Our completion time for picture framing is usually 1 to 2 weeks if the job is not urgent or ASAP and as negotiated with th
e customer during the picture framing consultation. Truth is most picture framing can't be done yesterday. A couple of good reasons for this. Firstly, picture framing is an not only an exact craft, but can be exacting as well. For instance, if we make a wet or dry mounting mistake with a customer's artwork usually this can't be fixed and the we'd really be in trouble. And secondly, when rushing work, window mats and or picture frames may be cut wrong. This is because we often need to calculate 8 disparate measurements just to cut one mat. If we get it wrong, we have to do it again.
This means doing the job twice and thus, unprofitably. That said simple picture framing or straight forward photo frames and picture frames, without matting or ancillary work can be done right and pretty quickly, so don't hesitate to speak to us or your picture framer if your job is really urgent. On most occasions we do this anyway and do stay back after hours to finish that rush job for the morning. We find that customers really appreciate this.
However, there are various kinds, or circumstances, in picture framing where picture frames just can't be done in a day or two, or quickly at all. A drying oil painting on canvas is a prime example that comes readily to mind. Some paintings can take months to dry even if they do feel dry to the touch. When we stretch frame an oil on canvas, we have to turn it upside down so as to stretch-staple the four sides. If the oil painting is thick and still drying, we could actually smudge the painting and potentially ruin it.
This is why sometimes canvases can't be stretch-framed right away. Another example is a tightly rolled up, valuable or original document which requires hinging and matting. This art cannot be dry or wet-mounted as it requires reversible mounting by hinging. Therefore the rolled up paper has to to be flattened or 'relaxed' as conservators call it, so that it will better handle, present and display when framed.
This is normally done by leaving the art pressed under a couple of sheets of weighted glass for several days or a few weeks. Again, this type of picture framing cannot be hurried. A last example would be of musty or mouldy framed art from a deceased's estate or auction house. We find that often, framed etchings, watercolours and other works on paper, may be kept in unventilated, darkened, damp, humid, closed rooms for lengthy periods of time.
These conditions are ideal for the growth and distribution of fungal spores, mould and mildew. Often, we get strange looks, when the first thing we do when someone brings in framed art, is to bend down to it and smell it. And smell it we can. Again, in these cases, we need to de-frame the art and let it air to kill the spores, before re-framing. Once more, this one type of picture framing that will take time and just cannot be done urgently. Thank you for reading this post " What is your turn-around or completion time for picture framing."
Don’t know about you but my local picture framer is quite helpful, though, then again, he mightn’t be that busy. Well, I dropped off in the morning a poster for a birthday present I forgot, to be framed for the afternoon, after work. He did the picture frame no problem and didn’t charge me any extra. Of course I just wanted a basic picture frame, without mats, borders, frills or fillets. All these things take longer as I know because I get stuff picture framed regularly. So my advice is, most picture framers should be able to do same-day, photo frames or picture frames, if it’s a basic job. If they can’t, just go online and find somewhere else!
Thanks for the information! It’s actually quite an interesting article and the concepts therein can be applied to -any- organizational task, not just picture framing or making picture frames!
Great article. I had a rush job i needed done for my sister prior to her birthday. It was a necklace that i wanted done and boxed out with several mats. The picture framer informed me it would take 3 days of more for him to do this as it was quite intricate and he needed to "Think about how he going to do it". I walked away from the consultation secretly annoyed that he couldn’t do it quicker but remembered that he is a tradesman and things cant be rushed. When i came back for it, i couldn’t be happier. It was a real work of art. He did in two days and he really did a fantastic job. He thanked me for not rushing him and that he was glad to do it as it was a new experience for him. Sometimes you just need to let a person work, without constraints. Like the article said, its not an exact science. He said he mostly had to improvise. Fast forward 5 years it still hangs on my sisters wall looking just as good as the day i picked it up and she couldn’t care less that it was a day late. Sometimes slow is better.