How to Hang a Wall Gallery

Okay you Pinterest lovers, how many of you have ever repinned some sort of wall gallery or photo collage on one of your "Home Inspiration" boards? I bet that most of you have, because wall galleries are all the rage right now!

Trying to hang one, however, can be quite the daunting task. Luckily, I am married to MacGuyver and he came up with a fool proof way to hang the collage just the way I wanted. It wasn't too complicated and everything ended up super straight and perfect!

In order to hang a wall gallery this way, you will need:

-A giant piece of cardboard that is at least a couple inches bigger than your gallery will be when on the wall
-Tape measure
-Pencil
-Leveler (I think that's what they're called...)
-Blue painter's tape
-Nails
-Hammer
-Drill

First, we got two giant pieces of cardboard and taped them together. I had already figured out exactly how I wanted to hang the gallery ahead of time, so I just laid out the arrangement on the cardboard, exactly how I wanted it.



Then, carefully trace the outline of all the pictures (or whatever else you are hanging) with pencil. Once the item is traced, take it off of the cardboard. You might want to write in the outline exactly what it is that is hanging in that spot, so you don't forget or get mixed up.



Now, this is the tricky part. On each item you are hanging, you want to measure exactly where the nail needs to be placed in order to hang it. Some frames have hooks, cables, or just little holes for hanging. Whatever it may be, use a measuring tape to find out exactly where it is, and then measure the outline on the cardboard of that same item. Use your pencil and make a circle on that spot. Do this for all of the items that are going to be hung in the gallery.

You will then use a drill and drill holes in each of the pencil circles you created. Now, it gets funner (I know, I know, that's not a word)!

Place the cardboard on the wall where you want your gallery. Make sure it is EXACTLY RIGHT before you drill any holes. Use painter's tape to tape the cardboard template to the wall, and then use a level to make sure it is hanging straight on the wall.


Now, all you have to do is mark on the wall with pencil THROUGH THE HOLES IN YOUR CARDBOARD TEMPLATE where the nails are going to go. Make sure each pencil marking is dark so you don't get lost once you take the cardboard off the wall.






Take the template off the wall, but keep it close by for reference (you don't want to end up hanging the wrong thing in the wrong place). Now, it's Hammer Time! We used small tac nails. One at a time, hammer nails exactly where the mark is on the wall. Hang the picture on the nail. Slowly, you will see your gallery come to life before your eyes... and boy, is it rewarding!

Now, sit back and enjoy your creation!
Here is an example of ours, but we put up some stuff with the baby's potential name/initials on it and those are being kept secret from you all. :)





This might seem like it takes a long time, but it really doesn't. This method seems easier than any other wall gallery tutorial I have seen on the internet.