Custom Framing for Flat Screen Televisions

Surround a wall mounted flat screen television with a beautiful custom frame to give your room a more finished look. Custom framing for flat screen televisions can be coordinated with your décor to create an attractive focal point or a less conspicuous look. We can help you create a custom frame for your TV that will complement your room and hide unattractive hanging brackets.

Custom Framing Flat Screen Televisions

There are many creative possibilities to consider when choosing a frame to add some style to your wall-hung flat screen television. Framing alone can tastefully conceal the television. Incorporate the TV into a new or a existing gallery wall. Or cover the television with a canvas when not in use and it will look like artwork. Our staff of professionals can help you determine a plan that best fits the environment and your vision for the room. We can assist you with the selection and safe installation of a frame to add beauty to your room and eliminate electronic eyesores.

Start by choosing moulding with substantial depth to house a wall-mounted television such as shadow box moulding or stacked frames. The moulding can be selected according to your personal preference and decor. We’ll come measure the mounted television’s size and determine the necessary depth for the frame. The frame will be custom built in our gallery. It will then be delivered it to your home or office, and our experienced professional staff will securely install it.

Custom Framing Flat Screen TelevisionsWe were very excited to assist a local client who wanted to disguise a television in the main room when she had guests come to her home. She commissioned Birmingham artist Kate Merritt Davis to paint a floral scene for a cover for the television and hired us for the framing. We began with construction of the frame. First we determined the size, then cut an opening in a metal panel and used fabric to wrap the metal. Kate’s acrylic painting was stretched onto canvas with wood supports and sized according to the television measurements. We then assembled and installed the stunning new piece above the fireplace. Our client is so happy to have a unique creation that enhances her home for both entertaining and personal enjoyment.

Custom Framing Flat Screen Televisions
Gallery walls are very popular and a fun way to bring some personality and creativity to a room. To create a gallery wall, surround the mounted television with a group of artwork, photos, and favorite items. The art becomes a visual field for the television, helping it to blend with your décor and become less of a focal point in the room. Our staff can help you curate your television gallery wall and perform a safe, secure installation.

The framing and installation process can be completed in as little as three weeks. Come in or call today and let us help you frame your mounted flat screen television to create a look for your home or workplace that you’ll love to show-off.

 

Custom Framing Perspectives

There are many choices available today in framing materials for creating beautiful custom frames. Frames have traditionally been made from wood, and we have over three thousand beautiful options for wood frames including top-of-the line European moldings. We also offer many intriguing opportunities for creating a unique frame with leather, acrylic, steel or aluminum. All of these high-quality frames are a good investment that will help protect your artwork for years to come.

HANDMADE LEATHER

Distinctive handcrafted leather covered frames have beauty, character, and durability. Our high-quality leather wrapped frames are made of fine Peruvian material from House of Mercier and crafted by expert leatherworkers who have been trained in the horse saddle manufacturing business. The leather of each of the frame is hand tooled with designs that enhance the unique qualities of the leather in each piece.

leather custom frames

“Our people used to work in the saddle business, providing to the horseman the well-known El Caballo Paso saddles. Each hide has been carefully chosen. We look for the right quality and age that will allow the proper tooling, texture and finishing. Every piece is handmade by our expert craftsman who use special tools to create the beautiful patterns developed exclusively for House of Mercier.

The hand tooling is an ancient technique used in Peru for more than 500 years. House of Mercier uses only high quality products for the mounting and the finishing. Long legacies of the technique and experience have been handed down over generations to produce these quality products.

All of the accessories or ornaments as buttons, stitching, and hand tooling, are planned to show the authenticity of the leather in each piece. Completely unique. The House of Mercier Line is developed by our own designers and craftsmanship. The materials that we use are carefully chosen to achieve a quality end product” (Raul Mercier).

