Framing

Framing as protection, not just presentation

A frame does two jobs. The obvious one is presentation. The one that matters in ten years is protection: a frame is the sealed environment your print spends its life inside, and the materials pressed against the paper decide how well it survives there. We frame prints and photographs to conservation standards at our Fyshwick studio, and we frame the work we print - so the paper, the mount and the glazing are chosen as one system.

We are not a bespoke framing workshop. If you want a hand-finished or unusual profile built to order, we would rather point you to a local framer who specialises in it than pretend otherwise.

Choosing a level

The three levels differ in materials and in whether the framing can be undone later - which is the question that actually separates them.

• Premium - premium materials, mounted on 5mm foamboard. This mounting method is irreversible: the print cannot later be removed intact. It protects work for around 5-10 years in ideal conditions, and is the right call for replaceable everyday photo and artwork prints.
• Conservation - conservation quality materials and reversible framing techniques, so the print can be taken back out, with an added undermount for extra protection. Around 20 years in ideal conditions. Suited to high value photographs and art prints.
• Museum - museum quality materials, including 100% cotton backing and mats, with reversible techniques and an added undermount. Around 35 years in ideal conditions. Suited to very high value photographs and art prints.

Those lifespans are stated for ideal conditions, and they describe the framing materials and process - not the print inside. A frame is a slower clock, not a stopped one.

Archival mounting

Mounting bonds a print to a rigid substrate so it stays flat and can be handled or hung without a frame around it. For archival mounting we use P.A.T. (ISO 18916) certified adhesives - the Photographic Activity Test - onto aluminium composite substrates such as Dibond and Alupanel (3mm). We also offer non-archival mounting and lamination, which is the sensible, cheaper choice for short-term exhibitions and displays where the print is not meant to outlive the show.

One practical note if you are preparing files: we accommodate an additional 5mm for trimming when mounting, so please make sure your image can afford to lose roughly 2.5mm from every edge.

Matboards

A matboard holds the print away from the glazing and sets the visual margin around the work. We cut custom-sized matboards to your width and height in Premium, Conservation or Museum quality, with a choice of backing board - none, matboard, foamboard, or matboard and foamboard together.

Turnaround

Custom framing generally runs 2-3 weeks, depending on moulding availability and glazing; ready-made sizes are faster. See turnaround times for the current guide - we confirm a firm completion date when your quote is approved.