Sometimes family photos can make a space look dated and cluttered (hello old style collage frames). Here’s how to decorate with family photos so they look stylish and memorable too!
Frequently family photos get a bad rap when it comes to decorating a home with style. And for a really long time I believed the same thing. Today we’re going to talk about how to decorate with family photos in a stylish way.
After all how many ugly framed photo collages have we all seen “gracing” the walls of homes? How many randomly sized and shaped photos can be displayed in one frame? (I always wondered why they couldn’t make those things more stylish.)
Gallery walls with individually framed pictures, custom art and other memorabilia have finally elevated the family photo closer to artwork than ever before. The prevalence of great family photographers with less cliche photo studio shots have also helped to make family photos much more attractive.
So how does one decorate with family photos in a stylish and attractive way?
How to Decorate with Family Photos
1. Use an Easel
Use an easel to display a single large family photo. This can be framed or simply clipped to the easel for a casual display and would look fabulous in the dining room or family room!
2. Print on Canvas
Enlarge and have a family photo printed on canvas and hang it on the wall in the dining room or over the couch.
3. Unify with Frame Color
Hang family photos in a variety of shapes and sizes, but unify them with a single color of frame like white or black.
4. Go with Black and White
Use a grid pattern, black and white photos and black frames (like we did with our Michaels frames above my desk) to create a classically elegant photo display.
5. Use Office Supplies
Cover a large bulletin board with snapshots, keeping the photos completely inside the edges for a unified and tidy look.
Bonus? Any of these ideas would make a fabulous Mother’s Day, birthday or anniversary idea too! And being able to see your family photos will bring back memories and make your home more lovable!
very attractive
I love the idea of nine. And interchange. My husband and I married hmmm a couple years after our oldest had graduated high school. Then our youngests graduated. I was tired of 8×10’s standing on surfaces if it was to be four of them so we purchased four matching frames and mats. There was both brown and black in the frames and they hung in our hallway–the first thing we saw when we walked in the door. But as a couple weddings and one came with three auto grandkids who were graduating already from high school, that piano was growing small. The one said no one got extra photos without getting married. So I carefully included all children. Even our wedding photo. Our one biological grandson. A niece and son. I was given frames so what began as precise is now random. I was editor of our yearbook and won awards for layout against huge city schools so with that experience I feel it is eye pleasing. Forever? No. But for now? Sure. Why not. It’s just us here and all these people are so busy now. But it can remind me to pray for one. Remember a happy moment when one was 15. It’s our immediate family!! My helper says she–who was left with no family and her mother died eventually so she could not reconnect–says this wall is her favorite of my home. And so to someone it may be clutter. But I never thought what it meant to sweet B who never ever had these memories.
I have mine hanging from an electrical conduit rod that is attached to a white wood panel. The frames are black in different sizes with black and white photos. The frames hang from the rod with a round metal clip. Then other frames are hung below with twine.
Sounds deliciously industrial! Perfect!
Thanks for the good tips Shannon. Decorating with family photos is my #1 favorite way to decorate.
That’s awesome! 🙂
Yes! I have a gallery wall where I spray painted all the frames black to make them one cohesive unit. Love it!
Sounds awesome! Good job!
Thanks for the inspiration ! Amazing ideas.
Thanks! Enjoy!