Every framing page on this site

Frame Styles & Materials

Floater, gallery, and traditional frames, and the woods, metals, and finishes they are made from. Start here if you know what you want to protect and now need to choose how it should look.

• Custom Framing Styles Floater, gallery, and traditional frames explained side by side, with what each one suits.
• Floater Frames for Canvas The clean, modern way to frame a stretched canvas, and how the reveal gap works.
• Frame Profiles Explained Flat, scoop, cap, cassetta, and shadow box profiles drawn in cross-section.
• Framing Oil vs Acrylic Paintings What changes between the two mediums, and what we recommend for each.
• Wood vs Metal Frames Warmth against precision. How the two materials behave, age, and suit different work.
• Natural Wood Frames: Oak, Walnut, Maple, Ash Grain, colour, and hardness of the four woods we use most, and what each flatters.
• What a Black or White Frame Does to a Painting How each colour changes the painting's tonal range and its relationship to the wall, plus what to do across an open-plan home.
• Gold & Ornate Frames Gilding, leaf, and carved profiles, and how to use them without the room looking dated.
• Frameless & Gallery Wrap When a painting is finished enough to hang with no frame at all.
• Matching the Frame to the Painting Abstract, landscape, portrait, and still life, each with the frames that serve them.

Glazing & Conservation

Glass, acrylic, mats, and backing. The part of framing that decides whether a painting still looks right in thirty years. This is the hub our own framing standards come from.

• UV Glass & Glazing What UV does to pigment, and which glazing actually stops it.
• Museum Glass vs Conservation Glass Both block UV. Only one kills the reflection. What the difference costs you.
• Acrylic vs Glass Weight, safety, clarity, static, and shipping. When we reach for acrylic instead.
• Anti-Reflective Glass Why a painting opposite a window disappears, and the glazing that fixes it.
• When an Oil Painting Does Need Glazing The five-question check for a specific painting, plus the exceptions where glazing is the right call.
• Acid-Free Mats & Backing Why cheap backing board burns a brown line into paper, and what we use instead.
• How Framing Protects a Painting Light, humidity, dust, pollution, and handling, and what each layer of a frame stops.
• Framing Works on Paper Watercolour, pencil, pastel, ink, and photography all need something canvas does not.
• Our Conservation Framing Standards The materials and methods we hold to on every piece, and the ones we refuse.
• Caring for Framed Art A framed picture needs only a few minutes of care a year. Clean glass and acrylic in different ways, keep liquid off the frame, and look at the back once a year.
• Moving & Storing Framed Art Frames are damaged in moves at the glass and at the corners. Pack each frame on its own, carry and store frames upright, and keep them in a dry room off the floor.

Size, Mats & Proportion

Measuring, mat borders, frame sizes, and the proportions that make a small painting look considered instead of lost. Includes our free frame and mat calculator.

• Frame & Mat Size Calculator Enter your artwork size and get every cut dimension, with a live scaled preview.
• How to Measure a Painting for a Frame Sight size, rebate, and depth. The four measurements to take and the two mistakes to avoid.
• Mat Border Width Guide The proportion rules that make a small painting look expensive instead of lost.
• Double Mats & Fillets The thin second reveal that lifts a work on paper, and when it is too much.
• Standard vs Custom Frame Sizes Why an original almost never fits a shop-bought frame, and what that costs.
• Framing Small Paintings Small work is the easiest to get wrong. Weight, border, and hanging height.
• Framing Large Art How big pieces are built, glazed, and hung so nothing sags or falls.
• Framing a Diptych or Triptych Matching two or three panels, and the gap between them that makes it read as one work.
• Gallery Wall Frame Sizing Sizing a mixed group so it looks arranged rather than accumulated.
• Choosing a Mat Colour White and off-white mats suit most pictures. A colour works when it comes from the picture itself, and the test is simple: you should see the picture before you see the mat.

Framing In Your Home

Choosing a frame for the room it will hang in, what framing costs, how long it takes, and how to hang it safely once it arrives.

