1 long picture ledge or 2 shorter/overlapping ones?

13 years ago

I want to put a ledge over a glass-top buffet to display some 11x14 prints. The buffet is 6 feet long -- would you do one ledge (5 or 6 feet long) or two shorter ledges (staggered, one slightly higher than the other)? Does one long ledge seem boring?

On the buffet are some framed photos and a lamp.

I'm thinking about either stainless steel ledges, like this from eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/6ft-Stainless-Steel-Picture-Ledge-Display-Shelf-Gallery-/330449574964?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0amp;hash=item4cf0545c34

Or 2 glass shelves from Ikea:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30140037

I have some other stainless in the room--the DR table is a stainless Parsons leg table with glass top, and a console table on the opposite side of the buffet has stainless legs. The ceiling fan is also stainless steel (or something that very closely resembles it).

(sorry no photos of the space--have misplaced the cord that links it to the computer)

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Comments (7)

justgotabme
13 years ago
Pictures of the room would really help Pammyfay. Please
les917
13 years ago
Wondering why you wouldnÃ¢ÂÂt just frame the prints in some kind of silver frames and hang them?

To me the ledges are great for a collection of prints and other things of various sizes. To lean a collection of the same size items along the shelf seems kind of, well, unnecessary.
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your house is totally beautiful. Myself if it was my house i would do a few things. First I would paint some color on the walls, a bit darker maybe in browns, or a sage green, or a soft gold..and then I would find some type of art that I love, or large plates or something..and I would put a colleciton of those items on the wall across the entire space at the same level, above the wall and entertainment center..remember you'll have to clean whatever you put up there so try to make the items things that won't gather a lot of dust..also that other large wall area on the other side calls for something large..maybe you could put something in the same venue on that wall.. some ideas might be, say a collection of clocks, a colleciton of pictures, a colleciton of large platters or tin trays, metal grilles..etc. and then if you want to set things on the ledge, try to tie the items into the art on the wall..and keep it simple. say if you were in the desert or mexican region, you could put up there some large mexican type plates or flat wicker type bowls, with some other large urns in a similar style on the ledge.. Say if you are into antiques..you could put a colleciton of antiques across the wall of similar size and shapes and then put a few coordinating antiques on the ledge.. i do see that you enjoy the wicker look, i think i would go with that look by adding a warm brown to the walls or a sage green, and then I would hang the larges wicker trays you can find in a row across the wall, put the large wicker baskets in the far right hand corner, and add a few more around the room..maybe with magazines in them, make sure the scale of the items you use in the room are very very large..you might check out some import stores like Pier one for large items..they have beautiful large painted wooden items that are dark and would go with your wood..some are the size of doors ..they can be quite expensive though so watch for sales..they would be beautiful up there, with maybe some import items on the shelf that would coordinate??
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pammyfay
Original Author
13 years ago
Here's the situation:

(First-- I can't supply any photos-- I did say in my posting that I can't put my hands on the cord I need to link the camera and the laptop. Hopefully there are some folks here who can visualize and help.)

The 11x14 photos are in frames. But they are proving to be a bear to hang. They are acrylic frames with 4 tiny super-strong magnets embedded in the acrylic, in the corners, that are held in place by 4 more super-tiny magnets in the backing board. (Crate & Barrel has larger versions on its website--I had actually purchased 2 of those but then realized they had sawtooth hangers, and I really didn't think those were proper for the weight of the acrylic).

My goal was to align them horizontally, with three 5x7s in between them.

BUT: The frames have sawtooth hangers on the back. And I've realized that not only are the frames themselves not all the exact same size (by the tiniest of measurements, but still), but also, the positioning of the sawtooth hangers is not consistent.

I have tried measuring and remeasuring. I have tried the method in which you lay it out with paper templates, mark on the paper where the hanger is, tape them up and hammer the nail on the mark. I've even tried that "Hang and Level" plastic tool -- which is terrible for aligning multiple items, because the picture hangs too far out the wall when you attach it to the tool.

I bought the frames several years ago when Aaron Brothers was in my area, and it never occurred to me to make sure they were the exact same size!

Also, I think that I've discovered that the ceiling line and the corner wall line themselves are not completely straight (at least, when you put a bubble level up). What looks OK close up looks "off" from 10 feet away.

It's incredibly frustrating, but I still love the frames and want the photos up!
That's why I thought the ledge(s) or glass shelves would work better for me. And they'd allow me to put a few other smaller framed photos on them, too.

I'm going to take a deep breath and measure again and give it another try.
In the meantime, what's your opinion on the ledges or shelves?
justgotabme
13 years ago
OH I am so sorry, I completely missed that last line about the cord to your camera. I'll blame it on the fact that I should have long been in bed when I replied to your message.
I do like the ledges from ebay better because of the lip.
yayagal
13 years ago
I like the idea of staggered shelves. It gives the eye a place to gaze, then rest and gaze again. I think layering the pictures give it a bit more style. Try to do irregular heights in the frames, it looks so much better.
terezosa / terriks
13 years ago
I did say in my posting that I can't put my hands on the cord I need to link the camera and the laptop.

Just FYI, if the pictures are stored on your memory card you don't need the cord. Just take put the memory card into the card reader slot on your laptop and copy the pictures onto your computer. I never use the cord to transfer pictures, in fact I don't even know where it is!
justretired
13 years ago
My husband and I spent 2 days trying to line up 7 pictures on our guest room wall. Same problem with the fasteners on the backs being uneven and the ceiling as well.....

Finally one of us had a light bulb moment and went out and purchased a laser level. Also we switched to the Command picture hanging system instead of nails. Took about 15 minutes to hang those 7 frames!!!

So, I sympathize with your frustration and think 2 staggered ledges could look very nice. Good luck. Sometimes the smallest changes are the biggest pain:)

JR

1 long picture ledge or 2 shorter/overlapping ones?

Comments (7)

justgotabme

les917

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pammyfay
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1 long picture ledge or 2 shorter/overlapping ones?

Comments (7)

justgotabme

les917

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pammyfayOriginal Author

justgotabme

yayagal

terezosa / terriks

justretired

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