Some people use a pencil to mark picture placement. This is inadvisable unless you can be absolutely sure that the pencil marks will be covered up by the frame. Those who must, should first hold the picture up to the proper height, then mark lightly along the top edge of each frame. Then center the picture side-to-side, and lightly mark the top corner of each side. The picture may then be set aside without the need to re-measure.

2torial #0460: Learn2 Hang a Picture (Continued) Mark the spot Tuck a pencil behind your ear (this will become useful in a minute). Now hold the picture with one hand on the wire and the other on the bottom of the frame. For the hand holding the wire, hook your middle finger on the center of the wire so that the picture hangs straight. This is where the nail or hook will hold the picture. Hold up the picture to the wall again, and make sure it is both centered and straight. The weight of the picture will leave a mark or small indentation on your finger where the wire was. Keep your hand firmly on that point, and remove the picture. Take the pencil and draw a small mark on the wall exactly where your finger held the wire. Good! Now you are ready to approach the wall. An excellent tool for finding the spot for the nail can be made from a 10-inch length of coat-hanger wire. File a point on one end and use a pliers to bend the wire 90 degrees (a right angle) at one and a half inches from the pointed end. Use the pliers to make a loop big enough for your finger at the other end. Now set the picture wire on the right angle bend with the point towards the wall, and hold up the picture with your finger in the loop and the other hand supporting the bottom of the frame. The loop should stick out from the top of the picture. When the picture is centered and straight, press gently to the wall. The pointed end will leave a mark in the wall where the nail will go. Remember: if you're using hooks, the mark shows where the bottom of the hook goes (not where the screw is screwed in).   Step 5