Today’s post isn’t really a sequel, more like a quick ending to a story that didn’t actually end in the first place. Recently I showed you that I completed the majority of a gallery-wall project in my kitchen. At the end of that post, a few frames still needed matting.
And when I say matting, I really mean scrapbook paper. You saw a little preview here, but today I’ll show you how those loose pieces of paper came together to complete the photo display.
I went to Hobby Lobby with my pocket camera, which I had used earlier to photograph each frame that needed paper. As I stood in the paper aisle, contemplating hundreds of color and pattern choices and feeling just a tad bit overwhelmed, I had in my hands a visual reminder of the shades and subjects I needed to complement. Thanks to that memory aid, I made a few choices–not quickly, but more quickly than I would have otherwise–and hightailed it home with my treasures.
I traced the frame backs to size my paper, cut the edges as needed, and attached the photos to the paper with sticky tack.
It only took a few minutes of measuring, cutting, and sticking before I was ready to put those previously-incomplete frames back on the wall, looking much cheerier. See?
This is one of my favorite photos, which I keep thinking I’ll have blown up much larger–I just can’t decide whether to go big with the original blue or subdue it into sepia or black & white. It’s an ornamental cabbage, in case you can’t tell.
This one, despite the glare and blur in this recapturing of it, is another favorite, taken by our friend Melissa during our engagement. The yellow-and-white polka dots are, to me, the pattern equivalent of the laughter on our faces.
So a stripe here, a polka dot there, and the whole wall is finished. (Oh, happy day!) After everything was in place, I noticed a detail that had escaped my attention before. The rug in front of the sink matches.
Did my subconscious know, or was it a happy accident? I’m not sure. Believe whatever makes it a better story for you. As for me, I’m pleased that I tried another gallery wall after all. They’re not for every person, and definitely not for every room, but for such an awkwardly-shaped space I think this gallery is about the only thing that would have worked. (Because I’m not hanging a huge piece of “real” art in my kitchen, no sirree, Bob. We fry chicken in this place!)
Do you have a gallery wall? Does it make you hyperventilate a little, or have you found a way to harmonize it with its surroundings? What’s your formula for a successful gallery?