Modern picture frame — 6-karat white gold leaf, made to measure

A narrow, flat profile and the cool gleam of white gold — a frame conceived for contemporary painting, photography and prints. The 20mm wide, 30mm deep moulding forms a slim, evenly reflective border around the work — restrained enough not to obscure the composition, distinct enough to close it with a clean metallic accent. The face is water-gilded with 6-karat white gold leaf laid on a red bolus and burnished to a mirror-like finish; the hand-painted black satin sides give the frame a clear, geometric rhythm. This is a picture frame made to measure in the workshop, fitted individually to each work.

For which paintings and which interiors

The profile of this frame sits best with contemporary painting — abstraction, geometric composition, monochrome work, restrained landscape. It works equally well for fine-art photography (black-and-white as well as colour), prints, collectors' posters and typographic editions. The rabbet depth allows the frame to take an oil or acrylic painting on a stretcher up to 25mm deep.

In interiors of wood, raw concrete or white — where the appeal lies in the contrast between warm and cool material — the white sheen of 6-karat gold acts as an accent that brightens the composition without introducing another colour. In gallery rooms, loft apartments and minimalist domestic interiors it serves as a discreet but distinct boundary between wall and image. In classical settings dominated by warm tones — honey-coloured wood, brass, deep green — it works as a contrasting, fresh accent.

Technical specification

• style: modern, minimalist
• moulding profile: flat, plain
• moulding width: 20mm
• moulding depth: 30mm
• rabbet: 7mm wide × 25mm deep
• frame material: solid wood with low tannin content, used in museum conservation and fine-art framing
• corner joinery: keyed wood splines, fitted while the moulding is still raw
• face finish: water gilding with 6-karat white gold leaf on red bolus, burnished to a high gloss, sealed with traditional shellac and wax
• side finish: hand-painted in black, satin sheen finished with wax
• hangers: factory-fitted hooks for both portrait and landscape orientation
• optional: glass, archival backing, matting (priced individually — see below)
• lead time: 20–30 working days

The dimensions entered in the calculator refer to the picture, not the finished frame. The frame is built 2–3mm larger than the dimension given — a technical clearance that lets the artwork sit cleanly inside the rabbet. The actual overlap of the moulding onto the picture is around 4–5mm along each side. External frame dimension = picture dimension + 2 × moulding width.

How this frame is made

Construction begins with solid wood, joined with keyed wood splines before the surface is finished. This joinery gives the frame dimensional stability and resistance to seasonal movement of the wood — corners do not open up with changes in humidity.

The moulding is then prepared for water gilding: a layer of chalk-and-glue gesso, the red bolus (a fine clay that lends the gold a deep, warm undertone seen through the metal) and finally the size that holds the leaf. Sheets of real 6-karat white gold leaf — about 80 × 80 mm each — are cut to the moulding's width on a gilder's cushion with a special knife, then laid and tamped down one at a time. Once dry, the face is burnished to a high gloss — the stage that gives the frame its characteristic, near-mirror reflection. The sides are hand-painted in black and finished with wax, which produces the soft satin sheen; the gilded face is sealed in the traditional way, with shellac and wax.

The whole process — from cutting the moulding to sealing the finish — takes place in a single workshop and runs over several working days, with the rest periods needed for each layer of gesso, bolus and gold leaf to dry.

How it differs from a mass-produced frame

Industrially produced frames typically use softwood moulding wrapped in metal-look foil — not real gold leaf — or sprayed with a metallic paint. The result is uniform but superficial: under direct light the artificial gloss, the foil edges and a flat, surface-level reflection that does not enter the material are all visible.

Water-gilded leaf is a different category of finish altogether. The red bolus shows faintly through the gold and gives the surface a depth that paint cannot reproduce. The leaf — unlike foil — reflects light with the subtle irregularity that comes from being laid and burnished by hand; it is precisely this irregularity that, on a frame seen in person, separates craft from imitation. The keyed-spline joinery (rather than mitre-glued moulding wrapped in pre-finished foil) preserves the frame's dimensions for the long term. The substrate — solid wood with low tannin content — is the same material used in museum conservation and fine-art framing. A water-gilded frame, properly made, has a working life measured in decades — this is the technique used for centuries to frame works that enter museum collections.

Function and fit

A 25mm rabbet depth takes a stretcher of standard depth. For thicker stretchers (up to 40mm) the rabbet can be deepened to order. The reverse is fitted with two standard hangers, allowing the frame to be hung in either portrait or landscape orientation.

For canvases where the sides of the stretcher itself are intended to remain visible, the frame is also available without a rabbet — as a floater frame: the canvas sits in a gap inside the moulding, with the edges of the stretcher exposed. The classic choice for contemporary painting and premium framing.

Complete framing — additional options

Every frame can be completed with a full archival mounting prepared in the workshop: glass, archival backing and matting. All components are available as a custom add-on — quote on request.

Glass — four classes available

Opti White, 4mm — low-iron glass with a neutral, colourless appearance (no green tint typical of standard float glass). Available up to 90×90 cm — the only option for larger works.

Ultra Vue UV70 (Tru Vue), 2.0mm — anti-reflective glass with 70% UV protection, low-iron. Available up to 60×80 cm.

Art View — premium-class anti-reflective glass: reflection reduced below 1%, up to 75% UV protection, scratch-resistant coating, low-iron, can be cut and mounted from either side. Meets ISO 18916 (Photographic Activity Test) — safe for archival photography. Premium quality at an accessible price. Available up to 60×80 cm.

Optium Museum Acrylic (Tru Vue) — top-tier museum acrylic: over 99% UV protection, museum-grade reflection reduction, anti-static, lightweight, shatter-resistant. The museum standard for conservation work and archival photography. Available up to 60×80 cm.

Archival backing

Dibond 3mm aluminium composite panel — two layers of aluminium with an acid-free polymer core. Rigid, chemically neutral, dimensionally stable. An industry standard in archival photographic framing and art conservation.

Mounting and matting

Acid-free foam board — chemically neutral, will not yellow over time, will not react with paper or photographic emulsions. Archival standard.

Full museum framing

Combining anti-reflective UV-filtering glass, acid-free matting, Dibond backing and conservation hinging tapes provides a museum-grade mounting — protecting the work from light damage, acid migration from typical framing materials, and mechanical distortion. This type of framing is used in museums, galleries and private collections.

To order: all of the above components are available as a frame add-on on request. Please get in touch with the dimensions of your work and your preferred glass class — I will prepare an individual quote.

To order

Each frame is made individually for the specific work. To place an order:

1. Measure the picture's width and height precisely (to 0.1 cm).
2. Enter the dimensions in the calculator — the dimensions refer to the picture; the frame is built with a 2–3mm technical clearance.
3. Add the product to the basket — the calculator will compute the price.

The base price shown on the page is the price per linear metre of moulding. The picture's perimeter is not the full length of moulding the frame consumes — corners cut at 45° take additional length, more of it the wider the moulding. The calculator accounts for full moulding usage with corner waste, and for any add-ons selected: glass, backing, hardware.

Custom options on request:

• bolus colour under the gilding (red, grey, green, blue, black — each gives a different final tone)
• leaf metal (6-karat white gold, 12-karat white gold, 22-karat moon gold, 23-karat yellow gold, palladium, fine silver)
• side finish (satin finished with wax, or high gloss finished with lacquer)
• side colour (in place of the standard black)
• floater frame (built without a rabbet)
• deeper rabbet for thicker stretchers

Lead time: 20–30 working days. For custom modifications please get in touch — I will prepare a quote and confirm the timeline.