Auto and photo matting question

[w7imel]

its nothing crazy I have a charlie root check (20 bucks) and a really neat 8x10 of charlie (7 bucks) just thought it might make a neat piece to display in my rec room if it wasnt to expensive to do. Dont need to spend a fortune on it

[midmo]

To give you an idea of price of a professional shop, I just dropped off a vintage team photo that I think was 14x22 to get nicely matted and framed w/ UV glass and whatnot. They quoted me $130 (which I'm ok with on this one).

For something like what you're framing you'll probably want to do it yourself. I've used a cheap matte cutter (or exacto knife and a ruler) to modify mattes of Target/Wal-Mart frames and they come out looking pretty good. Or get a cheap frame and see if a frame shop will cut a custom matte for a small fee.

[Lordstan]

Michael,
Framing and matting can be as easy or as hard as you wish to make it. You don't need a frame shop to do anything. You can buy acid free archival mat board, UV glass, and other conservation grade supplies at many places including both brick and mortar stores like "Dick Blick" as well as online stores. Don't get me wrong. Most frame shops do good work and it is easier for them to do fancy and intricate frame jobs, but most straight forward jobs can be done at home easily.
Here are a few example of ones I did at home. After them is a link to a thread I started about this very subject.

These three are 14x18 in size. Mats are full archival grade as is tape and backing board. I don't use UV glass as all the lights in my mancave are LED. I had them installed specifically due the fact that they emit virtually no UV radiation.
Costs for each:
Frame $25. Matboard and supplies $10.




Link to thread
http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=168495

Hope this helps,
Mark

[jgmp123]

Hey Michael,
For a low priced item I would recommend just having matting cut at a local shop ($15-$20)...for a higher priced item, I would let the framer do it. They are the expert and will provide museum quality glass, acid fee matte, etc. Plus the quality is second to none if you have a good framer.

I paid my local framer $68 for the pieces I have posted and that includes everything. I drop it off and tell her how I want it. Then $68 later I pick up a beautiful piece.

[Runscott]

Make friends with someone at a frame shop - they will work with you and even give you suggestions on inexpensive ways to do it yourself. Some things I do myself (Ruth, Jackson and Mantle/Berra displays, and paid for museum quality glass), some I do some of the work (1905 Pirates display - I acquired the frame, did the calligraphy, added filler photo piece, framer did all else) and some I leave completely to the pros (my Ted Williams,Dom Dimaggio, Bobby Doerr display).

The bottom line is that having museum-quality glass cut to a special size will crush you when you are trying to do it yourself. Other than that, it's just a matter of having an artistic eye and buying a mat cutter.

[Teamgluck]

Great Job Mark! If you ever make a video that would be very helpful and let me know!

[w7imel]

Thanks guys your the best.....after telling my wife about this post and ideas I had she then informs me her cousin does matting and stuff as a side job...haha problem solved it seems. I will send pictures when done.

[Lordstan]

Originally Posted by Teamgluck

Great Job Mark! If you ever make a video that would be very helpful and let me know!

Thank you.
In the thread that I linked to, I posted links to a few videos on matting basics. Most of it my time is spent planning the layout and then measuring it out. Once you have it laid out on the back of the mat, cutting is easy. Remember to use the old woodworking axiom, measure twice, cut once.
If you can make friends with someone in a frame shop, it certainly is easier, especially for fancier designs.