GETTING CREATIVE THIS FALL!

The fall is a great time to review goals and plan projects.  Although January is a time for New Year's resolutions - I have always felt that fall - after a summer hiatus - was always the time I did the best planning.

When planning, you are open to new ideas, using old materials in a new way - or new materials to give life to old ideas.

One such way is to re-evaluate frames and frame styles and color.  Photography and utility frames have long used dark and mostly black frames in recent years.  Now we are seeing a resurgence in gold and white.  Here is an example using a simple white frame and a printable design to create a "Baby Shower" party favor.

This type of frame could easily have been applied to a certificate, award or promotional frame too.  Photographs are enjoying new dimension coupled with white frames.  Just take a look at what's going on in this series of ads from the pottery barn......

http://www.potterybarn.com/gift/thm/thmhtd/

Open your mind to using white, gold and more in your planning that sets off your work in new ways and creates new interest!  The white frame used here is from www.matshop.com - their solid wood MS653.

Matting Tips - Part 5 - Triple Mat

5. TRIPLE MAT

I guess this is an obvious – but one of the nicest ways to do this is to vary the “lin¬er” sizes of your inner mats.  Illustrated here we have started with a light blue mat as the very inside mat and allowed ¼” of it to show as a “liner”.  Then we added a dark blue liner on top of that with only about 1/8” showing.  Lastly the outer mat was matched to the light blue color of the very inner mat creating a great focus for the image – drawing your eye directly in to those colors in the piece.

Artwork courtesy of Patricia Arndt and inspired from Karin Jurick's "Different Strokes" website.
Mat created using the MatoMatic tool - courtesy of www.matshop.com.
You can do it too and best of all its FREE!

SECRETS OF MATTING FOR ARTISTS

This article is re-printed with permission from the MatShop and author Jim Fishwick. Visit the MatShop for the full article and additional information.

Some of the Fundamental secrets when selecting Matting for your artwork.

Single mats: If a single mat is used, it is often safest and most desirable to use a neutral color, such as off white, cream, light grays etc. These go very well with most images and fit into most home settings. If you wish a stronger color, try to match the mat color with a dominant color in the image. i.e. Lots of dark green trees in the picture, use a dark green mat. For black and white photographs, off-white mats with a black core are very effective.

Using a double mat: Double mats add considerably to the richness of the presentation. The safest method is to use a neutral outer mat, and a color for the inner mat that matches a dominant color in the image. The amount of the inner mat that can be seen is called the “reveal”, and varies with the size of the mat. A reveal of 3/16" is close to being an industry standard, but use your own judgment. When using a white mat over another white mat, a reveal of 1/2" or even much more can work very well. Double mats are usually twice the price of a single.

Adding decorative cuts: Closed and open "V-grooves", decorative corners and graphics can be attractive, but often unnecessary. A closed v-groove is very common, and can be quite cost effective especially with larger artwork. The extra cost can be recovered by a higher retail price. Closed v-grooves can be very effective on single mats of conservation quality.

Types of mat cuts explained

These are some of the cuts available, and the terminology used to describe them.

1. Open v-groove, 3/16" reveal
2. V-groove gap
3. Closed v-groove
4. Message box, 3/16" reveal
5. Double opening, 3/16" reveal
6. Single opening
7. "Fancy" corner
8. Floating the image
9. Graphic
10. #246 Walnut frame
11. Double mat, light blue outer, dark blue inner.

'Tis the Season

Thanksgiving weekend in the US brings on an intense shopping season across America and artwork is no exception with artists being represented and promoted in galleries, studio shows, tours, craft expositions and shopping mall displays.
Many of these semi-professional and professional artists are realizing the need for reproductions to supplement their original work and opt for art cards, posters and giclees as some of the many forms of reproduction available.
However here is where presentation becomes important. Whatever your take on framing - there is no question that proper presentation of an artists work - even to the presentation of a small framed card - can increase sales. Many artists cut their own mats and assemble pre-made frames but this is time consuming, costly, and you can't be an expert at everything. As a result many professionals are turning to volume manufacturers who specialize in selling to artists, photographers and crafts people, to purchase quality framing supplies and materials at below wholesale prices. This allows them to apply a good markup to the framing portion of their work as well as the work itself.
One tool to help you make decisions that is very popular on-line is the "Matomatic" tool provided by Matshop.com. Of course they will sell you the mats, frames and supplies you need to complete the project you have created. You can upload your own images and add mats, frames etc and see how it looks on-line - then order those materials. Look it up at www.matshop.com and select the "Matomatic" from the side navigation bar.
Another great way to help boost your income at this busy time of year. For framing talk and tips also visit The V-Groove. Have a great start to the Holiday Season!

Artwork courtesy of Patricia D Arndt
www.dailytrekinart.blogspot.com.