Vintage Eclectic Gallery Wall

There are so many great posts out there about planning out your gallery wall, how to arrange it just so, and step by step tutorials for putting it together. I think those are awesome.

But sometimes…I like to just wing it. Thus my describing this one as “impromptu.”

The inspiration for this particular gallery wall came from a collection of antique fashion prints that I have. I started hanging them on the wall together but it didn’t feel done.

One afternoon, I decided to fill this wall with more framed vintage images and collected items. Like I mentioned, my husband and I live in a smaller home that only has two bedrooms, so my art studio takes up half (or more) of the master bedroom.

Our bed was on this side of the room for awhile, until I decided to switch things up and move the studio over here. Now, I have an inspiring wall to look at while creating.

To create this look, I started by hanging a small grouping, in the middle, and spread out. I had my mother over when I put it together to help me eye each piece before putting nails in the wall. I know this process might scare some people, but since this is a section of the room that hardly anyone goes in but me, I knew that only I needed to enjoy it.

If this many nail holes scares you, try 3M hooks wherever possible. I would have done that if I had some on hand, but I was antsy to get this wall done.

What do I love? 

That is the question I asked as I grabbed pieces to try out on the wall. Besides antique fashion prints, I love old religious items, so I included a print and some vintage rosaries. I added a few romantic images along with a pastoral sheep scene.

I paid attention to the details of the pieces as they were coming together. There were hints of green in the old frames and fashion prints, so I picked up on that and added a decorative plate and one of my husband’s paintings that had a similar shade of green.

An eclectic gallery wall does well with a variety of textures and shapes, so I added a textile wall hanging, an old ruler that I shaped into a W (for our last name), and some of my grandmother’s art tools. My grandfather gave me the metal number 6. It is his house number and was the one used on my grandparents’ home for many years. I love adding pieces with sentimental value to my decor.

All together it is definitely not “perfect”, and some “expert gallery wall designers” would probably find many faults with this lack of planning and layout, but I am all about finding beauty in imperfections. I think it makes a house a home. It’s not perfect, but it is me. And in the end, that is what matters when it comes to decorating our homes isn’t it? That you love what you live with and that it expresses who you are and the story that you want to tell.

I hope that you enjoyed this post!

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