I needed to fill a large wall with artwork but was having a difficult time finding exactly what I wanted. The husband wanted a large scale photography print, and I wanted something meaningful to us as a family. I looked around and got some great inspiration from you guessed it Pottery Barn. I loved the idea of using chain because it went with my light fixture.
This is a super easy and inexpensive way to fill up the wall space. It also easily customizable. You can add literally anything that you can put a hook on. This would be amazing as a way to display hanging planters, artwork, and found objects.
Supplies Needed: 1x4x8 oak , 1x2x4 oak, 3 boxes of 10ft decorative chain, screws.
I stained the 1×4 in Graphite by General Finishes, I prefer the water based variety as it doesn’t stink as bad as oil and it dries pretty quickly. Also-water clean-up is great.
Then I cut a 1×2 stick of oak in half and ripped each piece at about a 30 degree angle on my table saw. Drill pilot holes for your screws on the backs of each piece so you can attach it with screws nice and flush to your rail board. One side is for the rail, the other will attach directly to your wall. This will create a French Cleat
Make sure to stain the ends of the French Cleat as well, as these will be visible on the sides.
I’m a big fan of blue tape on the walls to plan out where decor will be placed. I followed the basic rule of having my mid-point at eye level. Then I marked where the end of my board would be on the wall. This is NOT centered on the wall, often walls are not even. Its best to eyeball or go off a main point. In this case I centered my couch under the point of my ceiling and then centered my rail over the couch. Make sure you are hitting studs, or at least using stellar drywall anchors! Obviously check that its level, then simply place your “rail board on the cleat.
Now, take some decorative 10ft black chain and remove a section of chain in the middle so you have two 5ft pieces. I used 3 boxes of chain for a total of six 5′ chain. Wrap it around the rail and connect it by opening a chain link and connecting it to itself.
The trickiest part was attaching my frames to the chain. I tried a few things, first using strong picture framing wire. That looked crooked so I swapped it out for mini command hooks. They hung great, looked lovely but they didn’t last. Inevitably, at 3 am 2 days later pictures came crashing down.
I would go with the original of attaching with wire, or utilizing little hooks.
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