One project Sherry and I have been especially excited about for the office is the art. The big blank wall above our desk had us thrilled at the possibility of making something cool AND paralyzed thanks to that “what the heck do we do?” question that loomed in front of us. Actually, as of a few days ago, we were feeling more paralyzed than thrilled. Sherry and I were officially stuck. We just couldn’t agree on art that appealed to both of us. So because we get lots of emails asking how we solve decorating disagreements, we thought sharing the process that got us through this little art stalemate would be a good exercise. Here’s the whole sordid play by play…
When it came to that blank wall above our desk (that we’d be staring at for at least 90+ hours a week combined) we both agreed that we wanted to DIY something (surprised?) and we thought it should be in the green/blue palette that we already had going on with our sleeper sofa and our customized bookcase. We also agreed that we didn’t want to do another big frame collage like the asymmetrical one in Clara’s room or the more balanced one above the console table in the living room and above the couch in the den.
But beyond that point, we weren’t really seeing eye-to-eye at all. Sherry thought one big piece on the whole wall would be best. I felt like two or three items might suit us better. Sherry leaned towards a photograph. I leaned towards a painting or illustration. I wanted to leave the wallflowers. She thought they should be moved to another wall in the room. And since our attempt at talking it though was getting us nowhere, we decided we needed to help each other visualize every possible idea (we’re both really visual people). So here are some of the techniques that we used:
Exercise 1: Collect A Digital Inspiration Folder- One of Sherry’s favorite things to do is to troll the interweb for inspiring images. Once she had collected a pretty decent range of art ideas – including a few that fell more in my preference category – we were able to flip through them to see which ones agreed with both of us. And while there were lots of strong contenders, none felt like “the one” (or at least “the one we could afford”).
Exercise 2: Go Where The Art Is- We may be too cheap/DIY-addicted to buy a “real” piece of art, but that doesn’t mean we were above finding inspiration in a bona fide art gallery. And lucky for us, the new-and-improved (and 100% free!) Virginia Museum of Fine Arts recently reopened its doors here in Richmond. So with Clara snug in her Ergo carrier, off we went to be wowed. The new building was definitely a wow in and of itself, and we did come across a couple of inspiring pieces – including this one from local artist Heide Trepanier.
I’d actually admired Heide’s work since we first spotted it in our local Saks Fifth Avenue back in 2006 (it hung in the dressing rooms where Sherry was trying on white summer dresses for our wedding- another sweet relationship reminder). Heide artfully tosses acrylic or enamel paints in motion-filled lines, then outlines them in black. We definitely couldn’t afford an original, but I though we might be able to create a decent piece of our own inspired by hers. Alas, I couldn’t quite convince Sherry that it was the perfect cure for our bare wall (even though I was pretty sure we could pull it off, especially with her fine arts background).
Exercise 3: Find Art In Everyday Places- Thankfully, art doesn’t only live in galleries. So for the last few weeks we kept our eyes peeled every time we walked into a coffee shop, restaurant, or home store to see if whatever they have on their walls might look good on ours. We bumped into one especially beautiful piece when shopping during our vacation last week to the Delaware shore (yep, surprise – we were blogging from the beach last week – it was Clara’s first trip to the ocean!). Anyway, here’s the beachy blue-green painting we spotted at a fancy shop called Tulip. It definitely had us saying “maybe we can do something like that.” But again we just weren’t (in the words of my wife) 100% smitten.
Exercise 4: Look Around The Room- Since leaving the house didn’t seem to be solving our problem, we also tried to find inspiration right in our own office/playroom/guest room itself. We already knew we wanted our art to somehow work with the blue-green color scheme that we had going on in the room… which could be why the pattern on this West Elm pillow caught our eye during our in-room inspiration hunt. Perhaps we could make a nod to the graceful arches in a large scale piece of painted wood that we’d hang on the wall? The only problem is that neither of us could decide what scale we should make the pattern when translating it onto the wall (we feared going too small with the scales would be too busy while making the scales too big might be a bit too bold and headache-inducing). So we begrudgingly moved on.
