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Listen, I loooove a good, symmetrical gallery wall but, the price tag on this little trend almost made me spit out my coffee. Next time youre at the store, take a gander down the frames aisle. Heaven forbid it if you want frames that are relatively large because you’ll need a loan. That’s usually a big fat “NO THANK YOU!” for me but, alas, I have found a way to make it (relatively) cheap.
THE FRAMES
My first stop was the company “Framebridge” as that’s where every single link on a picture of a gallery wall took me. Let just say, their frames…GOREGOUS…their prices….mmmm… not for me. I pivoted quickly to the tried & true…..(drumroll please) AMAZON!
I bought these babies.
They’re 18×18 solid wood, wall mounting frames. You can buy them in quantities of 3 ($50), 2 ($38), or 1 ($27).
I LOVE THEM! I have 11 of these frames in my house now.
NOTE (because I almost missed it myself): there are TWO films on the plexiglass; 1 film is obvious because it has print all over it but the other film is reeeally hard to see but you’ll definitely want to remove it.
THE MATTES
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- Square frame with white matte
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- Square frame with white matte & picture taped over matte window
I bought the mattes from Hobby Lobby! I simply took one of the frames into the store, over to the framing desk, & worked with the associate to determine the best matte. I ended up with white mattes with a 7.875 x 7.875 window size. A couple things to note about the mattes:
- They will fit snuggly in the frame &, its possible, that a matte may be a little too tight; like, for example, if the frame itself is off by just a hair & isn’t EXACTLY 18×18. If you get a matte that’s a little too snug, just take an exacto knife & cut a sliver off of the matte.
- I knew I wanted 8×8 pictures (only because it was easy to remember & a fairly standard size).
- A 7.875 x 7.875 window frame gave me juuuust enough coverage so that the picture wasn’t falling through the window. You could make the window frame a touch smaller so that you don’t have to line up the picture so perfectly (ex: 7.5 x 7.5)
- I did use Scotch tape on the back of the photo to keep the picture from moving on the matte.
- The mattes at Hobby Lobby were $14 each.
THE PHOTOS
I used “Walgreens Photo” to print my 8×8 pictures. Super user friendly & they usually have same day pick up in a location nearby. I almost always find a 40-60% off coupon online too! Just Google “Walgreens Photo Coupon”; Retail Me Not has never let me down ;P. I ended up getting 4 8×8’s for $10.
TOTAL COST FOR 3 FRAMES
Frames – $50
Mattes – $42
Photos – $7.50
Total – $99.5
Not the cheapest décor I’ve even purchased but, for me, the look is well worth it!
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- Symmetrical Gallery wall with 8 square frames
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- Symmetrical, vertical gallery wall with 3, square frames
Hope this helps!
Love,
Kai
