Picture Perfect! (with zero commitment)

So were you one of the people that took advantage of the $5 Magazine Deal that Amazon ran over the holidays?

Well I did – I got myself Southern Living and Real Simple and the lil bro got me a subscription of House Beautiful. I love magazines for the simple easy pleasure of flipping through and enjoying the ideas they can bring you. So – I got my first issue of Southern Living last week. One of their features for a “Done in a Day” home projects was to create this hanging photo display.

(photo via Southern Living)

So can I just say that I LOVE this idea. They used picture molding – which I did not know existed until this article. Picture molding – shown below – is used to hang pictures without using nails. How fantastic?? And why don’t more high end apartments use this within their rooms so we could all hang photos? (Note to self:  Must sending strongly worded email to apartment complex.)

 

So here his how it works, notice that small space between the top of the molding and the wall. You put in a special picture molding hook like the one below, tie a piece of cord, and you get once heck of a classy picture grouping.

(photo via Southern Living)

Or you could use a ribbon.

(photo via HGTV)

There are tons of different options for hooks. Check out the options here at House of Antique Hardware. (Don’t you just love the presentation of these? They come in several different finishes.)

(photo via House of Antique Hardware)

I researched this and evidently, it was a big deal in Victorian Houses back in the day. However, I couldn’t find a whole lot of pictures where people are using this today. Below is a picture from VintageSeattle.org which is a classic example of what picture molding looks like prior to being used for hanging pictures.

(photo via Vintage Seattle)

Next, here is one of the only pictures I found on Houzz.com that showcased picture molding. Note how the mirror is hung off the molding.

(home design via Houzz.com)

Don't you just love this idea?  I think it is perfect to do in a room so you can change out your art quickly or have a bare wall.

What do you think?  Check out the steps on how you do it at SouthernLiving.com.  You need no "heavy duty" tools to get this look.  Another reason why I am loving it!