Exercise 5: Turn To Our Own Readers- Of course we also absorb a ton of inspiration from you guys every day! Between House Crashings, Reader Redesigns and all of the items you post on our Twitter and Facebook pages, we couldn’t ignore your own amazing makeovers as a potential answer to our big art dilemma. And one solution in particular that seemed like a good fit for us (especially given my nerdy love of maps) was Kate’s playroom makeover. We thought a giant roll-down blue and green map like this would work within our palette, and we could even trim it out on the wall with molding like Kate had done (or adhere it to a large thin plank of wood for a vintage-sign look like the art that we whipped up in the bathroom). Our only hesitation was that we already had some mappiness going on in the den. And we still didn’t get that “yesss- this is it” feeling that we were waiting for. On to the next idea.
Exercise 6: Mock It Up- With so many ideas floating around in our heads, we figured one of them was bound to work if we could just see it in the room. Here’s where Photoshop came to our rescue. We used an old pic of the desk (before adding the file storage) and went to town making some rough mock-ups of what some of our ideas might look like (rough being the key word).
First we decided to explore an idea inspired by the abstract-yet-colorful painting that we spotted in that shop in Delaware. We quickly threw this together in Photoshop (and even played around with the idea of marking it with an anniversary-inspired number 7). I also left up the wallflowers that Sherry wanted to move (since I wanted them to stay) just to keep things diverse and exhaust all possibilities.
But it just wasn’t doing it for us. Maybe a poor first attempt at Photoshopping was to blame, but our quick visual was enough for both of us to kill the idea (hey, at least we were unanimous!).
Then we came back to our pillow-inspired pattern idea. Maybe we could mix things up and do a long narrow piece instead of a big overwhelming rectangle?
But as intriguing as this little exercise was, I was able to convince Sherry that it isn’t interesting enough to stare at all day, everyday. Plus something that repetitive and busy might make a chaotic workday feel even more overwhelming.
Next we were on to the map idea, courtesy of a sample found on AllPosters.com (which we blew up and photoshopped on the wall). It struck us as a lot more interesting to look at than the scale-y pillow pattern, but neither of us (me especially) could quite fall in love with the idea thanks to our US map that already lives in the other room. Though the idea of simply hanging a poster and then framing it with molding was a tempting DIY project.
So we were left to face a nerve-wracking scenario: all of that brainstorming had come and gone, and we still couldn’t agree on what we should spend our time and money DIYing. That’s not to say that the process of hunting for ideas together and mocking things up to deliberate over the possibilities wasn’t helpful. Because it really, really was. It magically turned our “I’m right and you’re wrong” debate into a “we’re both wrong” sense of agreement – mainly because we were able to clearly see each others’ ideas and discuss them more intelligently than any “trust me, a huge painting will look the best” reassurances that we could offer.
But while it was good for our relationship, it still did nothing for our big empty wall.
Then we learned what was perhaps the most important lesson of this whole scenario. As much as hunting for inspiration can work, sometimes it just has to fall into your lap. Even if that lap happens to be pantsless.
Let me explain. While at my parents’ beach house last Friday, I stepped out of the shower and spotted a recent issue of R. Home, our local home decor magazine. And would you believe the word that was staring right back at me?
So I picked it up. And (after drying and dressing) I took my find to Sherry and we started flipping through the pages in hopes of spotting something that caught both of our eyes. And a mere ten pages from the end of the issue, one image did just that. OH HAPPY DAY.
It’s actually a photo of an architecture exhibit at Virginia Tech, which features 100 postcards that appear to be leaning on some sort of thin ledge. Sherry and I were both immediately attracted to the big impact that the display had as a whole. And we also loved the idea that (when adapted to our house) it would be the perfect cure to our indecision: we could display several photos, postcards or small art prints and we could change them out if we ever fell out of love with any of ’em. Plus, we didn’t have to 100% agree on everything (if I don’t like one of Sherry’s pieces, it can just sit on her side of the ledge).
