Updating a wall display can be done at any time of the year, and for far less cost than renewing your picture frames to keep all your photos displayed in a uniform way.
No matter how much work you put into creating a stunning feature wall, after seeing it every day, possibly for years, it can eventually feel like it is blended into the background, therefore, no longer has that same wow effect it had in the months following it being created.
Working with what you have, with the odd additions and changes to the arrangements can give new life to timeless pieces in any room.
3 Ways to Get More Satisfaction from Your Existing Wall Displays
1) Add 3D Objects
For wall displays consisting entirely of photo frames, it is all going to be 2D. Incorporating the odd 3D illusion piece could be all that is needed to freshen up a flat display.
Ideas include installing a shelf, hang a ukulele, installing a hook in the ceiling for a hanging basket to hang in front of part of the display, or simply use miniature ornaments attached to decorative string, wire, or ribbon, and hang those between the frames.
2) Change the Mount Boards
Mount boards are the cheapest way to update your frames. Most store-bought frames include an off-white mount. This is the card that is sandwiched between the glazing and the print, preventing the two from coming into contact. Mount boards are there to protect the ink on your prints from smudging or sticking to the glazing.
They do not need to be white, or all the same colour across your display, and you can add a little creativity to them using craft materials like washi tape.
Changing a mount board to one of a different colour is as easy as changing the picture in a frame. Take it down, open the frame, remove the print, and boards, replace the new mount, reassemble, and rehang.
If you are content with the colour of the mounts you are using, washi tape is the simplest way to add a splash of decor inside the frame. It sticks to card like masking tape to plaster, but it is acid-free so it won’t degrade a card stock acid-free mount board, or introduce chemicals to the frame’s interior, which could compromise the level of protection the frame has for the print. Everything you put inside a frame should always be acid-free.
3) Lighten the Display with LED Lights
A variety of picture lights are available for illuminating art but the simplest would be LED lighting. Three advantages of LED lights are that they do not produce heat, they emit zero UV rays, and they consume less power than traditional lighting that could do damage to artwork framed behind a standard glazing without UV resistant glazing.
In Summary
If you feel you are tiring of your existing wall display, try some tweaks to what you have before you take it apart and start afresh. Existing frames can be repurposed in a number of ways and the quickest way to revive them is to swap the colour of the mount board.
The display itself can include more than picture frames. 3D objects can be worked into the display to help it stand out. A ukulele is one example, hats are another. For lighting, the simplest and safest to install around wall art is LED lights. Not only will they safely illuminate a wall display, but they will also add a little ambiance to the room.