• Frame Colour by Room Matching the frame to your wall colour, your floor, and the light the room gets.
• Framing for Modern Interiors Minimal profiles, generous borders, and the restraint that modern rooms reward.
• Framing for Traditional Interiors Carved and gilded profiles in rooms with mouldings, wood, and warmth.
• Matching Frames Across a Gallery Wall Same frame or mixed frames, and the one rule that holds a mixed group together.
• Framing Art for Kitchens & Bathrooms Steam, cooking grease, and swings in humidity, and the framing that survives them.
• Hanging Hardware for Framed Art D-rings, wire, cleats, and drywall anchors, matched to the weight on the wall.
• Ready to Hang, Explained What arrives ready to hang, what does not, and what we do before a piece ships.
• Custom Framing Cost What framing costs, and the five things that actually move the price.
• Framing Turnaround & Shipping How long framing takes here, and how a framed original is packed and shipped.
• Reframing an Old or Inherited Painting What to keep, what to replace, and how to tell if the old frame is damaging the work.
• What to Bring to a Framing Appointment A framer can only work with what is on the counter. Bring the piece, a photograph of the wall, the wall colour, your date and a budget range, and most decisions take one visit.
• How to Choose a Picture Framer Most frames look fine on the day you collect them. The difference between framers shows years later, so ask about the parts you cannot see: the board, the mount and the glazing.
• Framing as a Gift A framed gift works when the thing inside matters to the person. Pick the subject first, choose a frame that suits any room, and start early enough for the framer to do it properly.
• Picture Framing Terms Explained Framers use short words for the parts of a frame. This list explains each one in plain language, in alphabetical order, with a link to the guide that covers it.

Canvas, Stretching & Care

Stretcher bars, how a canvas is mounted on them, why one goes slack, and what Vancouver damp does to a painting on fabric. The hub behind our canvas stretching service.

• How a Canvas Is Stretched Bars, tension, corners and staples, in the order a stretcher actually does them.
• Stretcher Bars Explained Depth, profile, kiln-dried timber, keys and cross-braces, and which depth suits which painting.
• Why a Canvas Goes Slack Humidity, age and under-tensioning, and the difference between tapping keys and a full re-stretch.
• Stretching a Rolled Canvas What to do when a painting arrives in a tube, and why you should not unroll it in a cold room.
• What Changes the Cost of Stretching Perimeter, bar depth, cross-bracing and condition. The five things that move the price, with no invented numbers.
• Canvas, Damp and Humidity What a wet climate does to a painting on fabric, which rooms are worst, and how a sealed back changes it.
• Stretching a Canvas Yourself Tools, order of work, the mistakes that show later, and the pieces you should not attempt at home.
• Stretch It or Frame It? A rolled canvas can be stretched, framed, or both. Which one your piece needs, and what each costs you in the long run.
• Shipping a Canvas Rolled How to roll, tube and send a painting so it arrives able to be stretched, written for artists who ship their own work.
• Canvas Stretching Calculator Bar lengths, the depth your piece needs, whether it wants a cross-brace, and how much margin the canvas must have.

What we frame

The 55 services themselves, as opposed to the guides above. Each says what the job involves and what we need from you.