We were surprised that in many ways this final decision is the polar opposite of what we both thought we wanted (it’s nothing oversized or super bold, but the sum of its parts equal something so special and personalizable that it totally screamed “the one”). Plus in some way it fulfills all of the things we both wanted (we can incorporate photographs and abstract art and typography and on and on). Yup, we’re both totally psyched to get down to business. And everything from making the shelves, devising a hanging system, and coming up with dozens of pieces to display on the wall (with enough weight to keep them from blowing around) should be tons of fun. In fact, assuming all goes well, we’ll have that update for you in a week or two!
Have any of you ever felt stumped on a shared project? Do you have any other tips or processes you’d like to share when it comes to overcoming a decorating disagreement? Oh and feel free to toss out additional sources for art inspiration for everyone who’s struggling with a similar art dilemma.
Psst- Wanna follow the entire office/guest bedroom/playroom makeover? Click here for the intro post, here to read about the big sleeper sofa hunt, here for the DIY desk play-by-play, here for the homemade light fixture project, here for our hacked Ikea bookcase, here for the file storage we built, and here for how we squeezed in some toy storage.
shanna says
Love this! And I love the suggestion that we readers send you cards! I know just the one I’d choose from my town … now to find it!
Kristen A. says
That’s so funny- my boyfriend and I were down in Rehoboth Beach this weekend. Next time we go, I’ll definitely go check out Tulip!
Ashli M says
Love the Map idea but they all looked great I also loved the narrow piece of art and the womans legs and Shoes. Too funny I would love to look at shoes while I work!
~Ashli
http://www.maillardvillemanor.com
jen says
I love this idea. It’s been filed away in my head for awhile now, just waiting for the right application! And the motivation to build/hang shelves.
As someone whose parents own a house on the beach, you are going to have sooo much fun. I remember those days w/a newborn baby girl on the beach and now all of my kids are finally (finally? so fast?) at that age where they want to do more, and get so excited to go swimming and do all that stuff. It’s hard in the middle there, but so worth it.
Amanda Z. says
I would love to do this concept in one long rail down both sides of a long hallway. Or use long strips of corkboard railing, like in school hallways, to pin up different things. We keep our walls somewhat empty since our house is rather small with low ceilings, but we do have a few large Hatch Show prints (perfect for 2 graphic designers! – http://store.countrymusichalloffame.com/categories/Hatch-Show-Print/Large-Woodblock-Prints/). The exception is baby Frederick’s room which is full of cool retro wall items – a wood canoe paddle, a small chalkboard, an old hand painted “Boys’ Wear” sign, and his own Hatch Print – Animal Oddities.
Jenna says
This was a great post! Thank you! I loved reading through your process of solving your art dilemma. And I am in LOVE with your solution! Fantastic!
nadia says
I’ve loved that “Beach” print for awhile now! It’s actually available at Ballard Designs.
mark daniel says
i really like the idea, especially how it gives you flexibility to constantly change and reshuffle the images. there was a very similar display to the photo in the magazine you showed at the museum of coke in atlanta.
i’ve thought about doing something like this in my home office, but i’m concerned that with a ceiling fan (i live in florida, so it’s kind of a necessity), not to mention just normal movement through the room, the pictures will constantly be swept off the ledges.
any thoughts?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Mark,
We actually plan to tackle that issue so stay tuned!
xo,
s
sarah says
For what it’s worth (I know you already made a decision) we have a giant vintage chalkboard in our dining area, which also sports a large blank wall. The chalkboard is great b/c we can write ideas and brainstorm together over dinner, and it’s fun for kids and guests. I wonder if the green/blue color of a chalkboard might also work well in that space? It’s similarly flexible…you could also DIY it and make a magnetic chalkboard, and put up postcards as you want to do with your current idea.
