Hello,
And welcome to a Sunday… blog-post.
No actual Sunday 7 today, just a generic little blog-post, about my lounge room Gallery Wall, which has taken some 6 years to put up.
In fact, longer if I count the years which Mr T & I have shared a home – all of which pretty much sported, bare, naked walls!
So here it is, my gallery wall:
What do you think?
I guess it look like a random bunch of pictures/paintings, perhaps cobbled together any which way… and to some it might look nice (maybe even, more than nice?)
And to others perhaps, it might look not so well put together.
But for me, it tells a story.
My story.
Before I share it with you though, I’m going to state from the off: not every print or painting in my Small Town Home carries significant meanings beyond the basic, and simple “I liked it” or “it looks cool.”
After all, those are two *very* good reasons to hang art or nic-nacs on your walls.
The best reasons in fact.
But, I suppose I’m what you’d call an ’emotional’ decorator.
There are area’s in my home which are less demanding on my emotions, and the “I like it, it looks cool” ethos works just fine and dandy in those areas.
But in other rooms, such as my lounge… it’s been a long drawn out process.
Decisions on colours, furniture arrangements, dressing the room with accessories and wot-not takes a long time for me, as I slowly pull the threads of various ideas & emotions together and try to make sense of them.
Eventually, a cohesive plan of action is formulated and that… that’s when stuff finally happens.
We lived with bare, painted walls in this lounge room for the best part of 6 years, although the wall paper only went up in July this year.
But finally! We have a gallery wall up… and it’s beyond exciting for me!
I’m almost ready to tell you the story behind the gallery wall, but just one more thing to note: as 70s child, I grew up in a lounge adorned with a hell of a lot of school photos of me and my siblings dotted around what we used to all the “TV room.”
As you can imagine, this was rather torturous, and frankly it’s scarred me for life: safe to say, with every passing year, every visitor to our home… it was a living nightmare!
To the point, both my husband and I find it difficult to actually have any family photos hanging in our house what so ever.
And it was was that thought, firmly at the fore of my mind, when choosing what to hang on the walls of *my* TV room.
I needed the prints / paintings to carry some kind of significance… some sort of meaning and relevance, to me and my family but without scarring and torturing my children by hanging ever single one of their school photos around the room and turning it into some sort of shrine.
So… let’s start with this painting, our only original piece of art by Rebecca Campbell, my ex-flatmate, whom not only did I share a flat with for many years… Mr T was over rather a lot during that time as well!
Becca gifted us “The Fairy Ring” after Mr T & I got engaged as an engagement/wedding present.
It was my favourite piece from her first gallery show at Jonathan Cooper Gallery and was really, a very generous gift – given to us in love, and as such, the painting will always hold a very special meaning to us.
The smaller typography print next to the painting, is one of a few hanging on this gallery wall from The Loft and Us.
And I don’t think it needs too much explanation:
Mr T is younger than me and as such, to some of my friends, was often referred to as ‘the boy.’
In fact, he still is by one particular friend, who, whenever we speak on the phone, will ask ‘and how’s the boy doing?’
Except, I now get confused as I have 3 boys in the family… being a mother to two sons… I’m definitely Mad About the Boy(s).
The little black and white matchstick figure plate, as well as the blue plate in the next photo – are both from Mr T’s Nana, who passed away a few years ago now, aged 94 or so…
Neither plates are particularly valuable and neither are they the most beautiful, but I’ve always liked them and that they have a little family history behind them meant, to me, they are very much deserving of their place on this gallery wall.
Next up is the mountain print, below the plates.
My parents hail from a mountainous region of the world – not quite the foothills of the Himalayas, but almost.
So let’s just say mountains are very much a part of my DNA.
Before kids, towards the end of every beach holiday, Mr T & I would have one of those stereotypical, reflective holiday conversations… you know, the ones where you look back to look forwards?
I’d always put this question to him: “Pound for pound, living by the sea or in the mountains?”
And whilst there’s no doubt, I love it by the sea… I seem to love the clear, fresh mountain air that smidgen more.
The little free-falling figure in the print (Nadadora by Blanca Gomez, bought from Home Place) is a very literal representation of the joy & freedom I feel when visiting the mountains.
{And just an aside, Mr T and I used to be on the same page about living in the mountains, but in recent times, he’s shifted to being more of a coastal lover.}
And the final four photos/prints on the main wall behind the sofa, all have very simple, straight-forward meanings.
From a blur-effect photo of my first dance (a twirl no less!) from my wedding, captured by one of Mr T’s uni friends:
The next three, are again, all from The Loft and Us.
The Lips print carries some in-family jokes… nothing rude, or saucy… just daft and silly.
