From start to finish, see how our wonderful Frame Experts transform the things you love into a Custom Frame Designs you’ll be absolutely thrilled with, each and every time.
STEP 1: THE INSPIRATION & DESIGN PHASE
Bring in what you love, and our Frame Experts will take the reins. They do the hard part –narrowing down the best selection of mats and moldings to fit your piece perfectly. You get to the do the easy part – loving the final result! Our Frame Expert Benjamin just had great design inspiration with autographed photos of Red Grange, a legendary University of Illinois Football player. Learn how the individual pieces come together into a beautiful Custom Frame.
Red Grange Pieces ready to be framed at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
Playing off the coloring of the black and white photographs, Benjamin narrowed down the choices to a sleek black moulding and dark gray mat.
Once the Design Plan is in…watch how it all comes together with the video below!
Learn more about each individual step below!
STEP 2: Cutting the Mouldings
Back in our Chop Shop, you’ll find Travis. He custom cuts each and every moulding for all our frame orders with a specialized saw made for cutting frames.
Cutting Mouldings at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
STEP 3: Joining The Mouldings
Right after the mouldings have been cut, they are glued and joined together using a V-Nailer.
STEP 4: Cutting the Mats
The mats are then cut using our Computerized Mat Cutter, which precisely cuts every opening in a matter of seconds. For our Red Grange piece, 5 openings were made for each of the photographs.
Cutting Mats at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
STEP 5: TOUCHING UP THE FRAME
After the mouldings have been joined, Al makes sure each corner looks absolutely perfect. He cleans all the edges and adds touch ups by hand.
Al adding the finishing touches to a custom frame at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
STEP 6: Joining the Art & Mat
Once the frame and mats are ready, they go back to the same Frame Expert who took your order. In our Red Grange piece, Benjamin carefully lines up and attaches the photos to the custom mat.
Once it’s just right, he cuts and adds a sheet of foam core to the back to seal it all together.
STEP 7: Cutting the Glass
Next comes the glass, which is always hand-cut and cleaned by your Framing Expert right before it’s added to your piece.
Cutting Glass for a Custom Frame at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
STEP 8: Adding the Glass & Frame
The glass is laid over the piece, followed by the frame.
Custom Framing at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
Step 9: Metal Points
Time to flip it! Benjamin adds metal points to hold all the pieces tightly in place.
Points being added to a Custom Frame at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL.
STEP 10: Adding the Dustcover
A sheet of dust cover is then attached to the back of the frame to keep outside elements from entering and degrading your piece.
Adding the dust cover to a Custom Frame at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
Step 11: Hardware
Hardware and copper wire is then added to the back of the frame for easy and sturdy hanging.
Adding Hardware to a Custom Frame at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
Step 12: The Final Lookover
Our Frame Experts then give every piece a final look-over to make sure it meet our top-notch standard. After that, it’s ready to go home with you!
Red Grange Custom Framed Piece at Prairie Gardens, Champaign IL
