Wood Picture Frames: When You Want “Gorgeous”

There’s something about wooden picture frames that make them a classic. What began as an attempt to highlight only certain paintings inside caves (during the time of the Etruscans in the 2nd century BC) now is a full-blown three-way love affair between wood, humans and memory.

Fast forward to this century and solid wood picture frames are still as popular, although antique silver picture frames and pewter, glass and aluminum frames have also become popular. Wooden picture frames have an allure that can never be surpassed by acrylic and plastic frames.

Your classic wood picture frame used to come only in the one shade of its constituent material and looked rather plain. These days, wood frames have turned more artistic and now come with accents of silver or gold or the rich colors of cherry or other more exotic woods.

Personalized wood frames were formerly crafted only by hand. As they increased in popularity, wood frame manufacturers found a way to make picture frames in a semi-automated manner. This increased production and made it possible for enthusiasts to obtain picture frames much more inexpensively.

OIL AND WOOD

A classic pair in art is oil paintings and wooden picture frames. The two complement each other; artistic creations in wooden frames do become more credible as art pieces (notice that oil paintings in art galleries are always mounted in wooden frames). In general, wood frames come in different shapes. The oval-shaped wood frame is a great complement to a traditionally appointed room. Groupings of photos or drawings in their frames can become a focal point and a warm addition to a room’s ambience.

You don’t have to be limited to what you see in stores – wooden picture frames can actually be made to your specifications. But the current crop of wooden frames can roughly be classified into tabletop frames and wall-hanging styles, and they can either be hand painted, carved or classically plain. The tabletop frames are invariably smaller and work best as gifts and repositories of your own posterity. On the other hand, wall-mounted frames are frequently used to store collages or portraits.

One good thing about wood frames is that you can attach embellishments to them, and thus greatly enhance their beauty, through the use of beads, charms, tassels, small souvenirs or other objects. Then again, if you’re the minimalist type, you can always spray paint your wooden frame with an electric blue or some other equally effective color.

Aside from their beauty, wood picture frames are popular because they last a long time, sometimes even centuries and longer than the lifetime of the pictures they store. But over time, picture quality can greatly diminish because of pollution, conditions in the atmosphere, and dust and dirt. Always use matte or shiny glass or plexi-glass over the picture to prevent physical contamination. Strong light may eventually fade the photo, so preserve the crisp colors of a picture inside a wood picture frame by taking care in selecting the location where it will be displayed.

You can protect your pictures by using photo corners before mounting them inside a frame. Photo corners prevent warping by allowing a picture to move slightly while inside the frame. You can also protect your picture from discoloration by using a mat board to give space between a picture and the glass on top of the frame. Many ready-made frames have built-in matting, but for many purposes you can safely use those that do not. Surrounding yourself with personal mementos of family members, friends or events naturally contributes to the comfort and enjoyment you get from your surroundings.