• Canvas & Art Stretching in Vancouver A painting arrives rolled in a tube, or the canvas you have hung for years has gone soft in the middle. Both are stretching jobs, and both are done here.
• Jersey & Sports Shirt Framing A jersey is fabric, so it needs depth and support rather than glass pressed against it. Shadow box, reversible mount, nothing glued.
• Diploma, Certificate & Award Framing A diploma on ordinary backing browns from behind within a few years. Acid-free throughout, hinged not glued, UV glazing as standard.
• Photograph & Print Framing Photographs fade faster than almost anything else we frame. The mat, the backing and the glazing all decide how long it holds.
• Poster Framing Most posters are an odd size, which is exactly why a ready-made frame means trimming the poster. We cut the frame instead.
• Map & Chart Framing Maps are usually large, often old, and almost always on paper that has already been folded. All three change how it should be framed.
• Medal & Insignia Framing Medals are usually irreplaceable and often someone else's. Everything we do to mount them can be undone.
• Embroidery & Needlework Framing Thread flattens against glass and the piece dies. Lacing and a spacer keep the texture that made it worth doing.
• Shadow Box Framing The method behind jersey, medal and needlework framing: real depth, a reversible mount, and glazing that never touches the object.
• Children's Art Framing Sugar paper is acidic and poster paint fades fast, so the framing is doing more work than it looks like.
• Reframing Service Sometimes the painting is fine and the frame is the problem. Sometimes the backing has been quietly damaging it for thirty years.
• Frame Repair & Restoration A frame that has failed at one corner is usually repairable. One that has failed all the way round usually is not, and we will say so.
• Oversized & Large Format Framing Past a certain size everything changes: the glazing, the bracing, the hardware, and how it gets through your door.
• Record & Album Art Framing A sleeve is printed card that fades and warps. Framing it properly means supporting it and keeping the UV off it.
• 24 Hour Rush Framing Framing in 24 hours when the moulding and glazing are in stock. Bring it to Davie Street and you get a straight yes or no on your date, not an optimistic one.
• Canvas Stretching for Artists You paint them, we stretch them. Repeat sizes, batches before a show, and a consistent depth across a body of work.
• Oversized Canvas Stretching Past a metre and a half the bracing, the handling and getting it through your door all become part of the job.
• Oil & Acrylic Painting Framing A painting on canvas has thickness and texture, so its frame is built differently from a frame for paper. We build floater frames and traditional frames around the painting you bring in.
• Watercolour, Pastel & Drawing Framing Paper reacts to light, damp air and the materials it touches. We frame watercolours, pastels and drawings so the sheet can move, nothing presses on the surface and the colour is shielded from UV.
• Canvas Print Stretching & Framing A print on canvas that arrived rolled in a tube cannot hang until it is stretched over wooden bars. We cut the bars to your print, stretch it, and frame it if you want a frame.
• Sports Memorabilia Framing A signed puck, a ticket and a photograph from the same game belong in one frame. We build a shadow box around the group, with a separate mount for each item and UV glazing over the signatures.
• Wedding Keepsake Framing An invitation is card, vows are ink on paper and a veil is fine net. We frame the paper and the fabric from a wedding with the mount each one needs, in one frame or in a matching set.
• Flag Framing A flag is thin cloth made to fly, so it sags, creases and fades when it is framed the wrong way. We stitch it to a padded board, give it depth and put UV glazing in front.
• Guitar & Instrument Framing A guitar is heavy, curved and made to be played. We hold it in padded cradles inside a deep shadow box, with no glue or screws in the instrument, so it can come out again.
• Comic Book & Trading Card Framing The worth of a comic or a card depends on its condition. We frame comics, cards and graded slabs so nothing sticks to them, light is filtered, and each item can be taken out as it went in.
• Silk Scarf & Textile Framing Silk is thin, it slides, and its dyes fade. We stitch a scarf by hand to a padded board, keep the glazing off the fabric with spacers, and filter the light with UV glazing.
• Office & Corporate Art Framing Framing twenty pieces for a workplace is a different job from framing one for a home. The set has to match, the glazing has to be safe in a corridor, and next year's piece has to fit in.
• Exhibition Framing for Artists A show needs frames that match across the series, stay undamaged on the way to the venue and suit whoever buys the work. We plan the framing around your list of works and your date.
• Picture Framing in the West End & Downtown Our framing workshop is inside the gallery at 1242 Davie Street, on Davie between Bute and Jervis. Walk in with your piece during opening hours. No appointment is needed.
• Jigsaw Puzzle Framing A finished puzzle is hundreds of loose pieces that have to stay flat as one sheet. We frame it on a rigid board, in a frame cut to the puzzle as you built it.
