As an interior designer, Bea Pila gets to choose from an endless collection of accessories from all over the world. But none is as important as the family photographs her clients want to display in their homes. These photos add character to any room and are really your own personal works of art. So today she has some DIY Basics on how best to display family photographs.
- In my home, family photos are an important part of the interior design. I like to do large groupings of photos, either on furniture or on an "anchor" such as antique shelves. These shelves allows you to add more photos to the mix and also help display smaller photos that could be visually lost if they were just hung on the well.
- In your groupings, I suggest frames of different sizes and styles. If you want to add some visual variety, have a 5"x7" photo and enlarged to 8"x10". It's an easy and inexpensive process now at just about any drugstore or copy shop.
- For living rooms and more formal spaces, I love smaller jeweled frames. Because they're so ornate, they're perfect to mix in with other accessories on an end table or a coffee table. I also like these frames because their small size helps highlight the faces. Since you'll have to do some trimming to make your photos fit in the small frames, I suggest using copies of the originals. Scanning, then printing them from your computer is an easy way to do that.
- But the real opportunity for making a visual statement with family photo is by framing them and hanging on walls. You can get a unified look by choosing frames in the same style. I think frames with clean, black lines work in just about any room. The key is using photo mats. I suggest going extra wide to give almost a museum-quality look. Don't be afraid to layer several mats together.
- Speaking of mats, color does matter: you may want to use warmer tones like reds, golds or a deep, rich ivory.
- For a sophisticated look, try using linen mats with some texture. It's a really dramatic way to display black-and-white photos.
So here are some reminders about how best to display family photos:
- Use shelves or large groupings to anchor photos.
- Choose similar frames to provide a unified look.
- Select photo mats in warm colors to highlight photos.
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