Everything you need to know about custom framing services

Picture frame is a piece of object in your house or office that should be built in such a way that it looks good and is pleasing to see day in day out. To attain this level of quality and perfection custom frame is the way to go.

Custom made frames are best used to preserve family heirloom or irreplaceable artwork and provides the flexibility to choose high quality acid free materials that can preserve the artwork for decades. 

Custom picture framing normally comes in two materials, following consideration needs to be taken when going for custom frames.

Frame material: Frames are generally made of glass or plastic screens with composite material as their base. But the best quality frames are made of metal or of wood. Both metal and wood are popular option and it really boils down to personal preference. Given below are brief on wood frame and metal frame material which are most common material used:

Variety of frames
  • Custom Wood Frames: Wooden frame can be designed and cut in various design and they have the option of built to buyers’ specification easily. Wooden frames can bring old age feeling and sophistication to your photograph
  • Custom Metal Frames: Benefit that metal frames enjoy over wooden frame is that they are more durable and will not warp with time. Metal frame are easy to make when compared to wood and are also less costly than wooden frames.
Mounting Board: This holds the picture against the mat. This is often the first step in framing process. Normally cardboards are used as mounting board material but framers normally advice against using them. Cardboards are acidic in nature, and this may be detrimental for the artwork over the years. Mounting board with polystyrene core are generally good as they are acid free, have smooth surface , warps less and can be cut smoothly.

Matting: This is probably the most complicated part of buying a frame. Mats can be made of cardboard or other materials and serves as a frame within a frame. Mat separates Picture from direct contact with the glass and creates a small air space between photographs. Glass also prevents moisture build up. A mat can be decorated as per photograph’s specification- coloured, decorated or pure white.


Selecting the Grade of Mat: This refers to the material of the mat and how well it can preserve the artwork. The more acidic the mat material quicker the artwork is bound to deteriorate. Normally mats made of cotton are great for preserving art work.

Number of Mats: Normally a single mat works just as fine but framers may prefer more than one mat to layer their project to create a substantial visual border.

Backing: This is made of stiff cardboard and is placed at the back of mounting board

Glazing: Glazing is equipment in frame that protects everything in a frame. This again is optional but is highly recommended if artwork is exposed to varied temperature and humidity changes. There are basically two types of glazing available in market
  • Anti-Glare- Reduces glare from bulbs or ambient light.
  • Glazing with ultra violet reduction- This stops UV light entering the glass and preserved your artwork.
Glazing Glass
Thus custom frames gives the option to choose your material and since every part of custom made frame need to be built from scratch the time and cost required to make a custom frame is more . However the finish and quality you get with custom frames are unbeatable. After following the above steps you can be ensured to build a beautiful long lasting frame that will preserve your picture for days to come.

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