Learn how to build a gallery wall with thrifted frames to bring coziness and character to an otherwise boring blank wall in your home.
For the last 3 years, the wall above our couch has remained completely blank and it’s so. much. wall. space … So, I decided it was time to do something about it. That’s when I had the idea to create a gallery wall. I love the look of gallery walls and really wanted something that matched the vintage/cottage decor I have throughout my home. I didn’t feel like that could be achieved with frames from just any old place. Not only would they be expensive, but they just don’t make things as good as they used to, which means the best place to find picture frames, in my opinion, is the thrift store, garage sales and estate sales. I had an absolute blast creating this vintage inspired gallery wall and it’s brought so much coziness to my living room!
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Supplies You May Need to Create a Gallery Wall
- Wood stain (the color Early American is my favorite!)
- Wood conditioner
- Glass cleaner
- Picture hanging kit
- Mounting putty
- Small level
- Xacto knife
YouTube Video
How to Build a Gallery Wall with Thrifted Frames
Step 1: Sourcing Picture Frames
Step one was sourcing picture frames at thrift stores, estate sales and garage sales. This took some time, but it was worth it. I had the most success at my favorite thrift store that often has several frames available almost every time I go, but I did find one from an estate sale and one from a garage sale, which was great! When I was choosing frames, I was pretty open, but I did have some criteria the frames needed to ideally meet. Overall, I found some really great vintage frames that turned out so beautiful!
Criteria for Choosing Secondhand Picture Frames
These criteria were a must for me to keep the project in budget and looking the way I envisioned it.
- Made of real wood: I made sure that any frame I chose for this project was made of real wood that could be changed if needed.
- No visible damage: The frames needed to be solid with no water damage, major gouges or super deep scratches.
- Various sizes: I focused on choosing a variety of sizes to give the wall character and dimension. In my opinion, the more frames, the more visually appealing.
- Inexpensive: This is an obvious one since I was searching for frames second hand, but some thrift stores can be expensive. The most expensive frame I purchased was around $8, but it was the largest of all the frames, so I felt it was a good price. The cheapest was around $1 and on average, most of them were $1-3, which is great considering brand new, good quality frames are much, much more expensive.
Bonus Criteria for Choosing Picture Frames
There was bonus criteria that was a nice to have, but definitely wasn’t a deal breaker in the grand scheme of the project.
- Good art: Of course art is subjective, but it’s always a win when you can find a good frame with good art. In the past I’ve found some Norman Rockwell prints in beautiful frames, but overall the art itself is usually not appealing to me. But that’s not a deal breaker of course. As long as the frame was a good size, in good shape and solid wood, I was happy.
- The perfect color: I tend to like warmer, mid-dark tone wood colors. That’s what’s most appealing and what I try to fill my home with. I typically don’t like the look of raw or light wood. Some of the frames I found were the perfect shade, but most of them weren’t. And that’s okay! That’s the beauty of using real wood because you can change it, and pretty easily!
- Made to hang versus stand: Because I was looking for frames for a gallery wall, ideally all the frames would have been made to hang on the wall, as opposed to standing on their on like for a coffee table or book shelf. Turning a free-standing frame into a wall mounted frame isn’t the hardest thing ever, but it’s also extra work. That being said, that didn’t totally deter me from choosing a frame that had an arm (not sure if that’s what they’re called).
Step 2: Arranging Frames on the Wall
Originally my next step was going to be to re-do the frames I didn’t like, then put them on the walls, but as I thought about it, I needed to see the arrangement of the frames first to decide on colors and what I wanted each frame to look like, so instead I began arranging the frames on the wall.
Now, at first I wanted to be super precise with the arrangements. I bought some crafting paper and planned on tracing every frame, carefully cutting each piece out, measuring and carefully taping them to the wall, then adjusting each piece of paper as needed until it was perfect. But I should’ve known myself better, because that’s not really my style. I’m more of the figure it out as I go kind of gal, especially when it comes to projects like this. So that’s exactly what I did.
