I have a few posters I want to get mounted. They're not standard sizes; one is 51" x 25.5", two are 37.5" x 22.5".

Michael's wanted $240 and $135 (each), respectively. I thought that was insane. Framing shops in NYC charged less than half that when I used them. I don't want anything fancy. I want a black metal surround and glass cover. Cardboard back is fine.

A friend suggested AC Moore and I will check there but is there anywhere else I should look? I'm tired of all these blank spaces on the walls in the house.

1/6/2010 10:50:25 AM

ac moore will probably have pretty similar prices. sometimes you can get a half off coupon for michaels and ac moore in the newspaper

1/6/2010 10:57:22 AM

Those Michael's prices are for a 60% off promotion they're doing this week.

I think I need to look for a shop that is not part of a chain. I realize NYC has more competition but its beyond me how they have these absurd prices down here.

1/6/2010 11:02:42 AM

It boggles my mind that these places charge what they do. It's molding cut at 45 degree angles FFS.

1/6/2010 11:09:40 AM

this is something you definitely don't want to scrimp on...

you'll thank yourself in the long run if you pay a little bit extra and get good quality

1/6/2010 11:29:10 AM

Quote :

"you'll thank yourself in the long run if you pay a little bit extra and get good quality"

I can neither afford or justify these prices.

1/6/2010 11:34:10 AM

jesus christ, already 60% off, that is ridiculous. it might be cheaper to buy a mat cutter and a bunch of matting and do it yourself. just buy a standard frame. it still looks good if the matting is wider on the sides or top and bottom

1/6/2010 11:43:34 AM

oh, i hear ya. shit ain't cheap

i'm just sayin'...you wouldn't put 93 octane gas from FuelCity or Discount Gas or Smiley's in your car, even if it would mean saving a bit of money, would you?

1/6/2010 11:43:36 AM

You can find the materials needed to make this at craft stores and Lowes/Home Depot.

Lowes/Home Depot will cut glass or plexi-glass to fit the frame too. (i think)

1/6/2010 11:46:29 AM

^^of course, I'm not gonna buy a $30k sports car and then put shit gas in it

^I just might have to do that, thanks for the tip.

1/6/2010 11:52:45 AM

someone on TWW posted a site a while back that would make the custom frames for really really cheap and ship it to you... some assembly required, but the frame itself was already cut to the right size.

you'd probably still have to get it mounted on cardboard or foamboard or wahtever, but that's not terribly expensive even at michaels.

I'll see if i can find it.

[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 11:59 AM. Reason : a]

1/6/2010 11:57:29 AM

^^ exactly. same as how you wouldn't have a pretty poster mounted to cardboard with some rubber cement, then some cheap wood/metal tacked together around said cardboard. sure it might work for the time being, but you'll second guess yourself later

if you love it, you have to be willing to treat it well

[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 12:04 PM. Reason : 1]

1/6/2010 12:02:18 PM

He's talking about some fucking posters, kid.

Not family heirlooms or important documents or scrapbook materials.

1/6/2010 12:34:10 PM

yeah i have a hard time paying more for a frame/mounting than i did for the poster/art.

for truly valuable stuff i could see getting it professionally framed, but otherwise i just buy cheap frames and do it myself.

btw, 51" x 25" is huge, what is it?

1/6/2010 12:43:44 PM

a cock picture, I'm sure.

1/6/2010 12:46:45 PM

^I don't display photos of my own penis

It's an aerial black and white photograph of Lower Manhattan in 1926.

The two smaller ones are Porsche promotional posters (I like the artful style of their advertisments).

1/6/2010 12:55:08 PM

yeah, don't pay that much to frame posters. How much did the posters cost, and can they be replaced easily?

check out http://www.americanframe.com/.

you can order custom size matting and frames and just put it together yourself. It will be cheaper. not sure how much, but probably a good bit. The 51" may cost a little more though. You can even upload a photo of you poster/print to see what it would look like with whatever matte and frame you choose, if you even want a matte.

If you want to mount it to something, which isn't necessary (and you wouldn't normally do that with something of value), either get it done at michael's, ac moore, or do it yourself. I would just practice once with something you don't care about at all. You're talking about adhering something to a piece of foam board... not that hard. Toughest part is making sure you get all of the bubbles out. Aligning it is semi-important, but you can always trim the foam-board after the fact.

Here's another idea; instead of framing it, just get it mounted/mount it yourself. The mount will create depth, and since they're posters and probably easily replaced, who cares if you glue them down. If you want to add a lot of depth, you can add like 1/2 - 2" strips of wood around the edges. Paint the wood strips black, white, or what ever suits the image and the wall it's going on. It's a nice effect and won't cost you much at all.

[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 1:10 PM. Reason : .]

1/6/2010 1:01:56 PM

the NYC one was around $50, and the Porsche ones are priceless (technically) b/c you can't buy them.

^thanks for the tips!

this is a good thread

1/6/2010 1:12:33 PM

doesn't tim's mom do framing work?

1/6/2010 1:48:26 PM

business was down, so she didn't renew her business license...meaning she can't get supplies at cost anymore. so the days of getting everything framed for free or next-to-free are over


of course she still has all of the important stuff (class cutter, mitre saw, framing table, lots and lots of mats, tacks, etc) so if anybody wanted to buy the materials, she'd have no problem letting you use the tools

1/6/2010 1:52:08 PM