Framed depiction are an cheap path to make a house feellike a home , and they can take a way from empty to finished - looking in minutes . They can be customise easily to your space and interior decoration , and swap out if your tastes change . But there is an artistry to hang up a motion picture the correct way — without destroying your walls . Here ’s what you take to know .
1. CHOOSE THE RIGHT WALL MOUNT.
There are several steps you necessitate to take before you get anywhere near a drill or power hammer . First , view two factors : the state of the wall you want to deck , and the weight of the picture . Your wall may be supported by studs , which are slice of Grant Wood or metal that run vertically behind the wall every dyad of foot . know now into a studhorse can put up more support for hanging items .
If you have a reward bulwark , you could expend a introductory nail or screw to hang the frame , as long as you insert the nail or screw hard into a he-man . But you should only ever use a nail if you ’re hanging on a macho-man , according to Simon Taylor , owner - hustler of T&C Carpentry in Whitby , Ontario . Otherwise , the weight of the delineation could pull the nail out of the bulwark .
No stud poker ? No trouble . " If the picture is light , then a product likeMonkey Hooks"—a kind of cantilevered hook for unreinforced walls—“work great , " Taylor says .

For sensitive to impenetrable picture , utilize wall anchors , which are plastic or metal inserts that provide more support for sleep with into an unreinforced wall . There are many styles and strengths available for unlike materials and weights . “ Using a product likeE - Z Ancorsis an easy style to ready a screw propeller to drywall where there is no stud to make love into . They are strong and easy to instal , ” Taylor separate Mental Floss . “ you may then wander a screw into them to pay heed your picture , providing it has a crotchet on the back or a string . A secure principle to follow is not to practice anything other than an anchor if you are not jockey directly into a rivet or backing . ” ( fictile wall anchor are fine for most lightweight projection , but for a really weighty picture , or a wall made out of something besides wallboard , you ’ll want a different type of anchor . )
Ifyou’re rentingand do n’t want to damage the walls of your apartment , or you ’re not 100 pct committed to the delineation ’s emplacement , Taylor recommends a non - nail option like the super popular3 M Commandadhesive maulers . They provide temporary , hole - free hanging and hold strong without peeling paint off the paries when it come sentence to remove them .
Others argue that stick - on hook can be undependable , especially for heavier frames . “ All exposure - hanging ironware should really include some type of component part that punctures the rampart , ” says Claire Wheeler , design and task coordinator for Montreal - basedSajo Inc. “ This offer a much more secure hanging organisation than a hanging system that is surface - applied . ” The adhesives on these types of products are more likely to neglect than any sort of nail or anchored hardware , she tells Mental Floss .
2. EXAMINE THE FRAME’S HARDWARE.
Wheeler sound out your hanging computer hardware calculate on the size and weighting of the underframe . Fortunately , most frame manufacturers include some word form of hanger on the back of their products .
While she finds that hook tab ( low triangular hanger on quick - to - habit frames ) work for hanging lighter pictures , a wire system — two anchor head on the back of the skeletal frame and a strong conducting wire strung between them for loop over the wall screw or bait — is the better choice for flow big and/or with child pictures . The conducting wire system setup allows the weight unit of the frame to be circulate evenly along the wire for more secure hanging , rather than placing all the weight of the frame on one small hanger head .
“ You will acknowledge that most frames , whether you have buy them in a store or you ’ve had them custom - made , have computer hardware already instal at the back . It ’s usually a pretty safe bet to use what the manufacturer has render , ” Wheeler say .
To hang a film without the need for advanced math , lead off with a center hanging dot : a hook tabloid add on in the appropriate spot , or , if your frame has two chit on either side of the skeleton , a wire strung loosely between them .
3. HAVE THE RIGHT TOOLS ON HAND.
meet all of the gear before you spring into action . In addition to your framed artwork , you ’ll require the right hang apparatus for your project ( see # 1 ) and a hammer for poke in the wall anchor or nail . Use a power drill or screwdriver to insert screw in the wall anchor , if you ’re using one . A taping measure makes it easy to calculate the right place for cling . A sturdy wire for the back of your frame is optional ( see # 2 ) . And the best way of life to ensure your picture will be unwavering is to , well , use a grade . “ A layer is a basic tool everyone should have , ” Wheeler read . “ If you own a hammer , you should own a level . ”
4. HANG AT THE RIGHT HEIGHT.
Wheeler says you should play around with the height at which you plan on instal the frame : “ As a general ruler , optic degree should land within the bottom one-half of the figure , ” she says .
From a decorator ’s position , bicyclist finds people often take pictures that are either too full-grown or too small in proportion to the wall arena . “ You want the characterization to have some space to ' breathe , ' so to mouth , meaning a rampart large enough that it does n’t find as though the picture is overcrowd the paries , " she says . " On the flip side , you also do n’t want a delineation to look completely miss on a large bulwark . "
She contribute , " Proportion is significant , but there ’s no specific ratio " of photograph size to wall area that could be consider a rule of thumb . at long last , you ’re the good judge of your space .
5. PICK THE SPOT ON THE WALL WHERE YOUR PICTURE WILL HANG.
set the material body against the bulwark where you need it to advert . " It ’s a skillful estimate to have someone with you to label if it is in the right spot , " Taylor says . " have a sentiment of it in place before it ’s ' desex ' to the wall will help you adjudicate if it count ripe . "
After you ’ve piece your spot , draw a forgetful demarcation with a pencil along the center of the frame ’s top sharpness as your character line . If you ’re hanging a really large delineation , get your assistant to hold it in position while you draw .
6. TAKE MEASUREMENTS.
Lay the frame face - down on a categoric airfoil . set your rampart holdfast , such as the wall anchor or Command come-on , in the appropriate hook tab or on the wire on the back of the form and perpetrate the wire taut . With a mag tape measure , assess the distance from the top edge of the frame to the centre of the fastener .
7. PLACE YOUR WALL FASTENER AND HANG THE FRAME.
Now back to the wall : evaluate the same distance from the center of your penciled reference line down . Mark that spot with your pencil : That ’s where you ’re going to install your fixing .
If you ’re not using a wall anchor , but affix an adhesive hook shot , hammer in a nail , or insert a Monkey Hook .
To install an anchor , bore a hole into the wall at the pencil peak with a fuck that is narrower than the anchor itself . ( You do n’t desire the anchor to be too idle in the rampart . ) Do n’t cheat it too tightly . Next , reverse the drill ’s direction and pluck the screw out . Insert the anchor , hammering it flush against the wall . Finally , drill the screw into the linchpin — this action at law makes the anchorperson expand slimly and press against the drywall ’s entrails , creating a more secure convulsion . Be certain to leave a moment of place between the gaoler ’s head and the wall so the pic ’s conducting wire can be hooked over the screw . Hang the motion picture .
8. EVEN OUT YOUR HANDIWORK.
To verify your picture is straight , roost the level along the top of the skeletal system , against the bulwark . Then , set until the air bubble within the small tube of water is in the plaza of the tube , which indicates that the bar is parallel to the floor — and , therefore , that your pic is level .
Taylor allege that not using a level and don the hanging hardware is set evenly on the back of a physique are the two big error he sees multitude make . Pros often use optical maser floor , but Taylor say a water degree will work just as well for most people .
Need some inspirations to get started ? take hanging a few classicmovie bill poster , printedpatentsfor famed invention , or aguide to cat-o'-nine-tails .