Picture framing - anyone DIY?

[Walt34]

Once again to the "Well of Knowledge".

Does anyone do their own picture framing? Of course it could be either photographs or artwork, I'd suppose the methods/materials/tools are pretty much the same.

Googling the subject gives an almost overwhelming number of responses and I'm not sure where to start with this. Lots of sites selling materials/tools, very little of credible instructional value.

What I'm interested in is learning if even thinking about investing in the tools/materials to do it myself would have a payoff, given that I don't print all that many photos. But I probably would print a lot more if it wasn't going to cost north of $100 to get a decent job of matting and framing for even an 8x10. I just bought a printer capable of printing 13"x19" gallery-quality photo prints and it dawns on me that the cost of having one of those mounted, matted, and framed would be astronomical. Maybe feasible if I did the work myself?

Note that I'm not talking about drugstore picture frames here. I mean the type that is matted, often with two or three mats, using archival materials and UV resistant glass. It's a lot of work with often expensive materials which is why it costs so much.

If you can even just recommend a good book that's at least a credible place to start.

Thanks.

 

[target2019]

in my younger days I would buy framing stock, and then cut matboard, and assemble myself. in those days I didn't have a powered cutoff saw, but used a table saw or miter saw.

If you can find cheap stock, you can make a frame for very little.

 

[Ronstar]

Walt- I've done a couple - only one with matting. One a map- the other a family photo. I made the frames easy enough. I had custom glass cut for one, the other was stock size. I bought the matting at a hobby store. I can't remember how I got it cut but I don't remember doing it myself. I'm interested in doing a few more.

I get my pointers from lumberjocks.com, a woodworking forum. I did a search on picture frames and there's a lot of info there that could be of some help.

http://lumberjocks.com/search_resul...afe=high&q=Picture+frames&sa.x=-999&sa.y=-219

 

[ksr]

There used to be a framing studio around here that offered you two options as a customer - you could pay full price and have them frame your work, or you could have them provide the materials and come in and do the work yourself in their studio. I framed a few things myself there and it was actually kind of fun - plus they'd give you some guidance when you needed it. If you can find someplace like this, it might be a good compromise between complete DIY and paying for professional framing.

 

[FIREd]

I have framed a fair number of pictures. I usually get the framing stock, backing board, and glass or plexiglass at my local hardware store. I get the glass cut to size at the store. I cut the framing stock with a miter saw. I buy the mat boards at hobby stores and use a cheap mat cutter to cut them. It requires a bit of precision, patience, and a steady hand to make nice corners, but it works well. When assembling the frame, having a frame clamp is very useful to keep it square. When it is time to assemble the frame, keep your work area extra clean. It drives me nuts when I finish the job only to discover some dust trapped between the mat and the glass.

 

[Walt34]

There used to be a framing studio around here that offered you two options as a customer - you could pay full price and have them frame your work, or you could have them provide the materials and come in and do the work yourself in their studio.

I'll look around locally. Finding something like that would probably be my best solution. I really don't want to spend $300+ on framing materials that I might use 3 - 4 times a year plus end up with more "stuff" to store. I have lots of tools that don't see much use but were cheaper to buy than have the work done.

I have framed a fair number of pictures. I usually get the framing stock, backing board, and glass or plexiglass at my local hardware store. I get the glass cut to size at the store. I cut the framing stock with a miter saw. I buy the mat boards at hobby stores and use a cheap mat cutter to cut them. It requires a bit of precision, patience, and a steady hand to make nice corners, but it works well.

If I can't find a local framing shop as described above that's probably going to be the best way to go for me.

 

[W2R]

Walt, it is easy. Well, maybe not easy, but worth the effort. I have never been willing to pay to have something matted and framed, and I have framed artwork and stuff all over my house.

If you go to someplace like Michaels (chain arts and crafts store), they sell frames and pre-cut matting. I have used this matting, although more often I prefer to buy the matting stock there and cut it myself to save money.

 

[Lsbcal]

I like to concentrate on the my art rather then framing. So I go with groups of smaller paintings (or photos).

Thus I completely bypassed the large painting frame problem.

 

[target2019]

Check thrift stores and yard sales for frames.

 

[travelover]

Slightly off topic, but there are bargain picture frames at places like the Salvation Army and Goodwill. Toss the pictures, keep the better nice frame and re-mat to size.

 

[chilkoot]

I purchased a mat cutter several years ago and tried using it exactly once. It's very difficult to do, much more so than it looks like (unless technology has changed). This is one of those things where I decided it's just easier to pay someone who actually knows what he/she is doing.

 

[target2019]

Cutting a mat requires some experience. When I used to do this, I had a large drafting board with a straitedge. The cutter I used was a heavy cast metal piece, and the blade had to be sharp when you started. Now, the stores use a very solid looking contraption, and I'm sure it costs quite a bit.

 

[FIREd]

I do all my mat cutting with this little contraption (make sure to change the blade often to keep it extra sharp). Used alongside a sturdy metal ruler, I get good results. YMMV.

