For living in or selling your home!
As a home staging and design company, we spend much of our time in our clients’ homes, whether it’s creating a functional space for living or a marketable home for selling. Most of the homes that we visit have one thing in common – they’re lacking wall décor.
We have quite possibly heard every reason for not having artwork on the walls. The reasons vary from being unable to find the perfect piece to not wanting to put holes in the wall, or perhaps they feel that the room looks fantastic and does not need anything on the walls to bring it together. Empty, bare walls are filled with possibility and can be considered the blank canvas needed to create a focal point within a room. Especially when it comes to selling a home, wall décor is considered a critical piece to the puzzle, and space simply is not finished without it. Staging a home for sale is like getting dressed up for a special occasion. It’s about putting the right pieces together, down to the final touch, be it a scarf, a tie, jewelry, or the perfect pair of shoes. Artwork is that finishing touch that adds personality, color, and interest to a room. Whether a piece of framed art, an unframed canvas, a metal sculpture, or a mirror, wall décor can be used to pull a room together and make it feel complete. It can also enhance the flow from one room to another within your home, creating continuity and inviting spaces. When selecting the perfect artwork for your walls, it’s important to consider the style, scale, height, and spacing of the artwork, the room, and the surrounding.
Style
The first step to choosing wall décor is ensuring that it fits into the home’s overall style. The home and its prospective buyer demographic often dictate the final artwork selections when selling a home. For the purposes of home staging, avoid mismatched frames, styles, or colours, as this can cause an unnecessary distraction to buyers. You will also want to avoid pieces that are too personal or specific to your style. The perfect piece for you may not be the right one for selling a home. When done properly, artwork can help bring out the home’s best features and create a positive, inviting atmosphere for potential buyers as they tour the property. If you are selecting a piece for living in the home rather than selling, you will want to choose pieces that bring you happiness (hint: pieces don’t need to be expensive or valuable to provide happiness). Wall décor can also provide a solution to common issues. For example, mirrors are a great way to bring some light into a darker space. By reflecting the light in a room, a mirror can be used to help the room feel brighter and larger.
Scale
A common reason for artwork to look “out of place” in a room is incorrect scale. The relationship between the size of the wall décor and the space where it will be hung is critical. If the artwork’s scale is inadequate, it can create a distraction – essentially the opposite effect of what you are trying to achieve. Wall décor that is too small can become overshadowed by items around it, while wall décor that is too big will look overpowering. As a rule of thumb, wall décor should be two-thirds the width of what it is hanging above. For example, the wall décor hanging above a six-foot sofa should measure approximately four feet wide to create a sense of balance and harmony. Remember that you can combine smaller pieces that work together, arranging them to fill the space that one piece of wall décor would have covered.
Height
The height at which the wall décor will be hung is essential to create a cohesive look. One common mistake is to hang wall décor too high. The centre of the wall décor should be approximately 60 inches from the ground. However, the wall décor should be placed about 6 to 9 inches above a piece of furniture. Hanging multiple pieces of wall décor in a space that includes several windows and doorways can be challenging, as these architectural elements will play into the overall view of the space. In the case of competing wall openings and décor, align each piece’s center with the intended wall space.
Spacing
While wall décor is a great way to add interest and character to your home, too many pieces and overcrowding can detract from their intended purpose. Unless elements are connected by size or subject matter, it is best to distribute the artwork throughout the space. When you find yourself hanging a group of connected pieces (a set of pictures, for example), space them out approximately 2-4” between them, to a maximum of 6” apart. A great tip is to use post-it notes on each corner where the artwork should be placed. Another idea is to use kraft paper to cut out the shape of your wall décor and tape it to the wall using Painter’s Tape before marking it with a nail. Both these approaches can give you a good sense of how the piece will look on the wall before you finally hang it – or even before you buy it. Do not let the blank walls in your home intimidate you. Use wall décor to transform your space and bring happiness to you and your guests for years to come!