Tara M says
Love this post!! I am very excited to see how you make your shelf wall. I think its a great idea. I recently came across this DIY tutorial that I thought you might like…
http://raisingolives.com/2009/07/raingutter-book-shelves-tutorial/
Lauren says
Great advice!! I LOVE that West Elm pillow but it doesn’t appear that they still have it! BUMMER!! It would match my son’s nursery (which is inspired by your nursery) Oh well! I’ll have to keep searching!
Vickie says
Great idea!
Ikea has this very narrow shelf which is perfect for this kind of project (and cheap too!):
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50152595
But I know you like a good DIY :)
Annalea says
That’s going to look great. As for the weight problem, what about those inexpensive acrylic “frames” that sandwich the photo? It would keep things straight and help protect the photos. Maybe Ikea has something along those lines that’s super-cheap?
Caroline says
I love the idea of visualizing art with the mini-computer gallery and Photoshop! My boyfriend and I will be living together soon, and one of the things I face is “arguing” interior design with him. I’m hoping showing him, rather than telling him, will be a good solution! Thanks for the ideas!
Blair says
…and you’ll be displaying your post-cards you’ve written to yourselves on these ledges?
YoungHouseLove says
We may just do that, Blair – though since we’ll probably have plenty of other postcards, photos and art we may just keep our self-sent postcards in their own special place. We’ll see!
-John
Annalea says
Found it!
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/96471400
Just a thought . . .
Samantha says
Love this idea! I really love that map idea too… it might make an apperance at my house next!
Lisa in Seattle says
Bless you for walking us through your decision process. We call this “a frank exchange of views” at our house. Sometimes it involves tears and recriminations, in which Things are Said and Later Retracted. Your Photoshop mockup would be a great way to handle AFEOV, as I am visually oriented and can’t picture things in my head if I can’t actually see them. I love love love the postcard/picture gallery and predict that you’re gonna need a bigger mailbox.
Emily says
I absolutely love what you guys finally decided. What a great way to add some appeal to the blank wall while displaying keepsakes at the same time.
Snickrsnack Katie says
I have an idea for the predicament posted by Mark Daniel. If you got some little circular velcro stickies, and stuck them to the back of each postcard, and stuck the opposing velcro stickies to the ledge – you could basically stick the postcards to the ledge and yet easily pop them off and interchange them. This way they wouldn’t blow away with the movement of the ceiling fan.
Something like this, possibly? http://www.itapestore.com/velcrocoins-5815sets-white.aspx
YoungHouseLove says
Great idea, Katie. We plan to have it all worked out by our follow-up post so stay tuned for what ends up working!
-John
Claire says
LOVE your solution! I’ve been waiting until our big move to San Francisco to put together something similar. A while back you did a post about mason jars filled with sentimental items. I want to try that out with some stuff from our almost-3 years together along with a post card and picture wall! Seems like a fairly inexpensive DIY idea too. Making thin shelves/ledges to hang will be super easy and cheap!
Bromeliad says
…the story of our lives . . . can’t agree . . . can’t decide. But sometimes it’s for the best because a better choice may be right around the corner. (Or in the shower.)
Michelle says
I love the rain-gutter shelves on this site.
http://www.thestoriesofa2z.com/2009/09/rain-gutter-bookshelves.html
Cheap, easy and cute!
stylefyles says
this is the perfect solution! While I LOVE the thought of a giant piece of artwork on the wall (I think the map behind the sofa works really well), in front of the desk is not the place for it (at least for me). I think staring at the same thing for 10 hours a day could make even the most brilliant picture seem dull, and swapping photos out like you’ve chosen is sort of like a convenient mood board in front of you all day long! Love this idea!
Ashlee says
I love the Beach print! I see it is from Tulip (which I found on facebook through your link), is there an artist or any contact information on the back?
