Frame Destination Inc. » Mat Board

Rough Guide to Framing Photographs

Mark Rogers — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 13:53:32 +0000

Customers who are first-time framers often ask “What’s the best way to frame my photograph(s)?”
There are two main considerations when framing your photographs: 1) Aesthetics and 2) Conservation.

AestheticsTraditional fine art paintings are often framed in decorative, baroque-styled frames. While this may be appropriate for a Rembrandt or a Monet hanging in the Louvre; photographs generally call for something more elegant and subdued, such as a wood frame with a simple finish or a sleek, dark metal frame. The key to framing photographs is subtlety; you want the viewer’s eyes to remain focused on the image, not the frame. Keep this principle in mind when selecting a mat as well. White, off-white or neutral mat colors are generally the best choices. In addition, black is sometimes appropriate, as are double mats in complementary colors. It all of course depends on the photograph; however, we at Frame Destination Inc. tend to favor the words of William of Ockham “All things being equal, the simplest solution tends to be the best one”.

ConservationFraming is a form of archival storage. Digital images are, for the most part, ‘safe’ when properly stored on electronic media, but once printed onto paper they become subject to the same dangers of light, dust, moisture, temperature extremes and acidity as film prints. Mats and mount board come into direct contact with your photograph. Using acid-free, archival quality mats and mount board to frame your photographs is the best method of protecting your image against acid and moisture, both of which can lead to staining and irreversible damage. Conversation is a science onto itself; further information about conversation matting and framing can be found at the Library of Congress’ guide to matting and framing website http://lcweb.loc.gov/preserv/care/mat.html.

Click here: for additional information about framing photographs.

Purchase fine art photography frames, archival mats and mountboard at:
Frame Destination, Inc.

Mat Board Opening Size

Mark Rogers — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 21:18:28 +0000

Dimensions for mat board openings can be very confusing. It is very counter intuitive, but the opening of a mat board should never be the same size as the photograph or print being framed. Usually it is a little smaller and sometimes it is larger, but not the same. Most pre-cut mats are cut 1/2 inch smaller than the photo print. That allows the mat to overlap the image by 1/4 inch on both sides. That brings up another confusing issue. If you want 1/4 of overlap the mat window must be cut 1/2 inch smaller and not 1/4 inch smaller because there are two sides. Personally I think 1/4 inch is too much overlap and so do most custom framers so the default for prints that are smaller than 18×24 is 1/8 inch overlap on Frame Destination pre-cut mats. For example, an FDI mat for 11×14 print would be cut to 10-3/4” x 13-3/4”.

Sometimes people will do what is called float mounting where the mat opening is larger than the image being framed. This is done to ensure that no part of the image is covered up and also to allow for a signature below the image. When doing this it is common to leave a 1/4 to 1/2 inch gap between the image and the mat board for the top and sides of the print. That means that width of the mat opening will be 1/2 to 1 inch larger than the image. When leaving room for a signature the bottom gap will usually be 1/2 to 1 inch. That results in the height of the mat being 3/4 to 1-1/2 inches larger than the visible part of the image.

Cheers,
Mark
Frame Destination, Inc.

Proper mat size for matting an image

Mark Rogers — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 20:37:56 +0000

Determining the proper mat size opening for a print can be a little confusing. One simple rule is that the mat opening should not be the same size as the print or photo. They will not be exactly the same size and it is nearly impossible to get them lined up perfectly. Off the shelf picture frames usually have mat board openings 1/2 inch smaller. For example if you purchase a 16×20 inch frame for 11×14 prints the actual opening in the matboard will usually be 10 1/2 x 13 ½ inches. This results in the mat overlapping each side of the print by 1/4. Personally I consider that too much so Frame Destination mats are cut ¼” smaller which allows for just 1/8” overlap of each side except for prints larger than 18×24. When the mat overlaps the print you do not have to worry about the color of any paper border around the image or the color of the substrate the image is mounted to. The mat board will also help keep the image flat.

Although allowing the mat to overlap the image is the most common matting technique, another option is to use a mat opening that is larger than the image. This matting technique will prevent the image being masked and allows for a signature to be visible below the image. Usually the side and top borders are between 1/4 to 1/2 inch and the bottom is between 1/4 and 1 inch. The bottom will usually be equal to the top and sides unless there is a signature. For example if the signature is under 1/2 inch then you can use 1/4 or 3/8 inch top and side borders and 1/2 inch bottom border. If the signature requires 3/4 inch then you can use 1/2 top and side borders. In this case the mat opening will be 1 inch larger than the image width, and 1 1/4 inches larger than the image height. A common mistake is to forget to double the border size when calculating the opening.

Cheers,
Mark
Frame Destination, Inc.

Bulk Raw Sheet Mat Board

Mark Rogers — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:01:54 +0000

Frame Destination recently announced the addition of bulk or raw sheet mat board to our website. We now sell raw uncut matboard directly from the manufacturer for increased savings. These sheets are roughly 32×40 inches. Since we are not cutting them, we can pass on the labor savings to you. If you wish to cut the inside mat opening yourself, but would like to save time by having us cut the outside you can order blank mat board sheets that are cut down to one of our 60+ sizes. We can also cut the mating to a custom size.

