When you have large blank walls, it is hard to figure out how to decorate them. Goodness knows, I’ve had lots of questions about how to fill blank walls.
Of course, collecting art to hang in some kind of thoughtful, planned arrangement would be nice, but maybe you don’t have the patience or the time to build a collection yet.
Maybe you aren’t a DIY-er and don’t want to apply mouldings, wallpaper or murals to your walls.
Maybe you’d prefer to just click a link and buy something so you can just get it on the wall now!
Let me offer a few suggestions.
Nondescript wall panels
One way to approach a big wall is to add pattern and texture with some kind of wall hanging that is rather generic. It can be wood or metal panels, screens, big woven basket type items, etc. They can be great for stair walls especially, typically huge, sometimes awkward spaces that can be a pain to decorate.
With pieces like these below, you can do multiples to cover a large area.
This abstract decor below comes in four sizes from 12” to 47”, three in the set. The 47” size would cover over 13 linear feet with a few inches in between. These can be hung stacked one top of the other or side to side as done in the photo.
Here’s something similar in metal. This is 30” x 48” and under $200. You could get multiples of these and fill a big wall nicely.
This photo from a Q&A was of a blank problem wall at a stair landing. See how three of these large pieces would work, stacked vertically?
I really loved these oversized rounds from Pottery Barn I proposed in this Q&A for a big, blank wall in a gameroom. At 48” and 30” round, multiples covered a lot of wall space.
Because of their light, neutral color, they would look great on a dark wall, maybe even on a white wall too. I love how they looked on navy.
I proposed several of these driftwood squares in a coastal home’s stairwell in a recent Q&A.
I proposed three of these for either of these two locations. There was art and a plate wall proposed for the lower floor entry that this stairwell spills into, so doing something like this added texture and that beachy vibe. They cover a lot of empty wall space too.
Here’s really large wire wall decor piece, 44” x 67”. You could do multiple panels of this to fill a wall and add pattern and texture. It is very lightweight too, so not difficult to hang.
I think this could maybe function as a photoboard kind of thing too, where you stick photos or cards between the wires. :-)
Etsy can be a great source for wall decor
A great source for well-priced panels is Etsy. There are many sellers there who do these mdf cut-outs in various patterns, sizes and colors.
This pattern, below, is 50” w x 100” h, in its largest size, for a pair.
You can get these from other vendors in an unfinished version, if you want to paint it yourself, but this vendor has 20 different wood and color finishes.
I often find clever wall decor tricks at Highpoint Market and this photo shows one perfectly! See how they used an oversized panel behind the artwork to “enlarge” the grouping and make it fill the wall better? It would have been sad and weak looking without it!
I think these options above are something different from a painting, what you would normally consider as wall decor. I think there are definitely places where something like this is architecturally appropriate and when you need multiples to cover a lot of space.
Need more ideas and wall decorating tips? I’ve got my guide linked here.
This blogpost was thoughtfully written by me, Carla Aston, and not by AI, ghostwriters, or guest posters.