How to Frame Different Types of Artwork

A painting on stretched canvas, a watercolour on paper, a christening gown, a campaign medal and a bevelled mirror have almost nothing in common as objects, yet people often expect one standard frame to suit them all. It rarely does. To frame different types of artwork well you have to start from the object itself: what it is made of, how it behaves over time and how it needs to be held. In my workshop I build every frame from raw timber and finish it by hand, so each commission begins with that question rather than with a moulding pulled from a catalogue.

This guide walks through how I approach the main categories of work I am asked to frame, from prints and photographs to textiles, three-dimensional objects, mirrors and documents. The materials and the mounting change with each one, but the principle stays the same: a good frame protects the piece first and presents it second.

Why every type of artwork needs a different framing approach

Most framing decisions come down to a small set of technical choices, and the right answer depends entirely on the medium. The rebate depth has to match the thickness of the object, whether that is a sheet of paper a fraction of a millimetre thick or a boxed medal that stands well proud of its mount. The glazing has to suit the surface: works on paper and photographs need protection from ultraviolet light, while an oil painting is usually framed without glass at all. The mounting has to be reversible, so the work can be taken out again in twenty or fifty years without damage. Get these three things wrong and even a beautiful frame will let the artwork deteriorate inside it.

That is why I treat framing as a structural and conservation problem before it becomes a decorative one. The look of the moulding matters, of course, and most of my clients come to me precisely because they want a hand-finished or gilded frame rather than a machined one. But the decisions that determine whether a piece survives are the quiet ones: the board it sits on, the way it is hinged, the glass in front of it and the joints holding the corners together.

How I frame prints, photographs and posters

Works on paper are the most vulnerable things I handle. Paper reacts to light, humidity and contact, so the framing has to create a stable, buffered environment rather than simply hold the sheet flat. Three elements do most of the work here: a window mount, conservation-grade materials and the right glazing.

Prints and fine art editions

For an etching, lithograph, screen print or giclée I almost always use a window mount, the card border traditionally called a passe-partout. It is not only decorative. The mount lifts the glazing off the surface of the print so the paper never touches the glass, which prevents the image sticking, cockling or developing condensation marks. I cut mounts from acid-free, pH-neutral board, because ordinary card releases acids over time and burns a brown line into the paper along the window edge. The print is held with reversible hinges or photo corners, never glued down, so a future owner or conservator can release it cleanly.

Photographs

Photographs need the same buffered, reversible mounting, with one addition: glazing that filters ultraviolet light. UV is what fades a colour photograph and shifts the tones of a black and white print, and a UV-filtering or museum glass slows that dramatically. A warm, hand-finished moulding suits family and portrait photography particularly well, and a thin gilded edge can lift a simple monochrome image without overwhelming it. If you want to see the moulding profiles I keep for this kind of work, my range of photo frames is a good starting point, and anything there can be made to your exact dimensions. When a piece is genuinely valuable or irreplaceable, I would point you towards full archival and museum framing, which uses conservation board and museum glass throughout.

Posters and collectable editions

Large posters and collectable film or exhibition editions bring their own problems: size, weight and the fact that owners often want to swap the display over time. For these I build deeper, stable frames with spacers that keep the glazing clear of the paper, and I size the rebate so the sheet sits comfortably without being pressed. Posters printed on heavier stock can be float-mounted so the full edge of the sheet shows, which suits modern graphic work. If the piece is a print on canvas rather than paper, the approach changes again, and I cover that in my notes on framing canvas prints.

How I frame canvas and oil paintings

Stretched paintings are framed in the opposite way to works on paper. There is normally no glass, the rebate has to be deep enough to take both the canvas and its stretcher bars, and the join between frame and painting carries real weight. Because this is such a large subject in its own right, I have written about it separately rather than repeating it here. For the full method I use, see my page on framing oil paintings, and for a practical comparison of profiles read my guide to the types of frames for canvas paintings. If you like the contemporary, gallery look in which the canvas sits in open space without the moulding touching it, that is achieved with an American box frame, which floats the painting inside the frame.

How I frame textiles, embroidery and three-dimensional objects

Some of the most rewarding commissions I take on are not flat at all. Textiles, samplers, fans, christening gowns, medals and small sculptural objects all need framing that supports them without piercing, gluing or crushing them, and that usually means building depth into the frame.

Textiles and embroidery

Fabric must never be stuck down. I mount textiles and embroidery onto a padded, acid-free board and secure them with fine stitches that pass through the backing rather than the work itself, so the piece keeps its own shape and can be released later without trace. Heavier pieces are supported across their whole surface to take the strain off the fibres, because a textile hung from a single edge will distort and tear under its own weight in time. The glazing is held well clear of the surface so the weave is never compressed against the glass.

