Interior Design

This designer-approved tapestry-hanging secret will accentuate the size of any room

Tapestries bring hints of ornate regency to your scheme – but this is how to unlock their space-enhancing qualities

Tapestry in living room in Kensington, designed by Albion Nord
(Image credit: Albion Nord)

Few design features possess the majesty of a tapestry – the wall hanging that has graced – and continues to grace – the most magnificent interiors worldwide. As a favorite of royals, artists, and interior designers, the allure of the tapestry shows no signs of wavering. 

However, while their regal aesthetic needs no introduction, interior experts have revealed a more discreet benefit that comes from a tapestry – and how to unlock its hidden potential.

Sharing her bedroom, hallway, and living room wall ideas, designer and Creative Director of Albion Nord Camilla Clarke uncovers the tapestry’s best-kept-secret. 

Office with plants and tapestry designed by Albion Nord

(Image credit: Albion Nord)

‘Tapestries often help to bring the outside world in, with landscape scenes of dense foliage and earthy colors. We often like to hang tapestries near or opposite windows to create an extension of the outdoor within a room,’ Camilla explains. 

The desire to blur the lines between interior and exterior spaces has grown ever-popular over recent seasons, but the solution has excited for centuries. It was only uncommonly known – until now. 

Plus, in ‘extending the outdoors,’ you are consequently allowing your interiors to feel more spacious – as two separate areas become one. 

four poster bed and tapestry in a Georgian home

(Image credit: Brent Darby)

‘When hanging a tapestry, consider the scale of the room and source options that fill the walls generously,’ Camilla adds in the exploration of her interior design tips

‘Up-scaling with statement pieces and artworks is a loose rule we use to ensure your rooms look abundant with objects of beauty. There is nothing worse than a too-small piece of furniture or artwork,’ she adds. 

However, before you hang your tapestry near your window, the creative director & co-founder Fromental, Lizzie Deshayes, reminds you to ensure your piece is away from direct sunlight. 

Albion Nord designed tapestry

(Image credit: Albion Nord)

‘[Modern tapestries] should be treated as a piece of art and hung with consideration as you would a piece of art, as the wool is sensitive to the light,’ Lizzie explains. 

'We need to stop thinking as tapestries in the traditional sense as being large woven depictions of hunting, musical or floral scenes. Modern tapestries take various forms and are based on poetry, abstract art, or sculptures such as those by Henry Moore,' she adds. 

So, whether you’re looking for a dining room wall idea from the Renaissance or a contemporary focal point with a timeless twist, tapestries will elevate your scheme –
and make your space feel bigger in the process. 

Megan Slack
Head of Celebrity Style News

Megan is the Head of Celebrity Style News at Homes & Gardens, where she leads the celebrity/ news team. She has a history in interior design, travel, and news journalism, having lived and worked in New York, Paris, and, currently, London. Megan has bylines in Livingetc, The Telegraph, and IRK Magazine, and has interviewed the likes of Drew Barrymore, Ayesha Curry, Michelle Keegan, and Tan France, among others. She lives in a London apartment with her antique typewriter and an eclectic espresso cup collection, and dreams of a Kelly Wearstler-designed home.