Framed abstract wall art displayed in a living room — Contemporary abstract artwork sits among older furniture and collected objects.

Guides

How to Choose Art Prints for a Personal, Collected Home

First Published: 20 August 2022

Last modified: 24 October 2026

Choose art prints around your own interests and the way you use your rooms. Explore practical ideas for mixing subjects, judging scale, building a gallery wall and framing a collection that can change with you.

Start with What Already Feels Like You

A personal home rarely begins with a perfectly defined style. It starts with things you keep returning to: a particular colour, the shape of an old chair, a photograph, a subject that makes you curious. Choosing art prints becomes easier when you notice those preferences before trying to give the whole room a label.

Walk through the space and identify what you would keep if you were beginning again. Include practical furniture and sentimental objects, not only the pieces you consider decorative. A favourite print should have a relationship with the life already taking place around it, rather than requiring everything else to be replaced.

Make a short selection of images you enjoy, then leave it for a few days. Look again without concentrating on whether they match the curtains. Notice which ones still reward attention and which were mainly appealing because they resembled a room you saw elsewhere.

This approach leaves room for surprise. A graphic image beside a worn wooden cabinet may tell you more about your taste than a complete coordinated set. Begin with one picture you want to live with, and let the room develop around that choice at a pace that suits you.

Botanical wall art prints — A botanical image and a wooden sideboard share a restrained palette and clear proportions.

Give Different Subjects a Shared Visual Thread

Mixing artwork is often more interesting than repeating a single subject throughout the house. The connection can come from something quieter: pale backgrounds, repeated dark lines, related proportions or a small amount of colour. One clear thread gives distinct images room to keep their individual character.

Compare Westloft’s Morpho butterfly print with a botanical image or a simpler drawing. You might choose them for a shared sense of detail rather than an exact colour match. Look at the whole composition, including the empty space, before deciding they belong together.

Older furniture can make a useful companion to contemporary prints because it introduces another texture and pace. There is no need for a picture’s frame to imitate the period of a cabinet. A simpler outline may allow the furniture and image to sit comfortably alongside each other.

Try the arrangement with objects you already own. Put two possible images beside a photograph of the room, then compare them individually. If every piece is equally busy, the connection may need to be stronger or the selection smaller. Eclectic decorating works best when the differences are intentional enough to enjoy.

Living room with a couch, coffee table, and abstract art on the wall. — A large framed abstract provides a visual pause beside a window and seating area.

Choose Scale for the Place You Will See It From

A picture’s presence depends on the room around it. A small image may be absorbing beside a reading chair yet barely register above a long sofa. A large print with generous pale space can feel less crowded than a much smaller composition filled with dense detail.

The Ocean Galaxy abstract print is one option to compare when considering a more assertive colour mass. Decide whether you want the image to become the room’s main visual pause or to sit more quietly among other objects. Either role can work, but the size should support that decision.

Mark the proposed outside framed dimensions with paper templates. Check the view from the doorway and from the places where you normally sit. Include any mount or wider surround in the outline; the paper size alone does not tell you how much wall the finished piece will occupy.

Keep a useful relationship with the furniture below, allowing enough space that the picture does not feel squeezed against it. If you are unsure, compare two sizes rather than defaulting to the smaller one. The aim is a comfortable proportion, not a formula applied to every wall.

Cozy living room with a leather sofa, decorative pillows, and wall art. — Different subjects and frame sizes form a collected display above a sofa.

Build a Gallery Wall by Editing, Not Filling

A gallery wall is a group of decisions, not simply a way to cover an empty area. Begin with the strongest image and add others gradually. Include a piece because it improves the arrangement, rather than because there is a gap large enough to accommodate it.

A subject such as the Scottish Stag print can be considered alongside an abstract or a small personal photograph. Compare the visual weight of each work: a dark, detailed image may draw more attention than a pale one of the same dimensions.

Lay the group out on the floor first, then use paper templates to test it on the wall. Look at the spaces between frames and the overall outside shape. A shared centre line or repeated frame finish can help, but those devices should support the images rather than force them into an awkward grid.

Leave room for something to arrive later. A wall that is a little unfinished can feel more personal than a display bought all at once to complete a scheme. If the group begins to feel restless, remove one picture and look again before adding another. The space between works is part of the arrangement too.

A botanical print brings an image into an everyday kitchen setting.

Let Artwork Join Everyday Life in Other Rooms

A kitchen, landing or work corner can be a good place for a picture because you encounter it often. Think about the ordinary view: the wall beside the table, the spot opposite a desk or a dry area near a breakfast corner. These positions can give a smaller work a clear role.

The Pomegranate print offers a food subject to consider for a kitchen or dining space. It need not be surrounded by more fruit imagery; a relationship with the room’s colour, ceramics or timber may be enough.

Practical conditions still matter. Keep paper prints away from splashes, direct heat and concentrated steam. A bathroom with persistent condensation may be better suited to another kind of decoration, even if the subject seems appropriate. Westloft’s kitchen art guide considers placement alongside scale and lighting.

In a home office, check that the picture does not create glare beside the screen or crowd useful storage. On a landing, allow clear passage and secure the frame properly. The most successful unexpected position is one that makes the room more enjoyable while leaving it easy to use.

Cozy living room with a vintage sofa, framed artwork, and decorative items. — A dark frame defines a fashion illustration above a small sofa.

Finish with a Frame, Then Give the Room Time

The frame helps a picture meet its surroundings. A dark outline can make a pale image more definite; a warmer finish can relate to furniture; a lighter frame may sit quietly against a light wall. Look at the actual combination rather than assuming one finish belongs to one decorating style.

Westloft’s guide to choosing frames for art prints explores colour, mounts and outside dimensions. Check the current details on the selected product before ordering, and use hanging fittings suitable for the frame’s weight and the wall construction.

Once a picture is in place, live with it for a while before buying accessories to coordinate with it. Notice how it looks in daylight and under the lamps you use in the evening. Moving a lamp or removing a nearby object may be all that is needed to let the image settle.

Explore Westloft’s abstract art collection when you want to compare a different visual rhythm, but keep your own response at the centre of the decision. A room can change as your interests do. The aim is a collection with enough personal value to move into the next arrangement, rather than a scheme that only works while everything remains exactly matched.

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