Grandma’s Vintage Print Gets a Refresh

While on a trip home to Minnesota, I found a vintage print that belonged to my grandmother! As a framer, I knew it needed some conservation work and a fresh presentation. So, I took it back to my Seattle shop for the full treatment:

A vintage print handed down within the family has unknown origin, but remains sentimental.

Both the matting and the frame had seen better days.

The original black floral frame had myriad scratches and dings, which stuck out against the dark background. The grey mat was warping right out of the frame due to moisture, adding to the dingy look.

The backside of the frame, complete with paint splatter from some unknown past project.

The first order of business was to take everything apart to see what could be salvaged (if anything), and to take stock of any unexpected findings.

In addition to the normal fitting nails we often see, I found this interesting makeshift solution.

I found one of my grandma’s sewing pins was helping hold in the backboard! Old pieces like this can have hidden discoveries waiting inside…

This was the back side of the backboard!

…Like this! When I flipped over the backboard I realized it was a repurposed poster from a Wisconsin county fair! I hate that the year was cut off but suspected the ad is from the late 1950’s or early 1960’s.

Remnants of old tape cling to the edges of the vintage print.

I removed the artwork from the old frame and then began carefully dislodging the tape from around the edges. Luckily, most of the tape was old enough that the adhesive had dried out and flaked off easily.

I removed everything I could, leaving only small amounts of tape remnants in a few places.

Here we see the print by itself, with the matting and tape fully removed. Notice the lighter band that runs through the middle of the art - this was caused by a slit in a nearby window causing light to hit the artwork in just that specific spot. The bleaching of the paper unfortunately cannot be reversed; but it is a good reminder about the importance of UV-protective glazing and not hanging art in direct sunlight.

Clear corners are used for securing the print to the new backboard. This solution is 100% reversible and avoids adding any new tape or adhesive. They are hidden under the new mat for a seamless look.

You can also clearly see the foxing line around where the old mat was. Foxing lines are caused by acid present in the surrounding mats. This highlights the importance of using acid-free materials, especially anything that will come into contact with your artwork.

A new mat on the vintage print hides some of the damage.

All cleaned up and ready for the trip back home: acrylic can safely be shipped through the mail if packaged correctly.

And here is the final product! A new black frame was selected that had a similar, subtle floral scroll pattern. The new off-white mat brightens up the composition and hugs the old foxing line, maximizing the image.

This sweet and sentimental piece was finished off with Optium Museum Acrylic, providing ongoing 99% UV protection as well as a no-glass look for optimal viewing pleasure. Lastly, the shatter-proof acrylic makes the trip back home even safer. Grandma would be very proud!

Beware: Proper Hanging Hardware

There is more to fine art picture framing than just aesthetics, proportions, and color theory; we are engineers who need to consider how to combat one of art’s great enemies: gravity. A beautifully made frame with matching mat and fillet are not very useful if they end in a pile of glass on the floor.

Here is a great example: A client used the wrong hanging orientation on their artwork, damaging the hanging hardware and risking an accident. The D-Ring hangers were originally mounted vertically for two hooks or for hanging on a picture rail. The later addition of a wire pulled the D-rings towards the center, twisting the metal almost apart. Yikes!

Do you have a question about the best way to hang a heavy piece of art or a mirror? Bring in your piece for a consultation, or send some photos to info@baasframingstudio.com and we’ll be happy to help!

Standard Wire orientation is a must for most framing projects: the gentle angle of the D-ring mimics the direction of the wire while it is hanging on the wall, thus relieving tension in the hook itself. For picture rail hanging systems, the wires must be directed straight up to attach to the picture rail itself.

Here you can see the difference: the D-Ring on the left is normal. The D-Ring on the right was not hung with proper wire orientation and the pressure has pulled the D-Ring out of shape. This can be dangerous if the hook fails all together.

Moral of the Story: when in doubt give us a call or email! We are more than happy to discuss the best options for safely hanging your art. We guarantee all our frames will have the proper hanging hardware and wire orientation. No bent hooks here!

Framing Redesigns: A Collection of Native Arrowheads

This beautiful mount of hand-collected arrowheads was in need of some attention. The initial glue mount of one of the arrowheads in the top left corner failed, leaving the arrowhead free and potentially damaging the other arrowheads around it.

You can see the fallen arrowhead in the left upper corner. The original frame had a fun, native motif but was not conservation-quality; nor was the mat, as the bevel was brown, indicating acid and the associated discoloration.

