Those were the same hooks that I used. When I used them, I first put the adhesive side on my wooden letters and let that sit for sometime to give the adhesive a chance to stick, and then I removed the other side of the adhesive and stuck it to the wall. I put a pillow under the letters on the floor in case they fell. I did have problems with one letter where I did not wait after putting the adhesive to the letter and that letter fell on the pillow. I tried subsequently to get it to work, but it kept falling so I used a new strip, giving it that wait period and since then none of the letters have fallen. Because of this I also needed to remove the strip from the wall which is similar to the Command Hooks which I've used on my fireplace for Christmas stockings. You just need to pull on the bottom tab in a vertical downward direction really slowly so the tab does not break and there was absolutely no wall damage. I will say I'd be a tad nervous about using them on antique plates...esp because the back of the plate is smooth so I'd be particularly careful to give it perhaps even an hour for the strip to adhere to the plate before getting the other side to adhere to the wall and I'd definitely put pillows below for one day as from my experience, if it's going to fall, it will fall in the first hour/day. The other nice thing about these strips, is that you can pull the up the velco and remove the object from the wall, make any slight readjustments, clean, whathaveyou, and reattach the velco strips to one another.

Hi SAS, We have wooden hangers that can be used on any surface and hold a lot of weight. They do not depend on the weight to hold the stockings, but the design. We found ours at a local fireplace store. I did see them in a LL Bean catalog a couple of years ago, not sure if they still sell them. Attached is a photo of them on the fireplace with stockings. The next message will show the hanger close up (I don't know how to post more than 1 photo per message). These really work! MJ

That’s too bad. Of course my first thought is ”well, temporary” lol but they should stay up awhile. We have some that have been up for five years. Was the surface cleaned with rubbing alcohol, left to dry, before mounting the adhesive? Can he do a tension rod with fabric instead? He might try the double-stick tape that is used for putting window film up. It peels off if you are careful (peel back, don’t pull), And, perhaps apply it on the top of the trim. The paper shade will end up draping or folding down over the edge, but when you peel the tape off, any paint that comes off won’t show.

Changing out the artwork will be a huge help in refreshing the rooms. There are a few more minor changes that can help transform the spaces. While the drapes may have been expensive, they look drab against the wall color and don't play well with the floor and sofa colors. There are relatively inexpensive replacements that can make a big difference and brighten the rooms. The trunk is too small by itself behind the sofa. You could try using it as a coffee table instead of the ottoman and add a longer storage bench behind the sofa. Painting the dining chairs black is an easy project and will create more contrast with the wall, as well as relate to other black elements like the fireplace glass and the trunk bands. I agree with the points about artwork overload - one way to soften the transition and not leave the dining space with bare walls is to use carved wood panels that provide texture and dimension. I also really like your choice of the water artwork because the large, light areas provide depth and don't just blend in with the walls. I would remove all the pink elements and sell or relocate your current artwork.