Shadow box framing for objects and memorabilia

For anything with real depth, a medal group, a christening gown, sporting memorabilia, a piece of family militaria or a small carving, I build what is usually called a shadow box: a deep frame that creates a protected space behind the glazing. Objects are held on hidden mounts, pinned or stitched into a fabric-covered backboard so nothing visible takes the load. Because every object is a different size and weight, this is never a stock product. It is exactly the kind of work I take on as a bespoke frame, designed around the specific piece and the way you want it displayed.

How I frame mirrors

A mirror is part artwork and part architectural fitting, and it has to be framed for both. The glass is heavy and the frame carries that weight on the wall for years, so wide or ornate profiles need internal bracing and secure fixings rather than the light fittings used on a small picture. Where a mirror hangs also matters: a bathroom frame has to tolerate humidity, while a large hallway or living room mirror needs hanging hardware rated for the load. I make mirrors to measure in the same hand-finished and gilded profiles I use for picture frames, so the frame around your mirror can match the frames around your art. You can see the range in my categories of framed mirrors and decorative mirrors.

How I frame maps, documents, diplomas and medals

Paper documents share everything I described for prints, with an extra emphasis on conservation, because the things people frame in this category often have sentimental or historical value: old maps, certificates, letters and family papers. I use acid-free mounts and UV-filtering glazing throughout, and for fragile or one-sided documents I can float-mount the sheet so its natural edges are visible, or encapsulate it for protection without adhesive.

Diplomas, certificates and awards are slightly different, because here presentation carries weight: the frame is meant to give the document a sense of occasion. A restrained gilded moulding does this beautifully, which is why graduation certificates and professional qualifications so often end up in gold. If that is the effect you are after, my gold-gilded frames are made for exactly this. Medals can be mounted in the same way as other objects, recessed into a deep mount so they sit securely without the ribbon being stressed or the metal scratched.

Choosing materials that protect the work for decades

Whatever the medium, the same set of materials decides how long the result lasts. I build frames from solid, kiln-dried timber rather than composite mouldings, and I join the corners with mortise-and-tenon joinery rather than relying on glue and V-nails. A gessoed and gilded frame in particular has to survive the moisture cycling and weight of its own surface, and a properly cut joint is what keeps the corners tight and the line straight for decades.

On the conservation side, the constants are acid-free, pH-neutral mounts and backing, reversible hinging, spacers or mounts that keep the surface off the glazing, and UV-filtering glass wherever light is a risk. For decorative finishes I use the traditional method of water gilding, laying genuine gold leaf by hand over a coloured bole ground, which is the same technique used on antique and museum frames and ages far more gracefully than a printed gold effect. This combination of materials is also a large part of why hand-built framing costs more than a high-street frame, a question I answer in detail in my article on why professional framing is priced the way it is.

Frequently asked questions

Can one frame style work for different types of artwork?

A single profile can be adapted across several media, and many clients do choose one family of finish so a collection hangs together. What cannot stay the same is the construction behind the moulding: the rebate depth, the mount, the glazing and the mounting all have to be matched to each individual piece.

Do prints and photographs really need UV glass?

If the piece has any value to you and will hang in daylight or under bright lighting, yes. Ultraviolet light is the main cause of fading and tonal shift in works on paper and photographs, and a UV-filtering or museum glass is the simplest way to slow that down significantly.

How do you frame something three-dimensional, like a medal or a christening gown?

In a shadow box: a deep frame that holds the object on hidden mounts inside a protected, glazed space. Nothing visible takes the weight, the object never touches the glass, and the whole thing is built to the dimensions of that specific piece.

Why should textiles never be glued into a frame?

Adhesives stain, become brittle and make the work impossible to remove safely later. A textile mounted with fine stitches onto a padded acid-free board keeps its shape, carries its weight evenly and can always be released without damage.

Can you frame an artwork I already own and to my exact size?

Yes. Almost everything I make is built to measure around an existing piece. Send me the dimensions and a photograph and I will recommend the right construction, mount and finish for that particular type of artwork.

Framing any type of artwork, made to measure

Whether you are framing a print, a photograph, a canvas, a textile, an object, a mirror or a treasured document, the right answer is a frame built for that specific piece rather than an off-the-shelf fit. Everything I make is a custom picture frame, hand-built in my workshop and finished to your specification. If you have something you would like framed, get in touch with the dimensions and an image, and I will come back to you with a recommendation and a price.