ACRYLIC

Handcrafted, seamless, high-grade acrylic custom frames from Prisma are both beautiful and versatile. These frames can have a contemporary or retro look and compliment both traditional and modern settings. Color, shape and pattern can be combined for original frame creations in clear or sanded finishes.

acrylic custom framesPart art and part science, Prisma Frames combine engineering ingenuity with a passion for great picture frame design. Bella Moulding, the parent company to Prisma, is proud to offer designs that spill outside the limits of traditional picture framing. Bella Moulding is a national distributor of distinctly creative and beautiful picture frame moulding.

Filling a unique niche for extraordinary framing, Prisma Frames are highly sought after in galleries and frame shops from coast to coast. Prisma Frames find a home in any residential or commercial design-driven environment.

Choose from nine shapes with subtle curves or clean lines. Sharp or rounded corners can be combined with convex or concave exteriors. There are 46 vibrant colors to choose from and 19 artistic options for continuous, repeating patterns.

STEEL

Welded steel frames range in finish from sleek and sophisticated to rough and industrial.

steel custom frames

Each shape can be left raw, showing off the original mill scale and character of the steel itself, or ground to a fine finish and then tinted in one of several beautiful finish colors. The finishes we apply to our welded steel frames contain UV protective components and form a durable coating that will protect the metal from corrosion and oxidation.

Whether you are seeking an urban, industrial feel for an artist’s loft or a clean, contemporary look for a gallery space, our welded steel frames make an indelible impression.

 

 

 

 

 

Custom Framing Guide for Art and Photos

Need to custom-frame some artwork but feel overwhelmed by all the choices? You’re not alone. Selecting a frame can be overpowering for many people. Aside from the different colors and finishes, you’ve got to consider scale, the design of the piece and whether to use a mat or two — or three. Conservation, acidity, and UV- and infrared-blocking capabilities come into the mix too. This is an excellent, concise custom framing guide for art and photos. It covers mat materials and scale, frame selection, framing trends, types of glass and offers good general guidelines for framing. It even has a section on ‘going frameless’ for paintings on a canvas stretched over wood stretcher bars and giclee prints. The product information and detail is accurate and comprehensive, and it’s easily understandable for anyone not involved in the industry. It can help you get in the right frame of mind to make educated choices.

Your Guide to Custom Framing Photos and Art

Get the lowdown on framing materials, methods and more! From Karen Egly-Thompson, a former interior designer turned interiors writer with degrees in art and interior design

.Custom Framing Guide for art and photos

 

Fine Art Restoration and Conservation

One of our specialties at Four Corners Gallery is fine art restoration for your sentimental pieces on paper. While we can do this digitally through our Photo Restoration services, it’s not your only option. The inherent nature of an original is better served by being properly treated and repaired rather than reproduced when possible. Restoration can be stunningly transformative in returning a piece to the initial beauty of its creation.

Poor environmental conditions, inferior or non-conservation framing materials, mishandling, and a variety of mishaps are some reasons damage can occur. These problems detract from both your enjoyment of the piece and its value. We work closely with professional paper conservators who will clean, flatten, remove tape and adhesive residue, patch and stabilize tears, and replace missing pigment and paper. Not only will your restored work look nicer, it will also be conserved, halting further damage that may occur as a result of the paper’s natural properties. Additionally, restoration can return value lost from damage that keeps it from being considered in mint condition.

No matter how obscure or damaged, don’t give up on your piece. Check out our website for a complete list of damage that we commonly see and can remedy.

Below are some examples of works we have been privileged to assist our clients in restoring.

 

Picasso

Clearly, a Picasso can hold quite a bit of value.

Fine art restoration

This collector wanted to maintain their investment in this lithograph which had been damaged by the use of non-conservation framing materials, including regular glass. The original, acidic, paper matboard and cardboard backing added to the darkening in the form of acid burn. Poor mounting tape selection left behind residue. The use of a non uv-filtering glass caused the paper to lighten in the area not covered by the matting.

Fine art restoration

After a stint with the paper conservator the contrast from before to after is quite remarkable.

