Choosing the Perfect Picture Frame

Shopping at Victorian Frame Company provides you with a wide variety of choices. These includes vintage picture frames, gold and silver picture frames, as well as inline oval frames and display cases. The question is, with all the choices available, what would be the best frames to offset and highlight your precious photos? Will these frames also add a decorative element to your home?

Here are two important considerations:

-  How does it complement the room’s overall look? Where will you be hanging your photo?Will you hanging it in the living room, dining room or the master’s bedroom? Will the photo grace the wall of the nursery, the playroom or the home office? You need to consider how the photos and the frames will work with the other design elements in the room. You would like to place the photos and frames as focal points in the room while maintaining the overall look that the room is going for. For instance, antique picture frames will do well with classic furniture but will clash when used in a room that is furnished with modern contemporary pieces.

-  How does the frame highlight the photo? You have selected the photos you want to display for a reason – these are pictures that showcase some of your most cherished memories of loved ones and friends, or of favorite subjects. The right frame should be a great foil for the photos, showing them off, rather than directing the attention to the frame. If the picture has a lot of things going on, then the frame should be made of simple lines so that the whole ensemble will not look too busy. On the other hand, soft and flowing photos can use frames that feature more details.

Now, with these two considerations, let’s take a look at some elements that will help lead you to making your choice:

-  Whether to use matting or not. Matting is one or more paper boards that fall in between the edges of the photo and the frame itself. It is used to add to the beauty of the overall look. Adding matting is optional – it will also call for a bigger frame. However, matting is useful in helping extend the life of the photo since it prevents the photo from sticking to the surface of the glass, where it can come into contact with moisture.

-  Color. What isthe color that stands out in the photo? You can choose the exact shade of matting to match the predominant color. The color of the frame should then closely match the color of the matting. However, you don’t necessarily need to have the colors match all the time. Rather, both the photo and the frame can be selected to complement each other. The secret is in creating a delicate balance between how the room looks like and how the frame is in harmony with the photo.

-  Size. Of course, the size of the frame should be bigger than the photo. The question is, how big? It really depends on the look you are going for. You can choose wide frames with wide matting for small or medium-sized photo. However, make sure that the frames do not dwarf the photo. Carefully measure the dimensions of the photo, as well as the width of the matting.

-  Shape. You should consider not just the shape of the frame but also the shape and type of molding. Classic favorites for frames include square, round and oval frames. These classic shapes are easier to match with different types and looks a room has. You can also choose a more eclectic shape, such as an octagonal or heart-shaped frame. As for the molding, the widths can range from half an inch thick to 3-inch thick moldings. The frame can also feature simple flat molding or more elaborate molding that features carving.

-  Material of the frame. First, depending on the size of the frame, the material should be able to provide the structural support so that the frame will not come apart when it is hung on the wall. The bigger the frame, the stronger the structural support should be. Popular materials used for frames include metal, wood, as well as fiberglass and plastic. In addition, frames come in a variety of textures and tones. Some wood or metal frames can also be coated with silver or gold leaf.

-  Type of glass used. The glass of the frames should prevent glare so that the pictures don’t look blurred or streaked. You can choose from among convex glass, clear flat glass or UV flat glass. The material can be real glass or acrylic glass. UV glasses protect from damage caused by the sun’s rays.