Let’s get one thing straight, I am NOT a decorator. My house is a mix of early playmobil, vintage yard sale, and dumpster finds. I like it this way because when things break, I don’t care, well I do a little, but not enough to cry or anything.
My favorite “things” in my home are the black and white pictures of my family. I love these photos and I love how they take up a large amount of wall space. A large picture would have cost a fortune, but thanks to some IKEA frames and cheap prints my black and white collection was pretty inexpensive.
One thing I don’t like about grouping pictures is that they are always crooked. I even mentioned it in a post last year because it bothered me so much!
See what I mean?
I actually got some great tips from readers on how to keep them straight. Sticky tack, rubber pads, and velcro were all suggested but I decided to take a more permanent approach in our new house.
I hung narrow shelves from IKEA then placed the pictures on the shelves. Since I know how to hang a level shelf, this project was so simple! I love the shelves because I can rearrange the photos without putting more holes in the wall.
I plan on painting the shelves once I paint the walls, but I just can’t decide on a color for the walls. I’m torn between yellow and blue. Any suggestions?
UPDATE – I finally picked a color for the walls and painted it as well as painted the shelves. See the finished project here.
Tabitha Valencic says
I love that idea! (and I loved how yellow walls looked WITH blue trim in my last house… )
claire says
blue, definitely blue, perhaps in a grey scale so kind of like a slate blue.
Rebecca says
Genius! I have trouble with picture placement and not hanging them straight/level.
Bree says
I don’t know how your rooms flow from one to another but since blues and yellows complement each other have you considered using both? For example I have my house painted in tan and chocolate through out. For example in my front living room I have three walls tan and one ” “accent” wall chocolate and in the dining room I have a L- shape (one long wall ,one short in a L-shape) of chocolate and the rest of the room carries on as tan … these colors carry on through out the house where it makes sense to accent with the darker chocolate but my large family room and kitchen are tan.
Barb H says
I am not a “blue person” but if I were I would definitely go with the slate blue hues. However I am a yellow girl. More like soft mustard shades., I have been experimenting with some yellows for my stairwell for the past few months. After 7 samples it appears that I have found the perfect one. As I write this my painter is here finishing up the project. Looks great! By the way, we use Behr paint from Home Depot. Our painter had never used Behr before and was very very impressed. Good Luck!
TheHappyHousewife says
I LOVE the colors in your house Barb! You have great style. 🙂
kristi says
as far as wall color, it depends on what you are going for…blues are cool and calm…yellows are warm, cozy and home-like. for a living room I would opt for a yellow. 🙂
i think i see a photo series i did of A , YEARS ago. 🙂
TheHappyHousewife says
Yep! That’s the series! Still one of my favorites!
Toni
Dee says
This is a great idea, and I will have to do that when we move once again later this year! I love pictures, especially b & w…….Thanks for sharing!
Somebodys Mimi says
@Kristie, I have the same wonderful series!! One of my favorite. As for color whatever you choose be mindful of the hue blue can be very overpowering if done in the wrong shade. Yellow is such a happy and vibrant color, but then again you have to be careful of the reds and blues that compromise the yellow. Yellows make wood really pop whereas blues go better with white.
BigMamaCass says
What a fantastic idea!! Love it!
I suggest yellow. Our whole house is a creamy yellow and EVERYTHING looks fantastic on that color! 🙂
Michelle Machado says
I painted my living room, with high ceilings, a light blue with kinda gray tones. Trim around windows and doors in white gloss. With light gray carpet. It has a really Cape Cod feeling and looks great with all of the sunshine I get.
Esther says
I love this idea and as for color I say yellow but this is coming from the person with a deep red lounge, light brown kitchen, blue dinning room and green hallway not to mention my bright orange playroom.
Amanda says
Yellow with blue trim sounds nice…what about blue with yellow trim?
Yellow will brighten up the room. Blue will be a more soothing, relaxing colour while yellow will energize. What do you want that room to do? Keep that in mind. 🙂
And great idea about the pictures. I shall have to do something like that. 🙂
Linda says
Thank you! I absolutely LOVE this idea. It’s so simple, yet so elegant!! I have a large expansive wall (that is painted a darker blue) and our fish tank is along the wall. There is a lot of space above the fish tank that I didn’t want to hang an expensive picture or painting (due to potentially ruining them with moisture from the tank). But THIS idea will allow me to move & rotate & keep things up to date and not subject them to constant moisture levels. I can’t wait to get some shelves!!! 🙂 🙂
brittni says
Yellow! Nothing makes you feel better than sunshine (otherwise known as yellow) on your walls! Love this idea. I’ve got a big wall and have been wondering what to do. Can’t wait to try it.
Terri says
Maybe yellow with a bit of blue in that little alcove? Or another accent color..
TiJa says
blue blue blue! my walls are blue with swiss coffee trim and they look beautiful with black and white photos.
Heidi says
I love this idea. I have been trying to figure out what to do with mine and I think with your help I have just figured it out. Thanks for sharing this neat idea.
Brenda says
I love the picture idea. Can you tell me what the shelves are called at IKEA? I can’t seems to find them.
Thank you
Kat says
I cannot find these on the IKEA site. What are the name of them?
Linda says
What is the name/style of the shelves from Ikea? I can’t seem to find it on a search.
Laurie says
These are called Ribba, Picture ledge. Just found them on IKEA. Great looking item! Thanks so much!