‘Mount maxxing’ is the secret tool to making your walls look expensive – ‘It’s a technique that art galleries have used for years’

Over the last few years, there has been a huge uptick in the 'hyper-personal home', decorating your home in a way that reflects you, your personality and your interests. Part of this movement is the ways you’d display art or even what you’d frame and adorn your walls with, which is no longer reserved for actual works of art but can be something as simple as, but as meaningful as, a receipt from a couple’s first date – which is where the ‘mount maxxing’ trend comes in.

I’ve been seeing this home decor trend, which increases the size of the mount around the artwork in some of the most stylish homes for the past year or so. I've even used this elevated way to display art, memories and small but meaningful pieces in my home. But it’s only now that I’ve come across an actual name for this technique – mount maxxing.

‘It’s all about making a big statement out of something small,’ says Lucy Mather, interiors expert at Arighi Bianchi. ‘Traditionally, you’d have chosen a frame that fits the artwork you wanted to display. With mount maxxing, you deliberately emphasise the space around the image.’

I was first introduced to the term through a framing brand Limner’s Instagram reel where founder Saul Gindill explains the idea behind the mount maxxing trend and the different ways you can put it to use.

But it’s not just Saul that’s backing this genius framing trick to make wall art look expensive – interior experts everywhere are fully on board, especially since it’s a technique that we’re all familiar with from art galleries.

‘We're so used to filling our walls with things that demand attention, but this trend creates impact through what's not there. The empty space actually ends up becoming part of the composition. It’s a technique that art galleries have used for years. They give tiny objects enormous amounts of breathing space because the story behind them matters. And I love the idea of bringing that into our home décor, especially for things that really mean something to us,’ Lucy at Arighi Bianchi says.

Mount maxxing top tips

1. Frame something small but meaningful

The disproportionate amount of space given to something small will give your guests pause and draw their eyes in. So make them notice something that’s important to you.

‘It’s a lovely way to give a very ordinary object an extraordinary amount of space. It says that the value of something isn't necessarily about its size, price tag or whether anyone else would consider it art. It’s more that it means something to you. A tiny favourite holiday photograph, a small child's drawing or an old gig ticket can suddenly become the most interesting thing on your wall,’ Lucy says.

2. Place the picture off centre

‘A tiny photograph in the corner of a huge mount makes people stop and wonder why it's there. It's a really clever way of creating a focal point without relying on something big or brightly coloured. It makes you look harder by whispering rather than shouting,’ Lucy explains.

3. Go for a colourful or patterned mount

‘It could be with a colour that makes the mount (and frame) almost as interesting as the actual artwork,’ Lucy says. ‘My number one piece of advice is to embrace the contrast. A small black-and-white photograph in a large burgundy or rich chocolate brown mount looks incredibly sophisticated. And a tiny, colourful picture floating in a huge yellow or bright blue mount brings a really playful feel to a space.’

Alternatively, you can also opt for a patterned mount – there are plenty of striped and polka dot ones out there. And if you’re feeling crafty, you can update a picture frame and/or its mount yourself by painting it or covering it with a patterned fabric.

Mount maxxing top picks

Mount maxxing has been one of my favourite trends in the last year. And I’m so glad there’s now a name for it, too!