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My favorite way to update a thrifted piece of art is to snap it into a nice new frame. This is usually pretty easy as 8/10 of the pieces I find are in standard canvas sizes however, every once in a while I happen upon a piece in a weird size and framing a non-standard size piece can cost lots of dollars.
Last week I gave a little overview of custom framing (HERE). I talked about some terms to know and where to turn for budget friendly custom frame options as well as standard size options at great prices. Even when choosing a custom frame from one of the options I highlighted custom framing can add up quickly and become cost prohibitive for some budgets. I think creating a beautiful home should be something everyone can achieve and I don’t want anyone to feel like they can’t get the look they desire with their budgetary parameters. This is a perfect little framing hack to help you frame those oddly shaped canvases without shelling out lots of $$$ in the process. Let’s go!
This hack will require you to use a back loading frame. The first thing I do is measure the art piece. My piece measures 12 3/8″ x 16 3/8″. Then I find the frame that I like, HERE is my go to. I choose the smallest frame size that will fit the art (it should be bigger than the artwork). I chose a 14”x18” frame.
Next I figure the difference in the inside of the frame and the canvas. I already know the inside measurements of the frame (14″ x 18″) and we said that the canvas measures 12 3/8″ x 16 3/8″, I will just subtract the canvas measurements from the frame measurements for my answer. In decimal form that equation would look like 14 – 12.375= 1.625 ; 18 – 16.375= 1.625 ; 1.625 = 1 5/8.
I now have a margin size of 1 5/8″ for both the vertical and horizontal margins, but I have 4 sides so I need to divide each margin by 2 to get the margin size for each side. 1.625 % 2 = 0.8125. 0.8125″ is the size of trim that I will need to fill the margins around each side of the canvas. That is going to be mark no. 13 on a tape measure, right in between 3/4 and 7/8. The next step is to cut wood to use in the margins of the frame.
I use pre-primed wood trim that I have left over from a project and I send it through my table saw with the fence set to 0.8125 from the blade. After I have a piece of trim cut to the width of the frame margin I mark and cut the trim to the lengths the frame requires, once again my frame is 14″ x 18″. (Now, this is where I could get really fancy and use a miter saw to cut mitered corners and we might actually do that here at a later date but I have a couple of reasons why I chose to do it this way… No1. I’m showing you something v.easy – anyone can do this! I didn’t want to throw angled cuts at you right off the bat. No.2 pick your battles, this frame is going up high in a stairwell gallery wall, chances are no one is going to see the seams where the margin trims join up. No. 3 my miter saw is down )Two sides will be longer than the others, I choose the side margins to be the longer sides so I go ahead and cut those at 14″
After all those margin trims are cut I pop those into my frame and measure the remaining distance to determine my horizontal trim lengths and cut them. I “dry-fit” them into the back of the frame with the canvas just to make sure everything will fit nice and snug. As I do this I go ahead and label the back of each trim, top, bottom, left and right.
I paint my margins with black spray paint. You could go with any color. I think they would even be really cool wrapped in a fabric or a fun paper depending on the art piece but I think black adds contrast to this specific piece.
I then arrange the margin trims around my canvas, I do this with the art and trims face down so that I can refer to the labels I wrote on the back of the trims.
Lining up the trims face down also helps me ensure that the trim is level with the front of the artwork.
Then I use a trim nailer to attach the margin trim around the canvas. Once the trim is nailed around the perimeter I can place my art into the frame.
And there it is, an affordable, effective way to frame a funky sized art piece. And doesn’t it look great!?
Thanks for coming back again! I hope you can use this hack in your own home and let me know if you have fun thrifted art in your home.