YoungHouseLove says
Hey Ashlee,
Unfortunately we didn’t catch the artists name on this trip (though a call to Tulip could probably take care of that). As someone else commented, you can find a similar print at Ballard Designs: http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Wall-Decor/Paintings-Prints/All-Prints/Beach-This-Way-Giclee-Print/p/10924?path=1%2C2%2C1468%2C1539%2C2514&iProductID=10924
-John
Jen says
Love love love this idea! I have been trying to come up with something for my living room wall, and this might just work. Thanks for the inspiration!
Matías Troncoso says
I like my photo on the wall! It looks nice!
YoungHouseLove says
OH MY GOODNESS! MATIAS TRONCOSO! We love your work!
xo,
s
Jess says
EEEE GADS! i think i just found what we will be doing in OUR office… just call me copy-cat. :-)
Can’t wait to see how it all comes together (so I can counterfeit your already counterfeited idea – he he he.)
Don’t they say imitation is the highest form of flattery?
You’re welcome, Jess
Kurt Wode says
Thank you YoungHouseLove for posting the beach picture that we have here at the Tulip LTD! We have been getting lots of calls in regards to the artist. Unfortunately, there is no artist listed on this 40″ x 60″ Gicle, printed on canvas. Thank you all for sharing this great blog with us! It is so wonderful to find inspiration in new places.
kathleen says
I have a little post card shelf on my wall. It is 1.5″ (front face) by 3/4″ (upper edge) with a 1/8″ groove in the middle of the upper edge. It is super! Good luck.
Trish says
A wonderful solution. I love this idea. Can’t wait to see how you tackle it.
Please show us how you change up the postcards in months/years to come!
My husband and I just started a house blog (http://www.brilliant-nest.com) and we’re having a great time. :) Nice to see other married couples doing the same!
Jill says
Hahaha, how crazy is it that Matias Troncoso found this post?! Awesome!
Love the thought process that went into this decision; isn’t it always the case that these types of things must fall into your lap?
You might also be interested to see an awesome little (inexpensive!) product I found at the Museum of Modern Art, available online here. Think you can also find them at Urban Outfitters.
At first, they didn’t really impress me, but I thought the 2D/3D aspect of it was really cool. And then I got to searching on Flickr and found some pretty awesome configurations. Love how some people wrap the photos around walls!
Though, I suppose that could be a miter box construction project with the little shelves, too… :)
YoungHouseLove says
Jill – It is crazy. Small word this internet thing, eh? And thanks for the link to the fotoclips – those little buggers are pretty cool!
Tarryn – We’ve got a bookshelf in the other corner of the room, which you can see in this post: https://www.younghouselove.com/2010/06/office-progress-bookcase-building/ Oh, and thanks for the link to D*S. What a great round-up of office inspiration!
-John
Tarryn says
I’m currently making over my home office/guestroom and it’s sort a slow process but one that I’m really enjoying. It’s actually very similar to yours so far, but as much as I’d like to dedicate the big blank space above the desk to something visually appealing, I have to install shelving and storage space. Just wondering where all yours will be? I know you have the divider storage under the desk but is there another room dedicated? Loving the look of the room so far, so cozy and multi-functional!
Tarryn says
P.S What great timing! You’ve probably already come across this post at Design*Sponge but if not, take a peek – http://www.designspongeonline.com/2010/07/sneak-peek-best-of-offices-part-one.html
rhiannon says
i was thinking, “i’ve seen long white shelves before somewhere like that…” and then it hit me! in your den and in the nursery! hahaha. it made me laugh.
Erica M says
Love this choice! None of the full-sized options were working up to par with your creativity, and the placement above your workspace is perfect- you can stick little note card to-do’s on the rails, inspiration photos from current projects etc., so it will be as functional as it is aethetic. LOVE IT!!!
Mary @ Life on 19th says
I can’t wait to see what your wall looks like when you are done. I like the idea for displaying postcards (that are stored away) purchased on trips.
