Ever wonder what you’re going to do with that one wall in your house? You know, the one that looks so bare, but you just can’t think of anything to do with it? One option you have is to make it into a mini art gallery, using your very own photos.

Creating a photo gallery for your wall is a great way to decorate your space and show off your favorite photos at the same time. All it takes is a set of photos: scenery from a vacation, family portraits, flowers, whatever you want to put on display. You can do black and white, sepia tone, full color, again the choice is yours. Here’s an example of a simple family gallery:

This is a simple, elegant way to arrange a small group of family photos, but the possibilities for your gallery are endless. If you want to fill out a larger space, you can include even more photos to make your gallery bigger. The key is to make sure that the photos make sense with each other.

Once you’ve decided on which photos to use, just crop (and, optionally, convert to black and white or sepia tone), print your photos in various sizes, and then put them into frames.

It’s a good idea to use different size frames, unless you’re going for a very simple look, like the one shown here:

Otherwise, mixing the frames will break up the space and draw interest to your gallery.

If you’re not sure how you want to arrange the frames, there are a couple of ways you can test it out. The first is to cut out pieces of paper to match the sizes of the frames you want to use. Using an adhesive that won’t damage your walls (household masking tape may work best), stick the paper up in different arrangements. When you’re satisfied about the layout, you can mark the spots and start hanging your photos.

Another method is to do layouts on the floor. You can use paper or your actual frames. Just lay them out on the floor in different ways, as if they were hanging on the wall. Once you’ve found an arrangement you like, measure it out and mark the appropriate spaces on your wall.

Once your layout is arranged, just hang your photos and you’re done! You’ve added an easy and interesting decorative element to your space, without spending a lot of money.