Reading the open thread last night, we thought Seth's question needed to be front and center since it's Art Month at AT. Seth wrote:
I was wondering if anyone knew of a decent yet inexpensive framing store. I have a lot of prints that I want to frame and hang on my walls but framing can just be so darn expensive. Any input/thoughts/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
(Note: Include a pic of your problem and your question gets posted first.
Email questions and pics with QUESTIONS in subject line to:
chicago(at)apartmenttherapy(dot)com)
Dear Seth,
We wholeheartedly agree that framing is costly. We've taken to doing most of our framing ourselves, but sometimes there are pieces that really need pro attention. Lisa mentioned Aaron Bros. in the open thread, and the first place that usually comes to mind for us is The Great Frame Up (there's one in Lakeview). We've also heard good things about Lakeview Art Supply.
As for good quality at an inexpensive price, we haven't used enough framing services to know for certain the best of the best. But we want to know! AT readers, we're confident you have great insight on the subject...fire away.
Check out The Contemporary Frame Co. in Farmington, CT. Mucho cheaper than retail. www.contemporaryframe.com
Depending on the work... Pottery Barn and Target have great simple black frames (as not to distract) and then you can contact a local art school to have a student cut the mat.
In the spirit of sharing (though part of me wants to keep this to myself) I'll let all you AT readers in on the best framing secret in Chicago...
Artist Frame Service on Clybourn isn't the secret (or all that inexpensive an option) but their "outlet store" is.
It's operated out of the basement of their sister store Jayson Home and Garden (a few doors north). Basically it's a wonderland of hundreds and hundreds of custom frames that - for a number of reasons - have been relegated to be sold at a pretty ridiculous discount.
You can buy the frame by itself for a few bucks and either have matting and glass cut at the outlet (they'll only take really straight-forward jobs), you can take the frame down the street to the main store for complicated stuff or you can take it home and tackle the framing job on your own.
Check it out... you won't be disappointed.
http://www.artistframeservice.com/
http://www.jaysonhome-garden.com/
Anoter great site is Jerry's Art-o-rama artist supplies. They have frames for all kind of budgets. The problem with things like target, is that they tend to look cheap.
here's the site.
http://www.jerrysartarama.com/
Also, if you're handy. You can purchase the moldings from this site and do it yourself.
http://www.framing4yourself.com/
www.americanframe.com
Patrick - thank you for sharing your framing secret! I have been in desperate need of a a good frame place!
Order them custom online at www.pictureframes.com. Very easy to put together yourself, looks professional and incredibly cheap!
Wow, I now have more options than I know what to do with. Thanks for all great info. I love the site!
I've always ended up cutting my own mattes and framing them with standard sizes from Blick or Ikea. I do have a couple items that will need full custom sizing though, so I'll probably be looking at the build-your own frames at Blick [http://www.dickblick.com/categories/framing-sections/]
and then having the glass cut at a frame shop, and cutting my own mattes and assembling.
i've also ordered from frameusa.com for standard size stuff.
Try Michaels (craft store). They frequently have 50% off sales. I used them for a very big picture and it turned out very nice.
Also, like someone else mentioned, look at Target, Hobby Lobby, Michaels, etc. for prints on clearance. Take out the print and use the frame.
I just framed two 22x28 prints for about $100, using all archival material and neilson frames.
I was hoping to do something a little fancier, but I'm on a deadline and a custom frame wasn't an option.
They turned out quite nicely though. One school of thought is that you should never notice the frames - if people are paying attention to the frames, it's not coordinating with the work. THe nice thing about the neilson frames is that you can get them in any size, assemble them yourself, and by buying the same profile across the board, you've got continuity in all your artwork. I noticed last night at a friend's house that she did this: as a photography collector and teacher, she has a lot of famous and not so famous works, and they are all framed in the same thin matte black metal frame. The work stands out, the frame is barely noticible.
If you hate cutting your own mats or glass, hobby lobby can do that for a reasonable price, and then the frames aren't that expensive.