You may remember my colorful and quirky loft space from a 2015 One Room Challenge; it had a MAJOR mix of playful colors, patterns and textures galore with its centerpiece being my gallery wall of collected art.  With a whopping 24 pieces on the wall itself, I feel like I defined a whole new level of “gallery wall.” 

When I initially created the gallery, I purposely left some room on the wall for the collection to evolve and grow.  It wasn’t until recently, right before Christmas, when I walked into my guest room (rather storage room) and saw over a dozen pieces just leaning against the wall, unframed and collecting dust, did I realize that I better get them on the wall before it becomes too daunting to do so.  And if I’m being honest, a dozen plus pieces was already becoming to feel daunting.

I had used a few framers in the past, but with each frame ringing anywhere from $200 to upwards of a $1,000 for my largest piece, the idea of framing everything was even more daunting than getting them hung on the wall.  Fortunately, I had recently met the founder of Simply Framed at a conference here in the A.  I was beyond inspired by her story and bootstrap mentality of starting her business.   I knew next time I needed a framer,  Simply Framed would be where I turned.

And man, am I happy I did.  I cannot tell you how simple and seamless the entire process was.  Simply Framed‘s approach to all of this framing business is beyond refreshing.  I went online, picked out my mattes and frames then Simply Framed sent me the shipping tubes and pre-paid labels to send in all of my art safely.  Once everything arrived, I worked closely with their customer service team to make sure all of the art was perfectly matched up to it’s corresponding frame because I was nervous with so many pieces and different frames things would get mixed up.  In less than two weeks, I received my pieces back at home, along with an easy framing kit that, again, made it ridiculously simple to finish the project. 

When it came to actually laying out a gallery wall of this size and caliber, I can honestly say I was a tad on the uneasy side.  When buying each piece, I wasn’t thinking “…oh this piece of artwork will look great next to this piece, and that piece”.  I simply bought what I loved and had faith it would work itself out.  I mean, I have plenty of walls, so if it didn’t incorporate well in the gallery, I knew there would be another wall or shelf where it would work. In the end, I was thrilled to find that even though the majority of the pieces were bold and bright, the overall tone worked well; with a warm, peachy neutral emphasis and clean, modern frames. It’s funny how even though you often don’t intentionally think about a color scheme or pattern, one always seems to naturally work its way out. 

This time around that natural theme included a bold, colorful nude by Kate Waddell via Well + Wonder. Collective.  Have you heard of Well + Wonder?  It’s a beautiful website with a collection of southern-curated artists, and it’s quickly become my go-to when I’ve got the itch for a new addition at a price that doesn’t make me feel buyers remorse.  This industry has me fortunate in meeting so many talented creatives and collectives like Well + Wonder, I always enjoy finding new additions; each one carrying a special feeling, memory, or moment.     

Some other new finds include my floral girl by Clare Elsaesser, the 1955 Gerry Winogrand print, a perspective-invoking “Look Down” print by Gail Schechter, the upside-down palm trees, my Sally King Benedict tennis court, Gray Malin’s lamas, and of course my gorgeous ladies by Haley Mitchell that you may remember from the WOM offices at ADAC.  And my wall wouldn’t be complete without 3D accents such as a NEW natural/toffee colored Juju hat that’s a bit smaller than our original size and the oversized worry beads hanging from the hand hook.

Of course there’s more that goes into a gallery than tone and gorgeous art, so stay tuned tomorrow for more tips on nailing a strong gallery wall (pun included).  Truly, MKR