Why it matters to you
Hanging a picture on the wall often seems like a good idea at the time, but getting it straight can be a real test of your patience. Which is where the Hangsmart comes in.
The frustrating process of getting a picture to hang straight can leave many people with a desire to launch their beloved artwork out of the nearest window.
Likewise, if you’ve someone in the room trying to help, their constant “up a bit, down a bit, down a bit more, a little bit more, up a bit … it’s not level, still not level … it’s leaning to the right … to the left … down a bit” may leave you wanting to hurl them out of the window, too.
The tricky challenge has prompted a Swedish startup to create the Absolut Hangsmart, which, as its name cleverly suggests, helps you to absolutely hang your pictures smart. Or something like that.
Described by its creator as “the world’s first all-in-one device to mount, position, and adjust any work of art,” the Hangsmart aims to prevent unwanted spikes in your blood pressure and make beautifying your room a pleasure rather than a time-consuming nightmare that in some cases leaves you banging your head against the very same wall you’re trying to hang your picture on.
So cast aside your measuring tape, spirit level and nervous tension, and read on to find out how to use it. It’s actually pretty simple — all you do is mount the Hangsmart using the supplied adhesive or screws, attach your artwork to the clip at the top, and let go to automatically level it. A neat feature, especially if you’re hanging several pictures close together, is that you can adjust your picture frame up to six inches horizontally and eight inches vertically until you find the perfect position.
“We challenged ourselves to create a device that would let users mount and manipulate numerous works of art without the risk of uneven frames, damaged walls or blackened fingernails,” the team says on its Kickstarter page.
With the project having just reached its $30,000 funding target, the Hangsmart could be on your wall by September, 2017, and in retail stores just two months after that.
But is it expensive for what it is? That largely depends on how much time you usually waste and how much stress you feel when you go to hang pictures in your home or office. Early-bird backers can get a Hangsmart for $24, about half the cost of the expected retail price. Further savings can be made if you opt for packs offering multiple Hangsmart units.