So our first course of action was to take apart the old frame and reglue the arrowhead to the backing. In this case, the backing was a extremely unique material: real leather hide! The leather was heavy so there were extra precautions taken to ensure that it would not slide around underneath the new matting.

There is wear and tear around the old frame edges, and a few parts where the veneer was pulling back. A new and deeper frame would allow a true shadow-box treatment.

Once the old matting was removed, we found that the leather had discolored under the mat. Instead of hiding this new element under a mat that would produce the same pinched proportions as before, we opened up the design and leaned into the unique extra line.

Here you can see the depth of the new frame, which allowed a shadowbox to be built. The sides of the box were lined in black to give even more dramatic dimension against the grey/brown top mat.

This extra line became a beautiful addition around the arrowheads and acted almost as a second mat. By moving the mat line outwards and adding several more inches of top-mat around the whole design, the piece became lighter, more focused on the arrowheads, and ultimately more inviting to the eye.

The finished piece: a beautiful woodgrain frame with an open shadowbox in shades of tan, black, and soft brown.

The result is a beautifully reframed piece with better dimensions and Optium Museum Acrylic which lets viewers see the fine details of these exquisite arrowheads up close and with more clarity than before: Stunning!

MORE Best of 2023

So many unique framing projects in 2023, we couldn’t stop at just 6! Enjoy an encore of framing masterpieces!

We created a protective clear acrylic box for this antique ceramic statue from China. A linen base and hidden mounting pin complete the elegant and secure presentation for a precious object. Definitely one of our favorite pieces of the year!

Gilded gold frame and velvet liner on an engraved book plate from Davidson Galleries. (Browse their incredible collection to find more gems like this!) Museum Glass and a delicate filet were added to refurbish this vintage presentation.

A leather printing plate in the shape of a dragon was a memento of a client's travels in Indonesia. The heavy leather was sewn to a linen backboard and we used a deep, textured wood frame to create dimension and Museum Glass for crystal clarity.

This wild and wonderful Frank Kozik print in an acid yellow mat and lipstick red "Gaudi" frame from Roma Moulding was a winner! Nothing subtle about it, which is perfectly psychedelic.

We worked with a new client to frame an autographed copy of To Kill A Mockingbird and a facsimile of the title page. A custom Conservation Plexiglas box holds the book securely without tape or glue. Flax linen and a walnut frame complete the look.

Created for the popular Magic: The Gathering card game, this illustration is all about duality and opposing forces. We extended the concept into the framing with a spliced mat and two-tone iridescent metal frame...Magical! Artwork by Kaja Foglio.

Best of 2023

As we enter the new year, we always take a moment to appreciate the most unique and beautiful framing projects we had the pleasure of working on throughout 2023. It's a joy to reflect on the fine art and family mementos that passed through our studio, and we look forward to providing more amazing design ideas in the year ahead. Enjoy!

"Bronze Fins", print by Shag in a bronze metallic frame by AMCI. If ever there was a frame made for a piece of art, this is it! The black matting adds a dramatic touch.

Stained glass in a silver gilt frame. The floating look was achieved by mounting the inner frame to a sheet of clear acrylic -- a great solution to create privacy in the client's window.

Korean wedding jacket and shirt in an ivory linen shadowbox with ebonized walnut frame from Picture Woods. We took great care in the mounting of this precious item, including the use of Optium Museum Acrylic for optimal clarity and protection from UV light damage.

"Bally" poster by Bernard Villemot gets a classic treatment in a black frame and white mat. Great design never goes out of style!

Collectible masks in silver shadowbox frames: this project turned out super sharp! The masks were mounted to linen boards in contrasting tones. A great example of how small objects can be given greater presence with framing.

The client wanted to amplify the pastel colors and organic feeling of this 2023 concert poster. We pride ourselves on a having huge selection of frame samples (like this pink-and-purple inlaid wood frame from Italy) just for unique projects like this. Fun!

Seattle Met Shout Out!

Proud to be One of Seattle’s Best Shops for Custom Framing

When we were contacted to be a part of this article for Seattle Met we were tickled pink! No matter how long we have been providing fine art framing, conservation, and inspiration it still feels good to be recognized. After 27 years we are very proud to be able to call ourselves a fixture in this community of artists and art lovers.

Check out the link below to read the full article!

Seattle Met Article