Photo Hanging and McGuckins

One of the most fantastic places in Boulder is our hardware/general store in the middle of town -- McGuckin's. You can get most anything there for building projects and get the best advice on how to put it up. The expertise and help at this place is priceless and our dog loves the place too. Here is a before of our empty living room wall with the rod layout guide...



Apparently, the hanging rod that we ordered from Red Envelope has feet that are meant for wood walls, not plaster.
After letting the guys at McGuckin's know about the rod feet, and the lack of information about the thickness of the plaster and the slats behind it, they provided all the advice needed to get the right parts for holding the frame.
The first part was to gauge the thickness of the plaster and the slat behind it. After drilling through the old brittle plaster with a 3/16 rock carbide drill bit (masonry bits do the trick!), an old coat hanger can be bent into shape, poked through the hole and then measured for thickness.
After finding out that the thickness was 1 1/4 inches, the McGuckin's guys provided these little engineered marvels -- "sleeve type wall anchors". A few of those across the top make for a sturdy fit for the rod.
Voila! One wall ready for a baby shower!