Oh, and I can’t believe you were at the Delaware shore. We are heading there next week for a family reunion,, can’t wait!
Thresha says
Love this idea!! But do you worry that the pictures / postcards will get dusty?
Christina C says
I don’t know if anyone else suggested it, I didn’t read all the comments. Do you guys have a PO Box? If you do maybe your devoted blog fans could send you different postcards from where we live. You might end up with so many postcards you won’t know what to do with them all but it might be fun!
wynter says
I love the idea! We are building a house and I can’t wait to do something like that in my little girls room! I found some old ABC flash cards that would be amazing on the shelves!
I have a question, where did you get the flowers on the wall? I have been looking everywhere for something like that.
Morgan says
Love the idea! I did something similar, but more basic for my apt w/ ikea frames, but when we get a house of our own, I’m thinking of taking it up a notch with the ledge idea! thanks!! here’s a pic of what i did: http://mosdailyphoto.blogspot.com/2010/05/travels.html
Haley says
Not sure if this was mentioned already, but IKEA sells some nice picture ledges that would probably be perfect. Not sure if the point is to DIY with the shelf, but we have 3 of these shelfs in our house and they are pretty inexpensive.
Christine says
My aunt had a wall exactly like that behind a couch in her finished basement. This was years ago and instead of postcards she displayed all of her CDs in their case. (before mp3s of course) The artwork on CDs covers is often really cool and it was an easy way to see her collection. I always remember how perfect they were all spaced and how it really looked like a collective piece of art. I never paid attention to how it was constructed, but I remember the wood maybe being some kind of piece of trim?
Tara says
Thanks a ton for sharing your thought process. My husband and I have very different approaches to design (& actually most things in life :-)) and a post like this helps me accept and articulate how we can be different people and yet work on something together. On an unrelated note, I loved the pics of Clara on the beach. can i ask which pouch sling you were using in the picture at the pool?
YoungHouseLove says
We had an early night last night, so here’s an answer to a slew of the overnight questions:
Thresha: A little dust never stopped us from a project. :) Hopefully we’ll be swapping things out with enough frequency that we can keep from ’em from getting too dusty. If not, I guess they’ll just get the occasional cleaning!
Christina: Someone did mention that, but we think it’s a great idea. Our PO Box is The Petersiks, PO Box 36665, Richmond, VA, 23235
Wynter: The flowers on the wall are Umbra’s Wallflowers. You can read more about installing them here: https://www.younghouselove.com/2009/06/push-it-push-it-real-goo/
Tara: Glad you liked the pictures! The slight was a hand-me-down from a friend so we’re not sure where it came from originally, but it’s Hotsling brand.
Hope all of that helps!
-John
Ashley says
I love you guys. You should look into creating your own iPhone app. No joke!!
beabee says
Postcards for the win! My hubby and I sent homemade postcards to each other while we were dating long distance for 3 years. When we got married, we got acrylic edgeless frames and created a collage of over 60 postcards by the dining room table. It’s a wonderful conversation piece for guests and serves as a daily reminder of our courtship. :)
http://s434.photobucket.com/albums/qq64/agtbbd/House%20Photos/?action=view¤t=FirstWallComposite.jpg
Carolyn says
I really like this idea! I also liked the idea of framing a map of the world in an office space, or a grouping of clocks showing the time in different cities around the world could be cool as well.
As for other sources of art inspiration, http://www.redbubble.com is good.
rich says
I had to smirk when I looked at the photo that gave you the idea…It looks like it could be the two of you in it, looking at the installation! Can’t wait to see the finished project!
Elisa says
Love it – can’t wait to see it come to life. I will definitely be attempting something similar – it’s perfect for renters like me!! Adds a whole wall of customizable color, with only a few little nail holes to worry about. Perfect!
Bethany says
How cool! I live right near Blacksburg, Virginia and I’ve been to see the exhibit– it’s awesome. I’m a long-time reader and I want to thank you for your inspiration :) Keep up the good work!