Cheers,
Mark

New uncut and sheet mat board

Mark Rogers — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 16:47:30 +0000

Frame Destination, Inc. is happy to announce that we have added support for uncut mat board to our website under top menu “Components -> Uncut Mat Board”. Uncut mat board has no window cut in the center to display photographs or other artwork. This matboard is cut to specific size (except for 32×40 raw sheets). It is for people that like to cut their own custom size window openings, or for people that are float mounting and need a color matched backing board to mount the image to. It is also for people that just prefer to mount to matboard instead of foamcore mount board. The least expensive (per square inch) mat board size is our 32×40 raw sheet. It is uncut direct form the manufacturer. Since we have no cutting labor we can sell it for less, but please note, it will not be exactly 32×40 in size or square.

Of course we will offer this new product in standard frame sizes such as 16×20 and 18×24, but it is also available in many non standard sizes such as 12×18, 13×19 or 16×16. We have over 60 different sizes and you can also just select custom in the size pull-down and specify any size you need including large panoramic sizes.

We have three different types of uncut mat board:
4-ply Archival (acid and lignin free) Bainbridge Alphamat
8-ply Archival (acid and lignin free) Bainbridge Cotton Rag
4-ply Buffered Paper Mat Board

Cheers,
Mark
Frame Destination, Inc.

Picture Framing Dimensions

Mark Rogers — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 01:39:09 +0000

Picture Frame Dimensions can be very confusing since there are lots of different types of dimensions used in picture framing. Artwork size is the size of the print that you want to frame. It may or may not be the size of the image. You can print a 12×18 image on 13×19 paper. The artwork size is 12×18 but the paper size is 13×19. Frame size typically refers to the size of the glass the frame will hold. An 11×14 frame should have an inside dimension a little larger (normally 1/8 inch) so that 11×14 glass and backing will fit inside the frame without binding. If you use a mat to add borders around the artwork it will increase the size of the frame. A common mat for 11×14 artwork has 2-1/2 and 3 inch borders creating a frame size of 16×20. Although the mat is for 11×14 artwork, it will not have an opening that size. Most off the shelf mat boards will be cut 1/2 inch smaller so that the mat will overlap the artwork by about 1/4 inch all 4 sides. Custom frame companies and most Frame Destination picture mat boards are cut 1/4 inch smaller so they will not cover up as much of the photo. The mat opening should never be the same size as the artwork. If you do not want any of the artwork covered up you can do what is called float mount and use a matboard that is larger. Such mat openings will often be cut 1/2 to 1 inch larger so there will be a gap between the artwork and the image of at least 1/4 inch. In that case either paper (if the paper is larger than the image) or the mounting board will be exposed. Care must be taken to ensure the exposed border is an appropriate color for the overall picture frame presentation.

Cheers,
Mark

Mat board types for picture framing

Mark Rogers — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 21:25:18 +0000

Selecting a matboard for the first time can be challenging when you are not familiar with the terminology. To help make this easier I have updated the Frame Destination website to provide more information about our matting choices. Click on our Mat Board Help Page. We offer the three basic types of mat board: wood pulp, alpha cellulose, and cotton rag. They range in cost and cost and archival capabilities. Wood pulp, otherwise know as paper mat board is the least expensive but only recommended for temporary framing. Alpha cellulose and cotton rag matboards are archival because those materials are naturally inert and acid free. Papermat can be buffered but they will return to being acidic over time.

Cheers,
Mark

Custom mat board website update

Mark Rogers — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 23:43:00 +0000

We have recently made some improvements to the custom mat ordering process on our website to speed it up. In the past the website was constantly recalculating the cost as you entered the mat dimensions for the opening and borders. We have turned that off and added an “update size” button that tells the website you are ready for it to calculate the external mat size and the new cost.

We have volume discounts for our custom matboard starting at quantity 4 for the same size and color. You can see the new discounted mat price by changing the quantity after the mat is in the shopping cart. The next mat board price break is at quantity 10.

We have three different types of mat board for your matting needs:

Archival Bainbridge Alphamat 4-ply Mat board

Archival Bainbridge Alpharag 8-ply mat board

4-ply Paper mat board for temporary picture framing

We also have a clearance section for mat board at near our cost.
If you are interested in being notified about updates to the
clearance section on our website you can click here:
Newsletter Registration
In the registration window be sure to check “website clearance section – update notice only”

Cheers,
Mark

Clearance Picture Frame Mat Board

Mark Rogers — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 23:32:00 +0000

Frame Destination has a section on our website COMPONENTS -> CLEARANCE where we list mats that we are selling at steep discounts. They are overstock from previous productions runs. We sell them at unbeatable prices but they are of limited quantities. Many of our customers have expressed the desire to know when we add items so we have created a special newsletter subscription option called “Website Clearance Section – Update Notice Only”. If you enable that option you will get an email notification when we update that section of the website. That option is separate from our regular newsletter that includes sales, new product announcements and framing information. If you are already a subscriber or a new subscriber and want to be added to the clearance list then click here: Newsletter Subscription

New colors added to our paper mat line

Mark Rogers — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 18:36:00 +0000

We have added 28 COLORS to our 4-Ply Paper Mat line. Samples are the best way to determine the actual color of the mats so be sure to request samples. Samples in quantity 5 or less are free. Complete set is $10.00. (If included with an order the cost is $5.00.) The Paper mat is for decorative purpose and is not an archival mat like our Bainbridge Alphamat or AlphaRag mat board. If you are interested in color archival mats, please feel free to email your suggestions for colors. We have over 80 mat board sizes and we can do full custom.

Cheers,
Mark