How to Decorate with Travel Photos : Wall Display

March 25, 2014 by

Two of my favorite hobbies are traveling (obviously) and decorating/art.  It is absolutely perfect when I can combine both. I like being able to use things from our travels in our home to remind us of our trips.  We have magnet collections that serve as trip reminders for them.  We take tons of photos when we travel, and we have different ways of using them to bring our memories home.  This is one of my favorite ways for how to decorate with travel photos.

How to decorate with Travel Photos

One of the best ways to add  drama to your decor is with black and white photos.  And what could be better to frame than those photos you have taken yourself as you travel (or of your kids, pets, or anything that you enjoy looking at)?

Our black and white framed wall photo collage started in 2001, after we spent 5 weeks traveling through Europe (pre-kids).  We had so many amazing photos, and we were on such a tight budget that we didn’t purchase many souvenirs while traveling.  We came home & printed our photos (this was pre-digital camera!), then we enlarged and framed our favorites.

How to create a black and white photo wall display:

You can go about this in two different ways:

1. Choose the photo frames that you like and that will fit in your space.  Then print your photos based on the sizes and direction (horizontal or vertical) that your frames will hang.
2. Choose the photos that you want to use, and then base your frame purchases on your photos.

I have done this both ways.  When I first started my collage in 2001, I carefully chose the frames to match the photos.  Now that I have added more and more over time, I will choose frames that fit the space, and then order the photos that are appropriate for the frame.

Some tips for creating an amazing photo wall display:

• Choose various frame sizes in the same color
• Keep the same mat color for all photos
• Write your photo location and date on the mat
• Create a focal point photo and build your display around that
• You can also use wall shelves to place the photos on so you don’t have to hang directly on the wall & can move around
• Use wall putty on the back corners of the frames to keep them from moving around
• Lay out all of your frames on the floor before hanging to make sure you like the layout
• Put a dab of toothpaste on the back of the frame where you will hang it on the nail.  As you press it up against the wall where you are going to hang it, the toothpaste will transfer to the wall & that is where you should hammer the nail into the wall

I like to purchase all different kinds of frames from various stores.  My go-to stores are AC Moore (great deals with their coupons, and they take each other’s coupons as well), as well as IKEA.  I like to buy multiples of the same frames to keep things symmetrical.  I also like to use collage frames for certain trips (I have a 3 photo one with photos from 3 Hawaiian islands). 

Our travel photo display wall is getting pretty full, and we have no plans to stop traveling. Luckily I have other tricks up my sleeve. Stay tuned!