I love gallery walls and have been planning to do one on our stairs since we moved in but just couldn’t get my creative juices flowing to make it come together. Four years later and just last spring when we started our master bath renovation inspiration dawned!
When we took out the big window in our bathroom, I knew I’d be making a DIY window photo frame with that oversized beauty. And since it is oversized, it’s perfect for the staircase wall.
This post contains affiliate links

I ordered a bunch of 8×8 prints from Snapfish…
And decided to add a little interest to some of the squares so it would feel more like a gallery wall.
But first, I needed to get the wood on the frame ready. I started by sanding everything smooth. (I used an electric sander and was careful not to press too hard so I didn’t break a window pane)
Next, I added some blue paint (Behr Pensive Sky) to the edges and dry brushed a little over the white paint on both the outside frame and the wood around each window pane. Lastly, I lightly sanded over the entire frame.
The finish turned out to have this weathered soft blue color. I added twigs to a few panes and hung some photos using ribbon,twine and tiny clothes pins- I also added vinyl text that I got from Hobby Lobby.
I cut this Tin Ceiling Tile,in Turquoise Rosette
to fit one of the panes to add color and texture.
And to add a little more fun, I added this Chicken Wire
(which is made for crafting and super easy to work with!)
For the rest of the photos I used 3M Double-Sided Tape
to stick them to the glass! Since the window is so big, we measured and marked it on the wall and Mike used screws to anchor the frame into studs. You wouldn’t need to do that on a smaller window.
I also added some pretty turquoise pulls to the bottom of the window.
Have you done something fun with an old window???
I’m adding this post to My Year of Reckless Crafting because I shopped in the Mixed Media section to get the tin, chicken wire and vinyl for this project. I’ve never used vinyls in a project! (But I will definitely use them again soon!)
I love your window frame picture collage!
thank you so much Stacey! xo
What a fantastic idea! I have three windows sitting in my garage. So going to do this. Thanks for another great idea.
Love this idea, Robin! I really like having family pictures all over and this idea makes for a unique way to display them. If I ever come across an old window, I’ll know exactly what to do with it. xxoo
Eileen, I love seeing all the family pics you put on Facebook so I know how you love your family photos…xo
What a fun project to do! It really turned out so well. We have an Ikea installation very similar to this- with metal frames for each photo and then you could attach them in rows. But I love the idea of recycling a window!
Thank you Vicky, I bet the Ikea one is wonderful- have a good day my sweet friend ox
How cute and I’m sure fun to create! It’s perfect for that large space.I like the 8 X 8 photos. I have a window frame without the glass hanging on my back porch. 🙂
This is just perfect. Sooo much heart. And what a nifty idea about marking the wall FIRST–something I’ve never done!
I feel the Love.
Julie, I was really missing family pics around here! Now I see them all the time 🙂