How to Hang Your Ceramic Wall Set — Sam Mayell Ceramics

How to hang your ceramics

Every Sam Mayell Ceramics set ships with a printed hanging guide and picture-hanging nails. Most people have their wall up in under an hour. This page walks through the same five steps you'll find in the box — with a video, photos, and a few extras for tricky walls.

Got a question we haven't covered? Email us or pop into the Queenstown studio — we'll talk it through.

In the box

Everything you need to get your new art on the walls.

Ceramic Domes and/or Checkers
Printed layout guide · picture-hanging
Nails

You'll need: A pencil, a small hammer, spirit level (optional, but helpful)

Time to hang: Under 15 minutes for a 9-piece set

Branded Sam Mayell Ceramics packaging — thank-you card, eco wrap and protective box.

Step 1:

Unbox on a flat surface
Lay everything out on a table or the floor and check off the contents against the packing slip. Take a moment to look at the pieces side-by-side — the glaze variation is part of the design, and you'll often want to swap a few around once you see them together.

Layout guide, picture-hanging nails, and ceramic domes laid out before installation

Step 2:

Choose your arrangement
We include our suggested layout in the box: a tight 3×3 grid.

Standard grid spacing is 12 cm between nails.

Domes and Checkers have been designed to play together - increase the spacing to your desired artwork size to fill a larger wall area, space them on the floor to get an idea of how large you want to go.

Step 3:

Mark the wall
Hold the printed template against the wall at the height you want — for most rooms, the centre of the grid should sit at eye level (roughly 1.5m from the floor).
Use tape or blu-tack to attach the guide to the wall, check with a spirit level if you've got one its hanging straight. The centre of each Dome (and Checker, they're the same) is marked out ready for you to Hammer in each Nail at 45 degrees.

For wider spacing, use a pencil and ruler to mark out on the wall before placing nails, or cut out circles and place them in a river pattern if you want something more unique.

Step 4:

Tap in the nails

Each piece weighs around 200g — light enough for a single picture nail in standard plasterboard. No drill, no anchors, no studs needed. Just tap each nail in at a slight downward angle (45 degree's) until about 1cm is left protruding.

Step 5:

Hang each piece and step back

Hang each Dome or Checker on a nail, then step back and adjust placement of each glaze colour until it feels just right. The pieces are designed to sit slightly proud of the wall (Domes 5 cm, Checkers 2 cm), which is what gives the finished installation its dimensional, sculptural look.

Set photographed: 15cm spacing