The Field of Dreams photography print, with it’s long grass against the blue sky sum up the autumnal colours of our South African Honeymoon… in particular being on safari and spotting leopards in the grasslands.
The field is also my school run, as I drive to the little outlying village school to collect my boys – I pass field after field.
It’s very much my ‘now’.
And the number 8 print?
Well, it’s always been my favourite number… being a bit of a maths geek, I kind of loved the symmetry of the number.
But over the years, it’s come to hold even greater meaning: Mr T is 8 years younger than me; we got married on 8th April; his birthday is on the 8th of June; our youngest son was born on the 8th of June… and our first born, in 2008.
Plus the print is in yellow and black: two favourite colours!
And finally, these two prints:
The tiny little typed R.H. Sin quote – which I typed myself on my recent charity shop Corona typewriter purchase:
A friend once wrote it in a card to me… back in the day when we were eternally lamenting being single and all ‘woe is me.’
It’s a little reminder to me, of how life can change.
And the Black & White Horse photography print?
It’s a bit of an unusual choice for a non-horsey kind of family.
And yet, the second Mr T & I spotted it, we both knew he (we feel like the horse is a he, not a she…) would fit right in.
So, I guess the horse print represents, that even after all these years… there are indeed, some things we still agree on!
The image of the horse is beautiful, elegant and somehow calming to look at.
In fact, as I wove the story behind the gallery wall to my children, both saucer eyed, hanging on every word with little curls at the corner of their mouths as their little lives got a mention within the story, my eldest declared he loved the horse print best – because he felt calm, looking at it.
The youngest declared that the typed quote was his favourite, because I had personally typed it, and because he wanted to be a storm, which no one could catch… and that he didn’t ever want to get married or have kids because “kids are hard work.”
Wise beyond his 6 years, wouldn’t you say?!
Once I’d finished telling the story behind the gallery wall to the boys, they asked about the couple of obvious spaces, screaming out for something to be hung in them.
I explained that my story, as yet, is incomplete.
Something, at some time soon will pop up, grab my attention, as being another piece that fits into the story…
However, one day, my story will be complete.
And at that point, it’ll be up to the boys whether or not they’d like to choose their favourite pieces which might one day form the introduction of their own gallery wall with hidden meaning.
But for now, thankfully, my story continues.
Each and every single print, photograph and painting is forming a part of my children’s memories, of *their* childhood TV room.
It’s a room in which many a family hour is spent: whether actually sofa cuddling whilst watching TV, or playing games whilst sitting on cushions on the floor as well as many a fire-lit evening, reading favourite children’s classics out loud to them.
The room in which we often see a New Year in with cousins, Aunties and Uncles.
It’s a room which for me, demanded walls adorned with something a little more sentimental than the rest of the “I liked it / it looks cool” prints dotted around the rest of the house.
Next up – the shelves!
After painting them dark back in July, I still haven’t quite got round to putting much back up on them.
Let’s hope it doesn’t take me 6 years!
I hope you’ve enjoyed this little story about how I’ve created a gallery wall with hidden meaning – obviously, not so hidden, given I’ve shared the story on this post.
Just remember: I’ve only shared with you, as much as I wanted to.
There may well be more to the story…
But that’s for me and my fam.
Thanks for reading.
B
Please note: Most of the prints in this blogpost were purchased by me across the past year or so; however Field of Dreams and Black & White Horse were both gifted to me by The Loft and Us, although with zero obligation to blog about them. I will however, be running an Instagram Giveaway in collaboration with The Loft and Us in the coming week, so do keep an eye out for that!
The Loft and Us currently have a discount code TREAT20 valid until midnight tonight, or sign up for emails and received a 15% discount.
There Are 6 Comments
OMG this is such a lovely post – your wall is adorable and special to you as a family – I love it. Hopefully will be buying a house with my new partner soon and I adore the less
Obvious way of having meaning to your art xx
Aw thank you so much Helen! There are plans to sneak a little photo of the boys in there somewhere… but in the main, I think I prefer this less obvious way of bringing that meaning into this room. Good luck with the house buying lovely xx
Bean superb post more like this please! I love your writing too .
Last week I had the pleasure of listening to the ex editor of Elle decoration speaking… she said people with style show it in all areas of their life ? I believe this to be true and can see it in you and now on ya blog xxxx
Ps I too have a ‘boy’ 6 years younger than me !
Ashley Xxxx
Thanks so much for such high praise! I often wonder if anyone is even interested in this type of thing – good to know you liked it x
It sounds like before long your youngest will have his own quotes filling a space on The Wall ❤️
That’s so true! He’s a little monkey! Thanks for taking a look xx