I'm the sort of guy who collects old picture frames with a view to reusing them for my own pictures or even nice postcards.
I was thinking about cutting the mounting card and buying a cutter specifically for the job but I see there's a massive range in price.
So I'm wondering if it's a fools errand or whether I could give it a go. I'll have a bit of Christmas gift money to spen
Is anyone doing it, and what sort of cutter have you got? And do you have any top tips?
I have done it but i have only ever used a scalpel and a good straight edge
They look good though! I would say get one witha decent straight edge and a proper handle/knob. Some of them look a bit awkward and when cutting card you want a nice positive pressure, things slip when things require unnecessary gripping.
We’ve got a Logan Compact Classic, which is fairly easy to use to give a straight line. I would struggle with freehand cutters. If you’re doing lots of frames it’s probably worth the spend - we got ours when my wife was entering a few photography competitions, and we were putting some of her pictures on our wall, so it got some use. She’s not done as much since covid (photography club went virtual) so it’s currently sitting on a shelf. It could be worth shopping around - we bought ours from a US shop, which was cheaper (inc shipping and tax) than from UK, although I suspect that might no longer apply.
As an artist/illustrator I window mount prints all the time. I’ve done hundreds. I just use a basic, standard bevel cutter likethis and a steel ruler. The trick is to change the blades regularly like you would with a razor, so buy loads of blades. Don’t use a cutting mat. Cut it on another piece of mounting board. Use decent board. It’s not cheap. I get mine from a local art supplies shop.
It’s one of those things that you get a feel for as you do it more, with regards to what pressure to apply, so there’s trial and error involved. You’ll get smoother.
my biggest tip would be to relax, stick the radio on, have a brew, take your time, measure everything out properly, but enjoy it. I find it quite therapeutic. I enjoy doing stuff where I need to be really precise
Good luck and enjoy it
I have done it but i have only ever used a scalpel and a good straight edge
Same here, but, to be fair, they’ve mostly been fairly small pictures, not much bigger than A4-ish.
I've bulk ordered mounts, but then I am doing a few copies of the same thing (end of season kids cricket ) and that works out cheaper and a lot less hassle.
Depends on your use case, do you have enough same size frames that would make ordering a few at a time worthwhile
I think it probably depends on what sort of person you are, and only you know that! I've used a fancy contraption at a local photo club and I managed to do a decent job. I'm pretty sure that with just a blade and a ruler I'd make a dog's breakfast of it. Now I just buy them from Amazon.
Thanks all this is really useful information and quite motivating to actually do it.
Half the problem is that old frames are quite often not standard sizes, so there's a bit of jiggery pokery to work out whether picture is going to work in a frame and then work out the mount dimensions.
Some old frames are really bloody lovely, even the most basic ones have a charm of their own. Especially on the wall of my bog!
old frames are quite often not standard sizes, so there's a bit of jiggery pokery to work out whether picture is going to work in a frame and then work out the mount dimensions.
Can you buy mounts with a standard photo dimensions cutout, and then hack the outside dimensions with a Stanley knife to fit the frame. Clean finish on the aperture, and no one sees the bodge you made of the outer edge
Can you buy mounts with a standard photo dimensions cutout, and then hack the outside dimensions with a Stanley knife to fit the frame. Clean finish on the aperture, and no one sees the bodge you made of the outer edge
That is a really good point, cheers!
Pic mounts have their edges beveled at an angle to prevent shadow lines.
As above, you can get for cheap cutters, that slide along a ruler or such. Better than just a craft knife because it accurately bevels the edges.
Though for us amateurs a stanley and a ruler would probably be fine.
I would suggest a logan.
They they create a superb cut line and it's looks great.
Replace the blades often to avoid snags.
I have one like binners above. It spent ages not getting any use but it comes out a few times a year, either I'm opening up a cheap frame & mount or doing a full custom mount for something random - like a pair of nice cards that I'll set in to a frame.
It takes quite a knack but that's made harder because my blade is probably a bit dull and I do use a cutting board - I will try with some scrap mount card instead as binners suggests.
assume that, but you don’t actually know what muttering went on in other people’s private meetings.
No assumptions here. I know fine well they didn’t.
I used to do my own - like most above I just used a scalpel and steel rule.
Though for us amateurs a stanley and a ruler would probably be fine.
I’ve successfully cut a mount with bevelled edges around the picture aperture, doing just that, but I am rather obsessive about doing such things properly, which has been of help in former jobs. And don’t use a plastic rule, use a steel one - I can guarantee that at some point the blade will run up over the bevel of a plastic rule and bollox up the whole thing!
It was forbidden for any of my work colleagues to borrow any of my tools like set squares, rules, etc to cut along, and I still have a clear plastic type scale with pristine edges from around fifty years ago, and everyone else’s were cut and notched from using scalpels to cut along with.
The consequences can also be bloody and painful, and require hospital treatment… not my own experience, I hasten to add.
One thing that is worth mentioning, it’s sometimes suggested that when arranging a picture in a frame, there should be the same width border along the top and sides, and the bottom left as it is, I think to allow for the possibility of a window in the mount for a title, but also it’s an aesthetic thing, and I’ve just confirmed it by measuring a litho print I had framed years ago, the space between the edge of the bevel and the top and sides of the frame is 72mm, but 82mm between the bottom of the mount bevel and the bottom of the frame.