Where to buy square picture frames?

Graham_Martin · Oct 16, 2009

I own a Hasselblad 501 c/m. Love the camera, love the prints, hate not being able to find square frames. Does any one have any suggestions as to where one can buy square frames (20"x20") that are reasonably priced? I would also like to know what people do so far as photo albums are concerned. The ones you find in the stores are pretty much for 4x6 prints wit maybe a couple of pages for 8x10.

Thanks!

Tom Nutter · Oct 16, 2009

Albums...try a wedding album supplier. For frames? try buying the metal frames with individual sections in various lengths that you screw together yourself. you can get them at most craft stores. square glass for them might be harder to get.

brian steinberger · Oct 16, 2009

I agree, buy metal frames with whatever size legs you want. Then go to your local framer and have square glass cut for you. This would certainly be the cheapest option.

Brad Dow · Oct 16, 2009

The best source I've found for custom frames is Light Impressions:
http://www.lightimpressionsdirect.com/category.action?categoryId=157

AmandaTom · Oct 16, 2009

Ikea sells square frames for about $10 each--the print opening is 5x5 and the whole frame about 10x10.

Kevin Caulfield · Oct 16, 2009

Ikea had a great selection of sizes a few years ago, but only a couple now, but at least they are nicely made and cheap.

Paul Sorensen · Oct 16, 2009

Ikea also shows on their web site a square frame that is about 20X20. The opening appears to be about 11 1/2 square. Here is a link:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20078050. They have four colors in this size. Unfortunately, they do not ship these and they seem to be about 100 miles away from you.

ntenny · Oct 16, 2009

I'm curious about the opposite extreme. Once in a while, in an antique shop or something, I'll find a frame sized for a 6x6cm contact print. I love these tiny little contact prints, so I'd like to find a reliable source of the frames, but I expect the demand for this size is, um, *limited* nowadays. 6x9 or 6.5x9 contact prints fit a 2x3 frame nicely, though.

(On the OP's question, I'm no help; I can find a few 5x5 frames on the shelf pretty regularly at "craft" stores like Michaels, but rarely anything larger than that, and I think never larger than 8x8.)

-NT

Graham_Martin · Oct 16, 2009

Thanks for all the replies. I will start looking into all of these alternatives. I hadn't thought about Ikea since they don't have a store where I live. Michales has one square frame which, as I recall is 8x8 with a mat to 6x6

DWThomas · Oct 16, 2009

I occasionally see square frames as large as 16x16 in stores like Michaels, Target and A.C. Moore. But I usually just buy frame sections. They come in pairs in one inch increments and you can put together whatever you want. At one time a local craft store even had a decent selection of frame sections in wood; alas they're now gone, but I believe Dick Blick carries some. My last couple of framing episodes, I bought online from American Frame, getting a frame plus acrylic glazing. Frame Destination is a well-regarded APUG sponsor who provides frames also.

All that said, for exhibition, I tend to print my 6x6 shots about 10.5 inches square (11x14 paper = print plus test strips!) and frame them optically centered and double matted in a 16x20 frame, oriented vertical.

Edit: Addendum -- a word of warning. A couple of large gallery frames I bought in Target as "16x20" were a slight amount short of those numbers, enough that the mats I had pre-cut had to be trimmed -- damned annoying. Dunno, perhaps it's a metric/english conversion problem. Most frames are cut such that the internal dimensions are 1/16" or so over the nominal size.

DaveT

wclark5179 · Oct 16, 2009

Try:

framefit.com

Fotoguy20d · Oct 16, 2009

As was said before, IKEA - the frame series is called RIBBA. They have some great sizes - one that nicely fits a 16x20-24, the square 20" frame, and a nice panorama shaped one - around 12" x 36" I think. I usually use the black ones but they have a maple looking wood and a dark almost reddish brown. They're in the $20 range.

Dan

arealitystudios · Oct 16, 2009

I'd also have to agree with the previous posts when suggesting IKEA. I use the RIBBA frames sized at 20x20 and just cut my own matts or print 11.5x11.5on a 16x20 sheet of paper. The frames are cheap and don't look bad at all.

When I want something really nice I've also used Frame Destination which is an advertiser here on APUG. Very nice quality.

greybeard · Oct 16, 2009

I can speak for American Frame; their prices are good and the service is excellent. A couple of years ago, they were offering a free mat with each frame, and since I prefer to cut my mats for floating mounts, I specified the free mat openings to be zero by zero inches. When the order reached American Frame, they actually called me to confirm that I didn't want openings cut. Pretty good service, for this computerized day and age.

In my area, the pricing difference between local retailers and American Frame is well over a factor of two, even with shipping. Their price for acrylic glazing, cut to size, is also much better than I can do locally even in uncut sheets.

PeterAM · Oct 16, 2009

Check out Frame Destination's web site; they are APUG sponsors. I buy packages of various sizes from them - frame, cut mat, backing, glazing - and have found them to be high quality and very competitive (for comparable quality). I like to use 8 ply mats for anything that I hang in my home or give as a gift; they do these very well and are fairly priced.

Places like Michael's have never worked for me;they either never have what I want or if they do, it's not of good quality and/or scuffed up (or worse) from being handled.

PeterAM · Oct 16, 2009

As far as albums are concerned, depends on what you are looking for. I've used Itoya portfolios ( http://www.dickblick.com/products/itoya-original-art-profolio/ ) of varying sizes, for ink jet prints. Take a look at the Blick web site or Light Impressions.

nsurit · Oct 17, 2009

I buy frames from americanframe.com. Light Impressions gets my business for 8 ply mats. Not cheap or fast, however no problems with quality. I print most of my 2 1/4 X 2 1/4 negatives 6.5 X 6.5 and put them in a 16X20 mat with a 7.5 X 7.5 opening. Top and side margins are the same. I prefer the bottom weighted mat as opposed to one with equal margins. Bill Barber

jmooney · Oct 22, 2009

AmandaTom said:
Ikea sells square frames for about $10 each--the print opening is 5x5 and the whole frame about 10x10.

It's funny you mention that...been doing some renovating and visiting Ikea a lot and I've noticed that almost all the images on display for advertising and information about Sweden are square. I wonder why?

mekia02 · May 4, 2010

IKEA to the rescue

Ikea sells square frames with mat in all different sizes. They had 8x8 in several colors and finishes. I ended up only getting 1 large square frame, 19.75 x 19.75 with out the mat or 11.5x11.5 with the mat. Prices are great also.

Mark Fisher · May 4, 2010

I use Frames Direct for wood frames and cut matts.

Metal sectional frames are great too. Micheals has them and they go on sale often and are very reasonablle also

Where to buy square picture frames?

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