Photo Wall Using Fairy Lights

I'm sure that you have seen several pictures of fairy lights (string lights) used as room decorations and they always look pretty and elegant. Prior to hanging these lights, I had no photographs in my room at all and I was faced with a really empty wall behind my bed. By combining these two elements--using Pinterest for inspiration, I was able to fulfill both of my desires. 

What You'll Need

• Another Person to Help
• Wall With Outlet
• 2 Boxes of Clear String Lights (Mini Bulbs)
• Command Strips Damage-Free Hanging Clips & Strips (I used 6)
• Hand Sanitizer
• Ruler
• Clothespins or Paper Clips
• Pencil

1. Draw It First

Before you stick any of the hanging clips on the wall, make sure you draw out the pattern or design you want to hang the lights on the wall. This will take a lot of trial and error. I wanted to fill up my entire wall with my lights, so the final design I settled on was a horizontal draping of the lights. Also, make sure that your lights are long enough to reach an outlet! My outlet is right behind my bed near my nightstand so it works out well.

2. Measure It Out

I measured out one and a half feet in and half a foot down from the ceiling to place the top two corner clips. You can mark this with a pencil. These top two clips are probably the most important because they set the basic framework for the rest of your arrangement. Continue to mark out where you want the rest of the clips to be placed (I had three on the right and two on the left). 

3. Place The Clips

These Command clips are great because they can be easily taken off and moved. The actual sticker strips can only be used once, but the clips can be reused. Before you use the clips, you should wipe down your wall with some alcohol--I just used a drop of hand sanitizer--to remove any residue before sticking on the clips. Follow the instructions on the box to properly use the clips and strips. 

4. Step Back

You might not be happy with how you first hang the lights (as you can see above it took me several attempts to get it just right), but once you do get it right, it's like a fairy sprinkled fairy dust everywhere haha.

5. Hang Your Photos

baby me <3

Once your lights look just right, you can decide on what photos you want to display. In total, I used 18 photos, an assortment of old photos of when I was a baby, and some newer ones that I printed out on photo paper off Facebook. I didn't have any clothespins on hand, so I just used some large paper clips to secure the pictures on the lights. It's also great that you can you always add more photos, switch them out, or clip on anything else you want to remember (ticket stubs, notes, etc.).

6. Finishing Touches

For the purpose of function and accessibility, I added another clip right next to my outlet so that I wouldn't always have to reach for the end of the string to plug it in. This makes it really easy to plug and unplug the lights because you know the end won't suddenly fling back and mess up the rest of your arrangement. 

I can't even begin to describe to you how much I love my wall now. Every time I turn on the lights and look at the pictures, I get this fuzzy feeling inside that makes me really happy and thankful for all the wonderful things in my life :)