Prints are a great way of bringing a touch of personality to the walls of your home. When we want to be reminded of that memorable holiday we had some years ago, we might choose a landscape. Similarly, if a particular film or a play holds a special place in your heart, you might want to have a publicity poster or something collectable hanging up to show your appreciation of it. You may even be a bit of a budding photographer yourself, and fancy displaying some of your work in style by printing it off with a colour printer, framing it and hanging it up for people to see.
When choosing prints or canvases for your home, it’s always important to consider the surrounding environment – to help you get the most out of your prints, here are a few things you might like to consider:
Colour scheme
Ensure that the colour of your print doesn’t clash with the décor of your home – a print with striking colours will be less effective on a similarly coloured wall, and may even be difficult to look at. For prints with intense colours, choose a simple white or soft-coloured background. Equally, a simple or grayscale print may blend into the background and lose definition on a plain white wall – for those prints with few colours, try a wall with a busier or more colourful background.
Size
When you’re trying to get the feel of a room just right with your prints, size makes a big difference. Having a small print on a large wall might look out of place, and placing or a series of small prints in the same space can make your décor feel broken and segmented. Conversely, a large print in a space barely big enough to house it will also have an unwanted effect – you want your print to compliment your space, not dominate it. So, when choosing a print, always have an idea of your wall dimensions and how the print will look in the space.
Theme
If you’ve got more than one print hanging up in your home, be aware of your theme and try to be consistent. For instance, a more classic painting will seem out of place if placed next to a more modern, conceptual piece. So when choosing something new, imagine it next to the other prints in your home – do they go together or do they clash?
Adam writes for Cartridge Monkey, one of the UK’s leading supplier of cheap ink cartridges and advent printer ink. Adam loves to write about printing, design and technology.
