How to light up a picture frame you already own

If you are working out how to light up a picture frame you already own, there are four practical routes: an LED strip on the back of the frame that throws a halo onto the wall, a strip hidden inside a shadow box, a battery picture light mounted above the frame, or small puck lights placed around it. All four work with ordinary frames and basic tools.

Below, we compare them, walk through each install, and explain when a purpose-built lit frame is the better buy. If lit frames are new to you, start with the basics in what an illuminated frame is.

Four DIY methods compared

What you need

For the two strip methods, gather these before you start:

• An LED strip. Most strips need a 12 or 24 V DC power supply (also called a driver), while USB strips take the 5 V a USB port provides, as Wikipedia’s overview of LED strip lights explains. For a single frame, a USB strip is the simplest.
• A white you like. Warm white sits comfortably with most home lighting. Our guide to choosing a color temperature for art compares the options.
• An aluminum channel with a diffuser cover (optional). Super Bright LEDs’ strip guide says a channel improves light distribution and acts as a heat sink; the diffuser cover softens the row of bright dots.
• Isopropyl alcohol and a lint-free cloth for cleaning surfaces.
• Adhesive cord clips. Never nails or staples.
• Felt or cork bumpers, or thin wood strips, to hold the frame off the wall.
• Sharp scissors, a tape measure and a pencil.
• A way to switch it: an in-line switch, remote, timer or smart plug.

Method 1: How to light up a picture frame with an LED strip halo

The LEDs face the wall, not you, so the light bounces back as a soft glow around the frame with no glare on the glass.

1. Check the frame and the wall. The back needs to be flat and firm enough to hold adhesive: a wood or metal frame, or the stretcher bars of a canvas. Note where the nearest outlet is, because that decides where the cord leaves the frame.
2. Set the gap. Stick bumpers to the four back corners so the frame stands off the wall. The light needs that space to spread: a thin gap gives a tight rim of light, a deeper one a wider, softer halo. Hold the lit strip behind the frame to judge it before committing.
3. Plan the loop. Pencil a line about an inch in from the outer edge so the strip cannot be seen from the side. Start at the corner closest to the outlet so the lead wire exits there. Keep the hanging wire and D-rings inside the loop.
4. Clean the surface. Wipe the line with isopropyl alcohol and let it dry. Strip adhesive will not hold on dust or grease.
5. Cut to length. Cut only at the marked cut points. On most strips these run across small copper pads.
6. Stick it down. Peel the backing a little at a time and press firmly along the line. At corners, use the connectors made for your strip, or turn it in a gentle loop rather than a hard crease.
7. Tidy the lead. Hold the lead wire and any controller in place with adhesive clips so nothing dangles below the frame.
8. Test before you hang. Run it for half an hour at your usual brightness, then touch the strip and controller. Warm is normal. If anything feels hot, unplug it and check that the power supply matches the strip. If it still runs hot, don’t use it.
9. Hang it and route the cord. Take the cord straight down to the outlet or into furniture below. Our guide on how to hide the cord for a light-up frame covers cord covers, in-wall kits and cordless options.

Method 2: Light a shadow box from the inside

A shadow box has depth behind the glass that a flat frame lacks, so a strip can light objects from within, much like a small museum case.

1. Check the depth. You need room for the objects plus the strip, with space between the LEDs and anything made of paper or fabric.
2. Mount the strip on the inside of the front lip, facing back toward the backboard. Viewers then look past the LEDs rather than into them.
3. Add a diffuser or channel if the individual LEDs show as bright dots on shiny objects such as medals.
4. Plan the cord exit. Drill a small hole in a back corner for the lead, or fix a battery box to the back where you can reach its switch.
5. Let it breathe. Do not coil spare strip or cable tightly or bury the controller in padding. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) home electrical safety checklist points out that tightly wrapped cords trap heat, and ENERGY STAR describes thermal management as generally the most important factor in how well an LED performs over its life.

If the box holds signed photos, textiles or anything irreplaceable, keep the light low and on a timer. For the reasons, read how LED light affects fading.

Method 3: Add a battery picture light

A picture light mounts above the frame, on the wall or clipped to the frame, and shines down onto the front. Battery versions skip the wiring entirely.

• Match the width. Choose a light whose shade covers most of the frame’s width; a narrow one leaves the lower corners dim.
• Angle out glare. If you see a bright reflection of the lamp in the glass from where you usually stand, tilt the head or raise the light.
• Pick the battery type. Rechargeable models save on batteries; AA models swap in seconds.
• Use the timer if it has one. It saves battery and limits light on the art.

For a fuller comparison of lighting the front versus lighting from within, see illuminated frame vs picture light.

Method 4: Use puck lights on a shelf or ledge

Puck lights are small round lights, usually battery powered, that stick or screw under a shelf. For a frame leaning on a picture ledge or standing on a bookcase, one or two pucks under the shelf above make a quick downlight. A puck set on the shelf behind the frame and aimed at the wall imitates a halo.

• Use two pucks at the same distance from the frame for more even light.
• Check the remote. If it takes a coin cell, keep it and any spares away from children. According to the CPSC’s notice on button and coin battery dangers, a swallowed button or coin battery can burn through a child’s throat or esophagus within two hours. US rules now require these battery compartments to need a tool, or two separate movements at once, to open.

Powering a DIY lit frame

• USB wall adapter. The simplest option for a short USB strip. Use one that can supply at least the current the strip asks for.
• Plug-in adapter (12 or 24 V). For longer strips. Match the strip’s voltage exactly, and leave headroom: Super Bright LEDs, a strip maker, advises keeping the LED load at least 20 percent below the supply’s maximum rated wattage.
• USB power bank. Cordless for a few hours. A power bank may switch itself off when the current drawn stays below a model-specific threshold for a while, as Wikipedia’s power bank article notes, so check that yours stays on with the strip dimmed.
• AA battery box. Fine for occasional use.
• Timer or smart plug. Switches the light on at dusk and off at bedtime.

Safety basics

• Use the adapter made for the strip, or one with the same output voltage and enough capacity. Never connect a 5 V strip to a 12 V supply.
• Keep cords free. The CPSC checklist says not to fix cords with nails or staples, not to rest furniture or rugs on them, and not to run them where people walk.
• Do not push a cord into the wall cavity. Use a cord cover on the wall surface or a complete in-wall power kit instead.
• Keep paper, fabric and dried flowers from touching the LEDs or the controller.

For heat, electrical and child-safety questions in more depth, read our LED frame safety guide.

When a ready-made lit frame is the better choice

DIY is a low-cost way to find out whether you like lit art on your walls. A frame designed around the light makes more sense when:

• You want the LEDs completely hidden. In the Lumi Frames Halo, a rear-facing LED strip is set into a matte aluminum frame about 1.4 in deep, so there is no strip to see from the side.
• You want control over the white. Halo’s white tunes from warm 2700 K to cool 6500 K and dims from 1 to 100%, and the frame adds scenes, timers, an app and a remote.
• You change the art often. A magnetic back panel on the Halo makes changing the print quick.
• You are displaying keepsakes. The Lumi Frames Shadow Box is about 2 in deep inside, hides its LEDs in the inner lip, and has a hinged, UV-filtering acrylic front.
• You want light through the print itself. Even backlighting needs a diffuser or a light guide panel, which is hard to get right with loose strips. See edge-lit vs backlit frames.

To weigh the six designs against each other, see the Lumi Frames comparison chart.