Fine art restoration

Fine art restoration

 

The Goal Line Stand by Daniel Moore

Our client was thrilled to uncover a 1979 Sugar Bowl limited edition print by the famous Daniel Moore at a garage sale. Unfortunately, there was extensive damage. The conservators were not only able to rid the artwork of the stains and water damage but also repair the tears.

Fine art restoration

 

Golden Gate Bridge Watercolor

This watercolor of the Golden Gate Bridge held quite a bit of sentimental value for our client. So, when a storm caused extensive damage to their home, it was imperative this very special piece be restored.

Fine art restoration

 

As you can see, water, dirt and mold stained the edges and broken glass punctured holes into the center.

Fine art restoration

While a bit of staining remains after the restoration, the mold was eradicated and the punctures were flattened and essentially eliminated. There are occasions, like this one, when a “bath” cleaning cannot be performed because there’s too much risk to sensitive ink or paint that may run or wash away.

Fine art restoration

 

Parting Day

This etching is a great example of the power of paper restoration. Many years ago frames were backed with wooden panels which we now know to be extremely acidic. When we removed the backing we discovered extensive damage to the paper: severe acid burn, a large tear, and foxing (unsightly brown spots caused by corroding particles). This etching is a Chine-collé which means it was printed on a thin tissue and mounted to a larger piece of thicker paper. In order to properly clean and restore the work, the tissue was lifted from the backing paper, both layers were cleaned, and the tissue was remounted.

Fine art restoration

,Below you can see the astounding difference a cleaning and restoration can make.

Fine art restoration

Has a special piece you own been damaged? Please contact us to discuss your options and allow us to assist you in bringing your work back to its former glory.

The Art of Installation

A piece of art can be very beautiful and have a great deal of value and sentiment but without proper installation the piece could face risk of damage. Often there are applications where professional installation is required due to the weight or location of a piece, complexity of a multiple piece arrangement, or precise space constraints. At Four Corners Gallery we are experienced designers and artisans and are especially sensitive to the aesthetic and practical considerations involved in art installation. We have the know-how to best present one piece, wall groupings and entire rooms. Our professionals will view your space, listen to your vision, and develop a plan that takes advantage of the environment and highlights the featured art.

Below are some photos of a truly custom frame job and its installation in a client’s home.

Art installation

The gorgeous 2-story fireplace was the perfect space to feature the photographer’s replication of Ghiberti’s
The Gates of Paradise in Florence, Italy.

 

Art installation

As you can see, the custom-built frame was quite tall, over 12 feet to be exact, and not to mention quite heavy.

 

Art installation

We were able to mount our client’s investment very securely to the brick wall, fulfilling his vision of a showstopping piece of art.

 

Our designers and installers can come to your home or office to arrange and hang your artwork and personal treasures. Our experienced staff is sensitive to the aesthetic and practical considerations involved in art installations. We have the know-how to best present a single piece, wall groupings, and entire rooms. We will view your space, listen to your vision, and develop a plan that takes advantage of the environment and highlights the featured art. Below is a small sampling of our work. For a quote, please contact us to provide details of your installation.
Art installation

Stairwells and heavy pieces can be tricky and are best left to professionals.

 

Art installation

Group family photos, heirlooms, and whimsical art pieces into a beautiful gallery wall.

 

Art installation

Office spaces.

 

Art installation

Healthcare environments.

Turn Old Photos into Works of Art

One of our specialties at Four Corners Gallery is turning an old or damaged photo into something even better than the original through photo restoration. We use state-of-the-art digital imaging techniques to restore prints of your cherished photographs to share with friends and family. Only the finest materials are used to ensure their survival — Epson Ultra Chrome pigmented inks that will last 100 years or longer and acid-free archival papers of all kinds. Improvements are be made by enhancing contrast, sharping details, adjusting the color balance, removing blemishes, and repairing torn or missing pieces. Similarly, we can eliminate unwanted details, such as distracting background patterns, to improve the composition of the photo. This photo is of our client’s great-grandfather.photo restoration

