If you’re like me, you almost always have artwork sitting around your house that needs to be framed. Maybe you’re not quite sure where to hang your pieces yet, or they require a non-standard size frame. Your beautiful artwork and photos remain leaning against a wall or hidden away in a drawer. Even as an artist, I know that situation well in my own home decorating adventures! Over the years designing art shows in my college days at RISD and opening my photography print shop, I’ve learned to embrace the benefits of custom framing as often as I can.

Custom framing gives you the professional creative guidance and high-quality materials you need to properly display your art. Not only that, you can also support local businesses and artists in the process! Keep reading for my favorite benefits of custom framing and a recent project I designed for a customer!

Custom Framing Project: Beach Houses Print

I recently worked with a customer to custom frame a Beach Houses print from my Sullivan’s Island collection. This customer knew she wanted a photograph for a specific wall in her laundry room. She wasn’t sure which of my prints would look best with her décor, or what size would work best. For this reason, the customer contacted me to ask my opinion and design a custom frame. We worked closely together to determine the best print, sizing, and style for her laundry room space.

Photograph & Space Options

To start the custom framing design process, I asked her for a few iPhone shots of her space. I also had her take some quick and dirty measurements marked with painter’s tape on the wall. This gave me a sense of scale as I pulled different print and sizing options into Photoshop.

She had narrowed down her favorite prints to three: Beach Houses, Lamboll Street, and 0 Tradd Jasmine. In order for her to see how the photographs looked in her laundry room, I Photoshopped in each framed print separately. Ultimately, she decided on Beach Houses because the blues in her tile and doors complemented the print so well.

Framing & Matting Options

At this point, we looked at some options for sizing, matting, and framing in Photoshop. We knew we wanted the print to be at least a 20×20” (my largest size option), ultimately measuring about 30×30” with a mat and frame. I Photoshopped in my standard framing and matting that would normally accompany a 20×20” print. I also created an option for a full-bleed image without a mat. After comparing the two, we both wondered if a rectangular shape frame was best suited for this particular wall.

I created one last Photoshopped option, this time with a weighted mat. The print size could remain the same while creating a frame shape that better balanced the laundry room space. It was a winner!

My customer loved the natural wood frame option available in my shop, so she chose that one. We could’ve gone even further with the customization and chosen from any number of frame and mat combinations at my local framer, too!

The Final Product

I was so excited to install and photograph this custom project! The Beach Houses print worked perfectly in my customer’s laundry room. The natural wood frame and blue color in the sky plays off the gold and blue accents in the room so well. Most importantly, my customer loves the piece and agreed that customizing the frame and mat was the way to go for this project!

Get the look

Find my Sullivan’s Island Beach Houses print with a natural wood frame here.

Time to Custom Frame!

Ready to finally frame those art pieces collecting dust in your home? There are plenty of online custom framing services these days, but nothing beats supporting your local professional framer (if you’re in Charleston, South Carolina like me, I recommend Artizom Framing!). Oftentimes, your local framer’s pricing is just as competitive as these online retailers. Your business means so much to them! Their personalized, knowledgeable touch is well worth it.

The benefits of custom framing reach beyond the priceless protection from damage and aging of your artwork. Custom framing allows you complete creative control when framing your art, photographs, and memorabilia. If you’ve got a piece of artwork or wall you’re unsure what to do with, head to your local professional framer and get to custom framing! Want more framing inspiration? Head to my post Ways to Display Framed Art in Every Room of the House.

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