This Classroom Supply Staple Is Sneakily So Good for Hanging Art

Between the 10-plus apartments I’ve lived in over the past 20 years and many interior decorating clients over the past five, I’ve lost count of the number of gallery walls I’ve put up. 

The best gallery walls look effortless, but the reality is, they take quite a bit of effort to hang up. There are lots of frames, which means lots of rearranging, leveling, and of course, actual mounting.

Through all of the gallery walls I’ve installed, I’ve tried an array of different hanging strategies and gadgets, and there’s one essential “tool” that has become my gallery wall hero: this Loctite Mounting Putty.

You may have seen it in a classroom or college dorm with cinderblock walls. My beloved mounting putty is a malleable, sticky-but-not-too-sticky claylike substance you can roll up and stick onto the back of artwork, then press your artwork against the wall for a firm grip. 

It’s mostly meant for holding small paper crafts and posters (hence classrooms and dorm rooms) because 1 square inch of it can support about 1 pound, but I pair it with a nail or two to hang artwork.

While some people like Command Strips because they’re renter-friendly, I don’t — I find it’s too easy to hang things crookedly. I prefer using nails, a level, and my putty. 

Yes, nails put holes in the wall, but thumbtack-size nail holes are super easy to fill before moving out of a rental. Plus, most art is relatively light, so in many cases you just need a small nail that your walls will absolutely recover from. 

Now you might be wondering, what if you hammer the nail in and realize it needs to go a bit to the right or the left? Yikes, more holes! I get it. I’ve been there — especially with a gallery wall. And this is where the mounting putty comes in.

That’s right, mounting putty helps me course-correct if I make a mistake. If I have a nail misfire that’s just a few centimeters off to the right or left (which I find most are), these types of minor adjustments can be made keeping the same nail hole and using a little mounting putty. 

Simply adjust the piece of art so the nail is centered, add a pea-size amount of putty to each corner of the artwork (I can often get away with adding it to just one or two corners), press to the wall to secure, and voilà! I’ve never had a piece of art budge from its spot once it’s puttied up. 

The squishable, sticky stuff also helps keep pieces in place with general movement around a room (hello, hosting), and is great for an older apartment where even a door closing or draft from a window rattles things slightly. 

To truly keep art in place, I always recommend pairing it with a nail (don’t use the putty on its own for framed works!), and sometimes, of course, you’ll need a stud finder, anchor, and screws. 

For example, I have an extra big 4×5-foot print that I definitely used a screw for. And I also always use either a screw or two nails for most mirrors.

At about $5 per pack, it would be budget-friendly to stock up, but a little actually goes a long way. I’ve only bought two packs in ten years.

As mentioned, this putty is most commonly used in classrooms, and testimonials from teachers show just how strong the stuff is (read: kids-in-classroom-proof).

For example: “I am an elementary art teacher, and I needed to turn the brick walls into my art gallery,” one Amazon reviewer said. “To remove, I used a wad of it to press on any that remained on the brick, and it pulled right up.”

Buy: Loctite Mounting Putty, $4.91