I first started with where exactly I wanted to gallery wall to be located, which was centered over my couch. So I found the center mark, then placed my largest frame in the center of that part of the wall and worked around that frame. I tried to get the spacing as good as I could, just by eyeing what I felt was pleasing to me, and went with it. Overall I’m happy with the arrangement of the 15 frames! However, at this stage in the game, the gallery wall was looking a little weird. The art was totally mismatched and so were the colors of the frames. So it was time to do something about it.
Step 3: Choosing and Printing Art
For the art, I really wanted a cottagecore/vintage/farmhouse/floral type of vibe. Okay, so what does that actually mean? I was thinking lots of warm colors, cottages in the woods, beautiful landscapes, old-fashioned things, pretty farmhouses and farmhouse decor. Hopefully you can pick up what I’m setting down, but I just wanted that type of aesthetic. I searched some of those keywords on Etsy and was able to find a few shops that really had what I was looking for. I recommend waiting for prints to go on sale if you can to make this project a little less expensive.
Links to the Prints I Purchased
I printed all my art at Walmart because it’s convenient and inexpensive, but there are other places you can choose like Walgreens, Mpix, Shutterfly or even a local print shop in your area.
Step 4: Upcycling Frames to Fit My Aesthetic
Some of the frames were fine as is, but many of them needed a little TLC or a full-on upcycle. After assessing all 15 frames, I broke them into 5 groups, depending on what they needed done. I took each group at a time, finished their makeover, then added the corresponding art. I enjoyed seeing the wall come to life a little bit at a time.
A Quick Cleaning
Several of the frames were mostly good-to-go. In these cases, the color was great and they had only minor scratches, or nothing at all. For these frames, I took them apart, removed the existing art, wiped the glass and frame with glass cleaner and replaced the art with my chosen prints. I started with these frames so I could just get the ball rolling and start to see my vision taking shape.
A Change of the Mat
A few of the frames had existing mats that just weren’t the right color. For instance, the Precious Moments frame had a pink mat and that’s not the vibe I was going for. I painted that mat with a bright white acrylic paint, which really worked well with the Labrador print I chose. As a side note, that print is one of my favorites because it represents our charcoal lab, Bear, who passed away a few years ago at the old age of 12. He was such a good boy and I wanted a piece that fit with the aesthetic of the gallery wall, but also looked like him, and this was the perfect piece.
Another frame had a double mat, so I took the navy colored mat, cut it to size and added it to a different frame.
For the largest picture frame, I originally thought it had a mat, but when I took it apart, I was sorely mistaken. I was in a bit of a conundrum because the art I had printed didn’t look good simply taped to the existing art. So to make the matted look happen without actually buying a mat, I cut the backing of the picture frame into a frame itself, resembling a mat, and covered it in beige contact paper I already had. It made the print look a lot better, but to be honest, I’ll probably purchase a proper mat in the future!
A Re-Stain
There were some frames that had minor scratching that needed a little bit of a touch up. For those frames, I lightly sanded out any of the scratches that needed it, then found a stain color I already had on hand that closely matched the existing color and simply re-stained the frame. These frames came out surprisingly well and you’d never know!
A Quick Spray Paint
The matching pair of cheap frames was a fine bright white color, but I wanted to mute them a bit, so I spray painted them with an off-white spray paint and I loved them so much more afterwards!
A Total Re-Do With Oven Cleaner
I saved the hardest for last, and those were the frames that I hated the color of. I’m not a fan of the orange/red stains and that’s what these had. To re-do them, I first sprayed them with oven cleaner to remove the existing varnish. This took a couple of rounds, but I was able to get the majority of the stain off. Once they were dry, I hand sanded them to remove the remaining stain and any scratches they had. Then I used a pre-conditioner on the wood, then stained them in a color that i much more preferred. Once they were complete, they fit in much better with the rest of the gallery wall.
Conclusion
I was able to create a dream gallery wall, all with thrifted frames and I still can’t get over how much I love it. I’m so excited to continue adding to it over time. I hope you found this inspiring and maybe the next time you’re in the market for some frames or looking to make a gallery wall you’ll hit up your local thrift stores first and find some beautiful hidden gems!
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