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12 Creative Ways to Decorate Blank Walls All Through Your Home

Add personality to blank walls with these easy and affordable ideas for every room.

Country Living

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DAVID HILLEGAS

Almost every home has a “what should I put there?” spot. Here are a dozen ideas to help you answer that question. Give your walls something to talk about with these super clever and creative how-tos that incorporate collections, paint, wallpaper scraps, books, and even bundt pans!


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DAVID HILLEGAS

1. Oversize Quilt Square

A large-scale piece of painted plywood lends graphic punch to any space. First, cut a piece of plywood to desired size (ours is four feet square). Draw a quilt block (here, Twin Star–style) on the wood with pencil, using a ruler or painter’s tape for straight lines, then paint with acrylic paint. Nail strips of 1/2-inch trim along the edges to finish. Lean or hang on the wall.

baskets of all styles arranged on a wall that is painted blue with a bench in front of it

DAVID HILLEGAS

2. Basket Art

A bevy of baskets brings ample texture to a room. Using nails, hang a larger basket in the middle, then surround with smaller baskets in a circular or starburst pattern.

wooden spoons from light to dark hung on a kitchen wall

DAVID HILLEGAS

3. Spoon Display

Wooden spoons come in many sizes, shapes, and colors, making them the perfect ombre kitchen art. To assemble, cut a piece of plywood to the desired size and paint. Lay spoons in a light-to-dark pattern on the wood, and use a pencil to mark a spot on both sides of each spoon, typically just below the bowl. Remove spoons, and drill holes at markings. Working with one spoon at a time, loop fine-gauge wire over the handle and through the holes; twist together wire ends behind the wood to secure. Repeat until complete, then hang.

six different sized clipboards hang on  a wall with art clipped to them

DAVID HILLEGAS

4. Clipboard Frames

When it comes to gallery walls, frames can get expensive. For this arrangement, simply clip prints to vintage clipboards. Thread a piece of leather jewelry cord under the clip, knot it at the top, and hang with a pushpin.

a pair of maps hang on a wall above a desk

DAVID HILLEGAS

5. Trip Mementos

Memorialize a vacation, hiking excursion, rowing adventure, or road trip by outlining the route traversed with ribbon or twine on a new or vintage map. Hold both options in place on the map with hot-glue.

a grid of colorful botanical like prints hang above a bed in wooden frames

 DAVID HILLEGAS

6. Nature Silhouettes

Start by collecting leaves and thin-stemmed branches. Lay them on 11-by-14-inch canvas boards. Use a round foam stencil brush to paint around the leaves with acrylic paint, covering the canvas. Remove leaves, and allow boards to dry. Use white paint for any touch-ups. Frame as desired.

SHOP FRAMES

a calendar grid painted on a wall with chalk paint

 DAVID HILLEGAS

7. Chalk Wall Calendar

Keep everyone in the loop with an entryway wall calendar. Use painter’s tape (we used a 1/2-inch-wide roll) to tape off a 35-square grid to desired size, as well as two rectangles, as shown. Paint with acrylic chalkboard paint (we used Behr’s Interior Chalk Decorative Paint). Once dry, remove tape, and touch up any rough edges. Tie a length of twine around a piece of chalk, knot end, and hang on wall with a pushpin.

the word wash is spelled out with nails and string in a laundry room

 DAVID HILLEGAS

8. String Art

Gussy up the laundry room or a kids’ bath with appropriate words like “wash” or “splash.” Start by cutting out letters from craft paper. Mark nail holes with a pencil on the wall using the letters as a guide. Hammer copper nails into the wall, and wrap nails with lengths of assorted-colored thick yarn.

a collection of colorful bundt pans is hung in a kitchen

 DAVID HILLEGAS

9. Baking Display

A collection of colorful vintage Bundt pans in assorted shapes lends retro flair to a kitchen or pantry wall. Bonus: You can take ’em down and use them as needed.

an old window with no glass becomes a tic tac toe game when hung on a wall

 DAVID HILLEGAS

10. Salvaged Window Tic-Tac-Toe

Hang a vintage or new nine-pane window frame. Add galvanized X’s and O’s, and let the games begin.

SHOP LETTERS

flowers made of colorful wallpaper hang on a wall above a vanity

 DAVID HILLEGAS

11. Bold Wallpaper Blooms

Transform wallpaper remnants into floating flowers. Trace and cut out 8 to 12 (depending on sizes) petals on backs of wallpaper remnants. Pinch together one end of each petal, and secure with hot-glue. Once dry, glue petals together in a circle. Secure to wall with pushpins.

Get the step-by-step how-to: How to Make Wallpaper Flowers

books are hung on a wall in a gallery like arrangement

 DAVID HILLEGAS

12. Lively Library

Arrange books in a fun, slightly haphazard pattern, putting heavy-duty nails or staples through the back covers to secure. For extra texture, hold some pages open with string or fishing line.

Charlyne Mattox is Food and Crafts Director for Country Living.

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This post originally appeared on Country Living and was published January 22, 2022. This article is republished here with permission.

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