• Diamond Painting Framing A diamond painting is a canvas covered in small resin pieces. We stretch it or frame it flat, with room in front so nothing presses on the surface.
• Newspaper & Magazine Framing Newsprint yellows and turns brittle faster than most paper. We frame front pages, clippings and magazines on acid-free board behind UV glazing, with no glue on the page.
• Picture Frame Glass Replacement A frame with broken or scratched glass can keep everything else. We cut a new sheet of glass or acrylic to fit it, and you can change to UV or anti-reflective glazing at the same visit.
• Custom Mat Cutting A mat cut to the exact size of your picture and your frame makes a ready-made frame fit. We cut single, double and multi-opening mats in acid-free board.
• Baby Keepsake Framing A first outfit is soft cloth, a hospital bracelet is thin plastic and an ultrasound picture fades in heat. We frame them in one shadow box, each on its own mount, with no glue.
• Pet Memorial Framing A collar, a name tag, a paw print and a photograph can be kept together in one frame. Each item is held with no glue, so the collar and the tag stay as they were.
• Memorial & Remembrance Framing A photograph, a letter in their handwriting, medals or a small object can be framed in memory of a person. Paper is hinged on acid-free board and objects are held with no glue.
• Travel Keepsake Framing Tickets, boarding passes, foreign banknotes, postcards and a map from one trip can share a frame. Flat items go behind a mat with several openings and objects go in a shadow box.
• Concert Ticket & Playbill Framing A concert ticket is small and its print fades with heat and light. We frame tickets, wristbands, passes, setlists and playbills with no glue on them, alone or beside the poster.
• Race Bib & Finisher Medal Framing A race bib is a thin sheet that glue marks, and a finisher medal is heavy. We mount the bib flat with no glue and hang the medal on its ribbon, with a photograph beside them.
• Garment, Kimono & Uniform Framing A garment is cut to hang on a body, so in a frame it needs support across its whole area. We stitch it to a padded acid-free board in a shadow box, behind UV glazing.
• Tapestry, Quilt & Woven Textile Framing A woven textile is heavy for its size and stretches when it hangs from one edge. We stitch it to a cloth-covered support that carries its weight, and frame it with or without glazing.
• Coin, Stamp & Banknote Framing A coin has two faces and an edge, and a stamp is a small sheet of thin paper. We frame coins in wells and stamps and banknotes in clear corners, with no glue on any item.
• Autograph & Signed Photo Framing A signature in marker or pen fades in daylight. We frame signed photographs, letters, sleeves and programmes behind UV glazing, with no glue on the signed item.
• Calligraphy & Scroll Framing Brush calligraphy is often on paper so thin that it wrinkles when it is handled. We frame calligraphy, ink painting, hanging scrolls and illuminated pages with gentle support and UV glazing.
• Letter & Family Document Framing Old paper is acidic and breaks easily, and handwriting fades. We hinge letters, recipes and family certificates on acid-free board with no tape on the sheet, behind UV glazing.
• Sheet Music Framing Sheet music is printed on thin paper that yellows, and a song usually runs over several pages. We frame single pages, open spreads and sets of pages on acid-free board.
• Architectural Drawing & Blueprint Framing Plans and blueprints are large, they arrive rolled, and old ones fade fast in daylight. We flatten the sheet, hinge it on acid-free board and frame it behind UV glazing.
• Papyrus, Batik & Souvenir Art Framing Art bought on a trip is often made of a material that ready-made frames do not suit. We float papyrus, stitch batik to a support and hinge thin paper, with no glue on the piece.
• Limited Edition Print Framing The signature and the edition number of a print are written in the lower margin. We frame the sheet at its full size, hinged on acid-free board, with both marks in view behind UV glazing.
• Canvas Floater Framing A floater frame is an L-shaped frame that a stretched canvas sits inside, with a small gap all round. We measure your canvas at the counter and build the frame to its size and depth.
• Conservation & Museum Framing Conservation framing does no harm to the piece inside and can be taken apart again. Bring the piece, or a frame you already own, and we tell you what it needs.
• Float Mounting & Float Framing Float mounting shows the whole sheet, with its edges, on top of the backing board. It suits handmade paper, prints signed at the edge, papyrus and small textiles.
• Gallery Wall Framing A gallery wall is several framed pieces hung as one group. Bring the pieces and your wall measurements, and we plan the frames, mats and sizes as a set before anything is cut.
• Framing for Interior Designers A client project needs frames that suit the finishes in each room and are ready before the install date. Bring the pieces, your samples and your date to the counter.

Framing an original you bought here

• Framing Original Paintings The short version, written for a painting bought from this gallery rather than for a piece you are bringing in.