As you can see, over time, the page of the photo album that the photo was mounted in had caused the photo to yellow overall and to have some discoloration around the head and shoulders. Left untreated, this photo would eventually begin to disintegrate. We were able to scan this family heirloom into our computer and convert it into a rich black and white print as part of our 1 hour photo restoration service, shown here:

photo restoration

But the client had mentioned how there were other heirloom hand tinted images in her home and she wondered if this new image could match the existing. We were able to create a digital hand tinted look, shown here, as part of a roughly 2 hour photo restoration service:

photo restoration

We have a large selection of tabletop frames that are ready-to-go. This Roma Stone Etched Black frame perfectly complemented the photo:

photo restoration

But, as I mentioned, this client wanted to hang the photo in her home, so we chose a beautiful Larson Juhl Etrusca frame with an antique pewter acid-free mat.

photo restoration

Contact us today for our photo restoration services. Whether you are in the Birmingham, AL area, or anywhere else, we are ready and able to assist you in preserving your memories while creating a new work of art for your home.

Photograph Restoration

                 Photograph Restoration         Photograph Restoration

Photograph Restoration

From hundred year-old family portraits to wedding photos to your favorite snapshot from your last vacation, photographs are one of the best ways to capture memories. Even in the best of conditions photographs can suffer strange fates over time. Many of us remember that shoe box full of polaroids or the album with sticky, glue-lined pages full of faded, yellowing prints. Although we look back fondly on afternoons spent combing over these treasures, as it turns out these are very poor methods for storage. Temperature, humidity, adhesives, dust, insects, rips and tear, and even light itself, can be quite harmful. Since you can’t always predict what might happen preservation of these valuable photos is very important. This is where photograph restoration comes in.

Of all the different things that can happen to your photos, there are two main categories of damage: chemical deterioration and physical deterioration. Chemicals in the print itself undergo reactions over time either with catalysts in the environment or because the elements themselves are inherently unstable. Physical damage is represented by rips, tears, water stains, abrasive marks and stains left behind by insects, just to name a few.

Environmental factors like temperature and humidity fluctuations are problematic and can cause both chemical and physical damage. High humidity can cause problems like silver mirroring, discoloration and warping of the support layers in the photo. Silver mirroring is common in older photos and manifests as a silver/bluish reflective appearance in areas of dark shadows and is usually indicative of improper storage and unchecked humidity. In this process, air pollution and humidity team up (especially at higher temperatures) and oxidize the metallic silver in the emulsion layer of the photograph creating silver ions. These silver ions then migrate to the surface of the image giving the reflective, silvery/blue cast.

Light can also cause big problems with photos. Both natural UV light from the sun and man-made sources like fluorescent lights fade photos. Color photographs consist basically of red, green and blue (RGB) reactive dyes that, when exposed to light, create the final image. Of these three colors, red is usually the more resilient and as a result blue and green fade faster and leave behind the familiar reddish-orange look. Typically, color photos are more susceptible to fading than black and white photos due to the composition of the emulsion layer (the layer that reacts with light and actually creates the image). But fading isn’t dependent on light. Photos can fade in the dark (dark-fading) due to the inherent instability of the materials themselves. Obviously, older photos have had more time to experience these things, but also the way photo paper was made way back when contributes significantly to the likelihood of damage.

Rips and tears are pretty self-explanatory and can be more or less critical depending on where they happen. If a tear goes through some part of the background, or a solid area of color, it’s easier and less time consuming to repair. If, however, the crack, crease or tear runs through an important detail like someone’s face, it’s more difficult to repair. Creases, cracks, tears and water damage are some of the more common issues found in photos and can prove to be more troublesome. On the bright side, once a glaring physical issue like that is resolved, the result is astonishing.

Another challenge with older photos is air pollution. The presence of oxidants and/or sulfiding gases, as well as dust particles and other indoor pollution, can greatly affect your photos. The worst part is that these things can come from oddly surprising places, like plywood, cardboard, paint fumes and cleaning supplies. Of the many problems these factors cause, foxing is one of the more common.

