Since we're starting the Fall Cure soon and September is Adornment month at AT, we are determined to finally frame some of the many prints we have lying around the house. And this got us thinking about the Ikea Ribba frame collection — which is a favorite with lots of design bloggers out there (including design*sponge and sfgirlbybay).
While browsing the Art Star Philly shop this weekend, we noticed that Eleanor Grosch also recommends the Ribba for framing her hand-screened prints. Given how inexpensive they are, it's no surprise.
A 5"x7" Ribba frame is $4.99, while the largest size (19-3/4"x27-1/2") will set you back $19.99. And the frames come in a variety of finishes — including white, aluminum foil, birch and a mahogany-stained beech.
With so many options, any bare wall can easily and affordably be turned into a gallery.
Image: sfgirlbybay
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I have several Ribbas and count myself as a fan. I've also noticed a few artists who let you know what size Ribba their prints will fit best which is useful and kind of an interesting trend.
I use a lot of these as well - they don't look cheap and they work with a lot of things. I've also liked their clippy frames with the trio of openings to put little prints/found art/postcards that I try to change monthly.
Based on this post, I went to Ikea this weekend to check these frames out and was disappointed. Not only was there no 8 x 10 frame (it was something like 7 1/2 x 9, and I don't like to trim the sheet) but of the ones I looked at none had 4 corners that met perfectly. Granted, I realize that they're very cheap, but I didn't buy any.
Big fan of the Ribbas, but a disturbing number of the ones I've bought have scratches or defects on the glass - despite the shrink wrap and careful transport on my part. The scratches are generally on the inside of the glass (according to their original package) and I minimize their appearance simply by flipping the glass. Still, a little weird - good thing I'm not a perfectionist.
The quality of these frames is terrible. I now have to return one after going to all the trouble of trimming the mat, aligning the artwork and dealing with the wonky hardware involved, the frame fell apart before I even got it on the wall. Very frustrating!
We purchased (25) of the largest Ribba frames (27 x 39) at Ikea in Sunrise FL. They were $27.99 each, so we sppent about $750 on the frames. Every single one fell apart as soon as you removed the shrinkwrap. They were held together at the corners by a flimsy staple on the back side of the frame, which meant there was nothing holding the 4 pieces together in the front. We purchased a nail gun shooting 8 nails into each frame, and it still didn't hold artwork inside. Then we added cross wiring to each frame...still nothing holds the artwork and the frames together.
I would never recommend this product to anyone !!!!!
I have a single Ribba frame and have the same quality issues. It's flimsy, the corners don't meet properly... and as vrehberg said, nothing keeps the art & the frame together: my poster keeps sliding down to the bottom.
The corners of mine were covered in cardboard under the shrinkwrap, if I could have seen the state of them there's no way I'd have picked it up!
I am a big fan of RIBBA frames. It's too bad that so many people have problems with theirs. I have 5 and none of them have these problems, fortunately. I do have one that the veneer is pulling away on, but it's in the bathroom so I think that might be why.
While the smaller Ribbas are a cheap decorating trick (and one I adore), the larger ones are nothing short of a fiasco. Stick to the glass-fronted Ribbas, and buy larger poster frames elsewhere. The RE Style line at Target is pretty good.
The love-hate issue with these frames is that they used to be solid wood. I have a few of the older solid frames but the moment I saw the new frames I knew they were junk.