My Photo Wall

I have been wanting a photo wall in my home for just over 2 years. I had seen them on a few blogs, and was in love with the idea. We had just moved into a home that a great wall up a staircase and I had big plans for it! I started collecting pictures and frames for it and then I found out I was pregnant. A birth of another child meant that there would be more pictures to add. I pretty much put my project on the back burner, only getting prints as I found them free online. After Adam was born I was anxious to get going on it again, but really lacked the time for getting it together.  In January of this year we decided to move again! UGH. But the new house is perfect for us, and it has a GREAT wall for my project!

Not a great shot, but its all I have of the before. Its.A.BIG.wall.

But as soon as I saw this wall I was anxious to get started! I pulled out the baskets of picture frames I had all set aside and started painting!

I decided to paint them all flat black, and I just used the cheapest black spray paint they had at walmart. I think it was $.97 a can. Worked great! Next time I do a project with this much spray painting involved, I will invest in the sprayer that attaches to the can, my finger was sore for a week!

I spent the next week going threw all of the prints I had collected and matching them up to the frames, ordering more of Adam and more recent favorites of the kids.

I have so many wonderful shots of my kids that it was really hard to decide

Waiting to be hung

I spent several hours laying them out on the floor trying to find a good layout, because they were going UP the wall and not accross the wall it was harder to get a good Idea. I then started useing papers in the size of the frames and taping them to the wall to get a good idea.

I thought this was working great, my husband, however, didnt agree. And when it came time for him to start hanging them it ended up that we didnt place them where I had layed them out.

Here is part way threw. I should mention my husband informed me that he hates when I post pictures of him on the internet when he is wearing sweats and looking "like crap". I say "PSSSHHH"

Here is our "finished" project. (before I got the level out) There is plenty more room to add as the kids grow! There are a few white frames on there that I hadnt intended to use that I needed as fillers, but they will be painted black as well.

Im quite proud of this wall, and My photos of the photos dont really do it justice. Of the 35 photos that are on the wall, only 5 of them were taken by someone other than myself. Im also quite proud to say that this wall cost me less than $40 to accomplish. Most of the frames I either had on hand or collected from various garage sales and such. Of the few that I did purchase, I payed less than $1 a piece for on clearance. 

I got all of the prints free or deeply discounted from online promotions as they came about. I spent about $9 on spray paint!

This "j" is a little project I threw together at the last minute for the wall, I will share that soon as well!!