Foxing is the term used to describe the appearance of speckles throughout a photograph; it is typically seen in older, vintage papers. The exact cause of foxing is not well understood but there are many theories. One theory is that it is caused by clusters of microscopic fungus that clump together to form the small dots. Another is oxidation. Much like rusting metal, oxygen mixes with elements in the photo to create brown or reddish (like the color of a fox, hence the name foxing) spots. Still another theory is humidity, which is a broader explanation and usually associated with other factors.

At Four Corners Gallery we use state-of-the-art technology and processes to restore and recover images that would have otherwise been lost for good. In doing so we are able to not only give you quality, archival prints that will long outlast traditional photographic prints, but we retain digitized copies in our records should you want additional prints, different sized photos, or, heaven forbid a replacement because something happened to your newly-restored print. Think of this process as an insurance policy that protects your cherished photos from any eventuality.

Photograph Restoration

Photograph Restoration

Photograph Restoration

Environmentally Friendly Sustainable Framing

Environmentally Friendly Sustainable Framing

Frame properly the first time. Increase longevity by utilizing uv-filtered glass/plexi, acid-free backing and mat boards and archival mounting methods.

Reframe using original framing components. Reuse art, backing, mat board, glass/acrylic and frame when possible.

Specify mouldings made of salvaged materials. Reclaimed woods from flooring and cabinetry and recycled metals from ceiling and siding offer an industrial look while also benefiting the environment.

Frame with antique frames. Antique frames offer character that may be potentially desirable. They can also be restored and refinished to look new.

Select mouldings made with easily renewable resources like bamboo. Bamboo is the fastest growing plant and doesn’t require replanting, fertilizers or insecticides.

Choose mouldings made by companies that practice forest stewardship and reforestation. Some manufacturers reuse and/or recycle excesses. Wood shavings are sent to animal farms for bedding. Larger pieces are sent to paper mills and steam-generating power plants to produce electricity and heat.

Specify mouldings with water-based stains. Unfortunately most finishes are achieved with the use of oils or chemical solvents. However, progress is being made with greater demand for environmentally friendly products.

Select mouldings made by manufacturers that use recycled packing materials. Look to companies that insist on recycled and/or biodegradable packing materials.

Choose mouldings that are regionally available. Decrease your energy consumption by selecting from manufacturers that have a regionally located distribution center.

How much is that doggie framing in the window? Art! Art!

custom framing cost

Truck Queen by Craig Gallaway

We often hear that a client doesn’t want to spend a lot of money to frame what they’ve just brought in for us to assist them with framing. The reality is that is true of most everyone and for most everything that comes through our doors. Another reality is we don’t want our clients to spend more than they want or need to either. What we do want is for the piece to look great, the client to be thrilled with the results but also confident their hard earned dollars were well spent.

Please keep in mind there is more to the cost of custom framing than the money you’ll spend. Our first objective is for each piece to look it’s best so we design first and foremost for the art or object itself. Some of the things we take into account are if the client has a vision of how they want it to look when it’s done, or where it will hang, or how large or small it needs to be when finished. One of the most important things to consider is that once you frame something it will likely stay that way for 10, 15, 20 years or even longer in some cases, so with that in mind we encourage everyone to consider the long term rewards not just the short term up front costs. This is why we use better materials on the front end. We want to create a better, safer environment for preservation for the long run. Knowing that we see a lot of damage from poor materials being used; we try to avoid that by suggesting conservation mats, UV protectant glass and proper mounting techniques to suit what is being framed.

Fall Dogs by Jane Marsahll

Fall Dogs by Jane Marshall

Another thing to consider about framing is that the cost of the artwork doesn’t make a difference if the same materials are being used and that goes for the frame, glass, mats, mounting technique or anything else within the framing. If it’s the same size and the same components are being used it will cost the same if you spent $2 or $20,000 on the art. Framing doesn’t discriminate a steal or an investment.

The main thing is to love the framed piece once you get it where it will be enjoyed by you or whomever is lucky enough to have a uniquely, custom-made creation.