ihe rule of thumb lor hanging pictures on a

ihe rule of thumb lor hanging pictures on a wall is that they are best seen at the average person’s eye level. This rule applies most often when the pictures are on a bare wall, meaning one with no furniture providing a base line for the arrangement. If you are hanging a picture above a sofa or a buffet or an accent chest or table, then the rules are sometimes changed and the bottom of the picture might need to be lower, or about 10 inches above the large piece of furniture. When hanging a picture or a grouping above a sofa or a table, be sure that about two thirds of the length of the space is taken up by the items or you will end up with a “skimpy” look. The center of the grouping or single item should still be about eye level. In some cases you may want to hang groups of related pictures in a row together. If . they are truly similar, you would want to frame them identically and space them fairly close together, about 3 inches . apart. In other groupings of * unlike articles more space can be left in between the items, but make sure there is a coherence between them, and that they appear connected in how they are hung, with like colors, similar frames, or related subjects. Their outside shape as a group should be defined, as if an imaginary rectangle, square, diamond shape or an arch could be • roughly diawn around the outside edges of the arrangement. As mentioned in a previous arti- - cle, cutting shaped patterns out of newspaper and lightly taping them to the wall is a good way to arrange several items before actually driving nails.

Another concern is how to hang a picture on patterned wall paper. In order for it not to get lost, the matting on the painting or photograph must be strong and in contrast to the background color of the wall paper. Framed mirrors and natural wreaths work beautifully -