Make Small Photos Look More Expensive With These Design Tricks & Tips

Family photos can be an excellent way to add personality to your home. While there are numerous ways to display meaningful images, the recent trend of using large canvas prints of family photos may not fit your aesthetic or might feel like a little too much of a good thing. Small photos, on the other hand, are in perpetual danger of feeling underwhelming, cluttered, or just getting lost in the visual clamor of a room. Fortunately, there are so many ways to use normal-sized photos in chic ways if you don't want to go the blown up canvas route. Creating gallery walls or collages and using oversized mats can help make photos blend seamlessly with your room's aesthetic and grant a more classic and elevated look. 

While they can look more expensive and high-end than oversized prints, these approaches are actually sometimes easier and more budget friendly than having your images blown up. They look a bit more elegant and intentional than just using basic photo frames from retailers. Whether you prefer a traditional and formal arrangement or a more casual way of displaying photos, these tricks will help you decorate your home with family pictures for less.

Instead of having oversized photos professionally printed, ask for them in smaller traditional photo sizes like 8-by-10 and 5-by-7, 4-by-6, or even smaller, like polaroid size. This will also give you a little more leeway in terms of print quality specs. Some photos and scans are not well designed to be blown up and still remain crisp and clear. Instead, use these smaller prints in your frames. If you have a large area, you can opt for an oversized frame and mat behind a photo with lots of space around it. 

Or, use smaller frames to create a gallery wall with coordinated or an eclectic mix of frames from thrift stores. Master a unified look by displaying photos that complement each other in terms of subject matter, colors, style, and other visual cues. You can also do smaller gallery-style arrangements like diptychs and triptychs that mix photos with other relevant items like ephemera and personal mementos. Don't be afraid to get creative with your mats as well, using textured art store mats or covering them in fabric or decorative paper to provide additional interest in the background. Or use textured materials like cork, ribbed cardboard, or burlap behind your photos.  

For more casual interiors, think about ways to display items without frames, including memory boards, clip boards, twine and clips strung along the wall, or magnetic binder clips on a metal surface. You can also DIY cool ways to display smaller photos like using paint and wire to repurpose a rolling pin into a rustic-style photo tree.