When looking at a framed picture the first thing you should see is the image or object that has been framed not the colour of the mount or size of the frame. Our job is to make the most of the image, the best framing is the framing that you don't see.

Achieving this is a very fine art, it changes with every picture and it will even change with the same picture and a different customer. It involves balancing colours in tone and area, highlighting some colours while avoiding others, leading the eye to particular points, usually the focal point, then keeping the eye on the image and to stop it wandering. This can often mean decisions of small variations in tone or 1 or 2mm of colour, I have even recut a mount to reduce a colour by 0.5mm and it made a significant difference - for the better. When dealing with a 3mm band of a mountboard, about 1.5mm will be taken up by the bevel which means there will be 1.5mm of colour showing, reducing 3mm to 2.5mm is actually reducing the colour by 33% or one third.

When dealing with frames we tend to go wider with light or neutral colours and reduce the size as the colour gets darker or more vibrant in order to maintain the balance. The frame will also be generally darker than the mounting so that it is visually strong enough to hold everything together.

In the decorative section you will find details of various devises we use to further enhance colours and keep your eye on the image. Briefly this involves adding extra mounts in a highlight colour(s) or creating lines at strategic positions. This can be a wide band or a fine line measured in tenths of a millimeter or a combination of both.

Frames can be stacked, that is using two or three mouldings to produce larger frames, combining colours, textures or disguising deep framed items.

The more you add the more you can enhance the piece but you also need more skill in balancing all the various components. Often compromises have to made to achieve an overall effect, it's no good finding the perfect mount and frame if they don't work together, this will confuse the eye and detract from the art work.

We are happy to discuss and advise on the various options and nothing beats putting samples next to the art, it can be amazing how colours will change when put next to each other.