Picture this: Hanging photos without a hassle

I'm often asked about the best way to hang multiple photos, along the lines of what I've done in the wall heading up the stairs of my house.

So I thought I'd pass along a few tips:

• Decide on a general overall shape you want to wind up with: rectangle, square, asymmetrical... For my wall, I decided to follow the line of the stairs.
  
• This works really well, especially if you've got a lot of pictures: Trace the frames onto paper and hang the paper shapes on your wall with tape. That way you can switch things around without making holes in your wall. When you're sure you're happy, hang the photos.



• Mat at least some of the photos to give your eye a rest around the photos. Same when you hang the photos... leave spaces around them so you can really appreciate each of the photos.

  
  

• If you've got a lot of smaller photo or snapshots, think about combining them in a single piece. If you don't know how to mat your own photos, a professional can do it.
• You can cut down on the cost of hiring a professional by finding your own frames. I scouted for antique or second-hand frames for months for my staircase before I took some of them to be professionally matted.
  
  
  
  

  Photos can be copied so easily now and the results are good enough that it's hard to tell when you're not dealing with an original.

• If relatives have photos you love, especially older photos, borrow them and copy them for yourself.

A lot of the photos on my wall are copies, like the one above, of my Aunt Carol, Uncle Mike and their kids.

Great family, but Cindy's a little dippy, Jan's insecure, and Marcia, well, it's all about her...