 

[Walt34]

Thanks, everyone. I ordered a couple of books on the topic from Amazon along with some other items this morning. It looks like one of those things that should be easy and I know it can't be or more people would do it. I expect to ruin a few mats learning. When I finish the books I'll spend some money on tools/materials.

There is a Michaels craft store nearby so I can maybe get the basic stuff there. Playing around on the site Frames by Mail I built a frame that I would like with a walnut frame and double matted for an image - $130+, and then shipping on top of that. Spending $400 on a Logan framing kit might make sense after I built a few frames and cut some mats.

I printed the below image at 13"x19" and even on semi-gloss paper it looks great. One of the other things I ordered was gloss paper - I think that will be better for a landscape.

One of the reasons I want to do the framing myself is to make custom sizes. Some of the standard photo sizes like 8x10 are a different aspect ratio than the camera frame and thus require heavy cropping. A lot of the time that doesn't matter much but often enough it does, as with this image.

 

[Ronstar]

That's a great shot Walt - certainly worthy of framing.

As a side note - I don't know where I found this company (maybe here and I'm repeating it), but they print your photos on glass. Looks cool but not my style

https://www.fractureme.com

 

[Walt34]

That's a great shot Walt - certainly worthy of framing.

One of those moments - walking around with DW and her father in his back yard - a little voice says "take a picture, dummy". Because of the distractions I didn't get as many shots as I wanted. But the light was so great it would have been hard to take a bad shot.

As a side note - I don't know where I found this company (maybe here and I'm repeating it), but they print your photos on glass. Looks cool but not my style

https://www.fractureme.com

Have to think about that one but I did bookmark it. Sort of like prints on metal - not something you want to do your whole house in but some images would fit.

 

[walkinwood]

Look at pictureframes.com

You could buy the frames there and do the matting/cutting using the tool mentioned by FIREd, and the glass at your local hobby shop.

 

[DoWright]

Many years ago, I went to Aaron Bros. and took advantage of their one cent sale; don't know if they still offer those. It allowed me to get two pictures framed for $400; a lot of money for two, a shload for one....

These days, the Mrs. insisted that we only buy framed art. I like the idea of going to Goodwill or the Salvo's and tossing the image and just using the frame, glass, and matte...

Walt: beautiful image!

 

[Walt34]

Found this site with a lot of very informative articles. They have clearly put some thought and work into it.

Framing4Yourself | Picture Framing Supplies | Picture Frames | Mat Board | Picture Framing Classes | Picture Framing Tools and Equipment

Of course they hope you buy some frames from them too.

 

[HFWR]

Thanks, everyone. I ordered a couple of books on the topic from Amazon along with some other items this morning. It looks like one of those things that should be easy and I know it can't be or more people would do it. I expect to ruin a few mats learning. When I finish the books I'll spend some money on tools/materials.

There is a Michaels craft store nearby so I can maybe get the basic stuff there. Playing around on the site Frames by Mail I built a frame that I would like with a walnut frame and double matted for an image - $130+, and then shipping on top of that. Spending $400 on a Logan framing kit might make sense after I built a few frames and cut some mats.

I printed the below image at 13"x19" and even on semi-gloss paper it looks great. One of the other things I ordered was gloss paper - I think that will be better for a landscape.

One of the reasons I want to do the framing myself is to make custom sizes. Some of the standard photo sizes like 8x10 are a different aspect ratio than the camera frame and thus require heavy cropping. A lot of the time that doesn't matter much but often enough it does, as with this image.

I've had Walmart and/or Snapfish make 11x14 prints, then used a relatively cheap frame. An expensive frame would be overkill for my "decor"...

One thing I've noticed is the glare from photos on glossy paper...

 

[Walt34]

I've had Walmart and/or Snapfish make 11x14 prints, then used a relatively cheap frame. An expensive frame would be overkill for my "decor"...

One thing I've noticed is the glare from photos on glossy paper...

Yes, it depends on the photo and the lighting in the room where it will be displayed.

I'm also rethinking about investing all the time, energy and money in framing tools since I'm not really sure that I'd actually make enough frames to save anything doing it myself rather than simply paying Michaels or an online framing shop to do it.

I'll wait until I read the books anyway. Right now I don't know enough to make a good decision which is why I bought the books.

One of the reasons I like to print my own is that I can pick the inks and paper. Canon claims that their dye based inks on quality paper will last 200 years if protected from ambient air in an album or glass in a frame. And I'm very fussy about colors being accurate and correct. Four-color production printers simply don't have the ability to be accurate. High-end printers use 12 different inks for a reason.

Walmart and drugstore photos will probably start fading within 10 years or sooner since they're competing on price, not quality. And depending on life's vicissitudes last week's casual snapshot can suddenly become a priceless memento.

That said, the family loves the Blurb photo books that I've done, those are on printed with four-color presses and they don't look bad. It'll be interesting to see when they start fading.