused on.
2. Try Different Combinations
An excellent tool on the Desenio website is the ‘Create Your Gallery Wall‘ page. This does exactly what it says on the tin – you pick the images you like the look of, choose a wall that looks a little like the space you are working with and move them around until you like the combination.
You can then try various different frames and decide which ones work the best. Top tip: if it comes out more expensive than your budget, just change the size of the pictures!
3. Position Planning
Once you’ve got the pictures in your hands, lay them all out on the floor. Move them around, switch positions, take photographs of the different options and decide which you think works best.
My advice would be to line the frames up either horizontally or vertically and leave the same amount of space between each frame. I opted for about 6 inches between every frame but anything goes as long as you’re consistent.
4. Gather Your Tools
There really are only two tools that you need – a spirit level and Command strips. If you’ve never Command strips, they will honestly change your life! My husband refuses to let me near a hammer and nail these days (I’ve ruined too many walls) so these successfully avoid any confrontation.
5. Don’t be Afraid to Change Your Mind
So here’s the thing – a staircase is not level and thus neither is the wall. It’s also extremely high and I’m extremely short!
I would normally recommend hanging the middle picture first and work around it but partly because I couldn’t reach and partly because I knew where I wanted the first picture, I started from the outer edge.
Once I started hanging the pictures, I realised that the diagonal dado rail was going to be a problem. I therefore had to rearrange my original positioning a little. The beauty about Command strips is that if you do change your mind, you can peel them off and they leave no mark.
6. Admire Your Handiwork
Then when all the hard work is done, you can stand back and congratulate yourself. I love every picture that I chose and can honestly say that they bring a little spark of joy every time I walk through the front door. Thank you Desenio!
Disclaimer: This is a paid collaboration with Desenio. All items were gifted but images and opinions are my own.
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9 COMMENTS
Kim Carberry
6 years agoWe’re moving house at the end of the month and I am planning to do this on my staircase. It looks so good.
I love the pictures you chose x
Jenny Taylor
6 years agoI love Desenio gallery walls. This looks fab and I use command strips everytime because the frames are so light and it makes no marks on the walls. Turned out fab hunny
Kara Janelle
6 years agoI really need to do something on our stairs wall. Most of it is double
Height and is crying out for some large pieces like this.
Love the theme you went with.
Suzanne
6 years agoI was a little nervous at choosing such big prints but I think on a staircase you need something quite dominant.
Sarah MumofThree World
6 years agoWow, that looks fantastic! I’ve never heard of Command Strips and would never have thought of arranging things on the floor and moving them around and photographing them. We moved our pictures from the stairs to the lounge, so now have a blank wall on the stairs!
Suzanne
6 years agoHonestly, when I discovered these, they completely transformed my life (and walls!).
Chloe: Picture Taker Memory Maker
6 years agoI have been wanting to create a wall of photos going up our stairs for years and have never got round to it! We are now in the process of selling our property and buying our dream home so I’ll have to wait until we’re in our new place now, but it will happen. Have never heard of Command Strips and will definitely be looking them up as I’m fed up of holes in wall and/or blue-tack stains where my girls put up posters in their bedrooms. Desenio is something I must look into – I only ever hear good things about them and I’m sure I’ve seen them tagged in loads of quote posters on Instagram that I love so I think they’ll be my first port of call once we’ve moved.
Susan Mann
6 years agoWow that is lovely. Looks so good and really effective. I love the ones you chose and those strips look great x
Jo - Mother of Teenagers
5 years agoWe had a family gallery wall on the corridor into our kitchen until we redecorated last year and all year I have been meaning to replace it with a new display but like you I just keep putting it off. Some great tips here will check out Desenio and those command strips!