Still, this is not one I was prepared for. I thought I was prepared for it but I wasn’t. I knew art frames can be expensive so when I saw a 50% off frame sale at my local Blick’s art supply store I went for it.
I had inherited a nice painting but over the years and moves the wooden frame was falling apart so I went to replace it.
The painting is 26"x32" so not huge. Got to the store, looked at some frames with the friendly staff and settled on one. It was wood with not much ornamentation on the wood except paint (a bit like this).
Cool I think. She checks on the price…$275. :eek:
Oh wait! 50% off right! That’s why I’m here. So it will cost me about $140 right?
No, it would normally be $550. :eek::eek::eek:
What. The. Actual. Fuck?!
Seriously…$550 for a few feet of painted wood? I can buy large wooden furniture at Ikea that have way more wood and paint and pieces and intricacy for a fraction of that price.
Fuck that shit.
I got a do-it-yourself metal frame for $30 instead which works fine but doesn’t look great. $30 seems a bit much for even that
Once home I checked online and there are cheaper options than that $550 frame. Maybe it is just Blick’s that was attempting highway robbery…I dunno (the sales person never mentioned the cheap do it yourself frames till she realized I was leaving and not buying a frame).
Hardly earth shattering stuff but I felt like venting.
Also…they no longer do the framing in store or even a mat. You figure out what you want, they write it down then outsource it somewhere and you come back a week later for it so even the service is shitty.
I’ve had things framed at a local place that only does framing. They do beautiful work, matting, use “museum quality glass”, etc. Expensive, but looks great.
IME all custom framing is expensive, and yeah, way too expensive. BUT I’m also getting the matting (I usually do a dual mat, too), the backing AND the UV glass. Is the markup like, oh 56x what it costs them in time and materials? At least. But I don’t accept the job until I’m 100% you-better-fucking-believe- it satisfied, either. I’m gonna have to stare at that thing for years and years, after all.
IME it’s common to pay 50%-200% more for the framing than for the piece itself. And that’s why it’s really outrageous.
I’ve been using the americanframe.com for a bunch of years now. They have a decent selection of frames and mats, and you can get UV acrylic and archival quality mounts, so it handles almost anything you want to frame. You can get rectangular, round, oval, or arched mat cuts, too. I bought a point driver early on, so I can do all my assembly myself. And, even with shipping costs, I pay less than half than what our local frame shop charges. Although I do miss my interactions with the guys who worked there. A good frame shop employs people who can come up with options you would never think of.
Unfortunately it is also the reason a lot of photos and pictures from around 1900 to 1920 (or whenever) are disappearing. People buy them at an second hand store, discard the picture and keep the frame.
That Monsters of Rock Moscow poster looks really great in my frame though. A lot of it has to do with the person picking out the frame and mats. Man, my framer left and I gave her free reign to do as she wanted. Her stuff looked great. I was happy paying $200 or so for the frame and her time.
I worked for years as a professional picture framer. Hell, if I could afford it I’d start my own shop.
Prices are expensive because it’s custom. We can’t buy in bulk, we can’t reliably reuse materials, none of the stuff is used for any other purpose, cheaper materials will quickly damage or destroy the art, and overall volume is low.
It can be hard to justify; believe me I know. Most people will only get one or two pieces fully custom framed in their lifetimes. Sticker shock for first-timers happens all the time.
I always designed to make the art look as spectacular as possible. When spending that much coin, I wanted people to say “WOW” when I opened it up during pickup.
That said, there were plenty of mouldings that were ridiculously overpriced. Just a few weeks ago I designed for my cousin and picked one of those of the wall, but it was perfect for the photo.
I currently work as a custom framer. As others have mentioned, you’re not just paying for a frame and we’re not just popping the picture in and handing it over to you.
You are ordering a customer cut and joined frame. Made just for you specifically to the size of your artwork. Think about suit prices. How much more do you pay for a bespoke suit than one off the rack at Macy’s?
Additionally the frame is lined with materials to prevent dust and others contaminates from getting in. All the paper, tape, matting etc. is archival quality and will not cause damage to your art (no fading, yellowing etc). The glass is UV coated to protect your art from light damage, and often anti-glare so you can actually see your art with the sun shining into the room. The back of the artwork is sealed and quality hardware for hanging is attached.
We understand design as far as making your art work look the best is can with regard to what frame, mats, fillets, etc. will enhance your art and draw in the eye. We make sure the frame you pick out is actually strong enough for the size and weight of the art so that the frame doesn’t eventually give way and crack or some how damage the artwork itself.
Yes, the initial prices are ridiculous, which is why we are always having ridiculous sales. Between, Frame Express, bundle and save and whatever sale we are having, no one ever pays full price, but they do pay a fair price.
In my case I went to Blick’s Art Materials and their framing department did nothing more than measure the artwork. It was left to me to pick a frame and mat. When I asked for advice I got almost none. The best the framer helping me would do was shrug noncommittally whether something looked good or not.
Then I learned they did none of the work in the store (near as I could tell). It was all outsourced to somewhere and the finished product sent back to them.
So, not sure what all I was paying for. If they had asked some questions then told me they’d do something awesome I’d be happier to pay them since I am not good at determining these things (mat color, double or single mat, frame, etc.).
I do finicky, fancy-pants needlework as a hobby. Nothing is more relaxing than sitting down to a piece and realizing that last night, you miscounted a thread and now have to undo an hours work. :smack: I have always used the best quality materials I can afford and have spent over 200 hours on a piece. I used to frame my work with the DIY method because it was much cheaper than paying a professional. They always looked pretty good.
When my Beloved Butthead and I were in the wedding process, I stitched our wedding announcement onto linen and wanted to get it professionally framed, but HOLY COW about the sticker shock. I wanted this to look more than pretty good and took the advice of a needlework friend about her framer, sucked it up and paid almost 200 to have an 12x13 inch framed. It looked AWESOME! It looked better than my most finicky, fancy-pants with pearls and lace and ribbons work (which was really much better work because I had more time).
The frame was perfect, the glass was invisible, the matting set everything off perfectly.
I have taken a piece to her every year since then. Everything she does to my work sets it off wonderfully, I don’t even bother to look at the frames and matts anymore. I show her the piece, show her pics of where it’s going to hang and let her do her magic.
Its not cheap, but she pics matts and custom cuts them. I’m quite sure that the cutting machine wasn’t cheap either because of the sharp, clean cuts. She uses different punches (? puts different shaped holes in the matt/s) depending on what the pic is. Those are probably not cheap either, not to mention that she can’t use the same one for my desert wind storm work as she did with the wedding announcement. There is not a speck of dust under the glass, not even in the oldest one.
So, what I’m saying is that if you want a master framer to make your piece sparkle and shine in ways that you might not imagine, you have to pay the price for their equipment and skills.
I thought my old complaint about poster frames was bad. I have a hard time parting with $25 for a poster frame. I’d just as soon not have anything hung up if I was OP, or i’d make my own. That is absurd!
