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This TikToker Turned Her Gallery Wall Into Hidden Storage

Olivia Harvey
Olivia Harvey
Olivia Harvey is a freelance writer and award-winning scriptwriter from outside Boston, Massachusetts. She’s a big fan of scented candles, getting dressed up, and the 2005 film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice starring Keira Knightley. You can make sure she’s doing okay via…read more
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published Feb 9, 2023
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Though gallery walls are beautiful on their own, one TikTok user saw her gallery wall and thought it was a waste of good storage space. So, she took herself to the hardware store and built custom hidden storage behind each painting on the wall to use for anything she wants to keep out of sight.

“This is the best saving storage hack,” Sarahli from @hauz.and.co said in her January video. “It’s dual-purpose with a picture frame front that I thrifted and I hidden storage box with shelves that I built.”

Sarahli first measured and cut a frame for her shelving using pine boards from the hardware store. Her shelf fit the exact measurement of the outermost part of the frame so that the hinges would align just right.

She then assembled the shelf frame and inner shelves using brad nails and filled the nail holes with wood filler. After a quick sand and stain of both the shelf and the frame, Sarahli then marked where the hinges should go. It is possible to hide the hinges, but Sarahli explained that this would require the extra step of recessing the hinges into the shelf, which is a lot more work in the long run.

Finally, when the frame and shelf are connected, Sarahli installed picture frame turn fasteners to the inside of the frame so she can change out the artwork easily when she needs a refresh.

“These frames are mostly for our medicine bottles,” Sarahli said in a comment, adding in another, “we don’t have a lot of storage in our home and this is perfect because it hangs on the wall and you could have one in every room.”

She noted in her video that these hinged frames are also a fun way to hide electrical boxes and thermostats yet still have them be easily accessible — just check with a a professional to make sure this won’t disrupt the way these boxes operate.

“This is PERFECT for NYC apartments,” one TikTok user commented. Another said, “I’m going to build these and put my kids art supplies inside!”

Your medicine, art supplies, and miscellaneous storage has never looked more beautiful.

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