How to Mat and Frame Artwork

Courtesy of Erinn Valencich

Hi Friends,

Finding artwork you love is a lengthy and expensive process. Make custom art using anything flat, from a vintage album cover to a page from a book or magazine.

Materials Needed:

• picture frame
• mat board
• metal straight edge
• utility knife
• tape
• pencil
• measuring tape
• art book, postcard, etc

Find Your Artwork
Lay your knife on the outside edge of the page you want to cut from your book. Score the page enough to lightly cut it without cutting through multiple pages. Pull the page from the book.



Measure and Cut Mat
Measure the size of the opening you want your page to have. Have a local craft store cut the mat board to your measurements or you can also cut the mat yourself with a metal straight edge and utility knife.

Tape the Back
Lay the page face down on a clean work surface. Apply a long piece of tape on the top of the page, with only half the width of the tape overlapping the paper.



Attach Mat
Turn the page picture-side up and hold the pre-cut mat over the page to decide where you want the image in the opening. Do not let the exposed tape touch the mat until you have decided placement.



Secure Mat and Picture
Turn the mat and attached page face down on your clean work surface. Press firmly on the back of the tape to ensure it is well adhered to the mat. Avoid touching the front side of the mat with your hands, as you risk smudging dirt on it.



Frame Artwork
Place the mat and attached art into your frame.



Great demonstration; now there's nothing stopping us from framing our own prints and artwork - Happy Framing...

Check back for more great framing and artwork ideas over the next couple of weeks from your friends at Interior Design!

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Live well,
Yvonne