Why does custom framing cost so much?

Why don't you do it yourself?

Oh, because you don't have the skill. And you don't have the required equipment. And you don't have a retail store on which you pay rent. And you don't have to pay taxes and hire employees and buy coffee for them......

what kind of mats are you looking for? there should be TONS of places that would sell what you need, you probably don't need a custom frame unless you want a very specific frame style

Actually mat board can be quite costly, especially if you layer them, you can buy them uncut at Michaels I believe. You can also buy a metal ruler, self healing cutting mat and a 45 degree exacto to use with it to cut your own mat board.

What gets more costly is the custom cutting of the frame and glass.

I'm sure all of which you can source and cut yourself, all depends on how much you value your time and photo.

Wait for the Michael's 50% off custom framing coupons, or check out some smaller framing shops (i.e. not in malls but in industrial plazas).

You can also buy a standard frame and just get some custom mattes cut?

Try Costco, I think that they frame paintings ... I used to get mine done @ Sams club and they were by far the cheapest ... they would send it to montreal to get framed, it took about 2 week, maybe wal-mart uses the same company, try asking wal-mart photo labs

If these photos have a high sentimental or dollar value, you would definitely want everything to be acid-free and this will definitely raise the price. It's not that easy to cut out openings that are exactly the same size and evenly spaced. The more openings, the more difficult. Multiple mats have added complexity too. Even the colour of the mat's inner core will affect the price.

don't do michael's they are ridiculous even with the 50% off

Cough wrote: ↑Why don't you do it yourself?

Oh, because you don't have the skill. And you don't have the required equipment. And you don't have a retail store on which you pay rent. And you don't have to pay taxes and hire employees and buy coffee for them......

Cough - Perhaps I should seek your advice and answers to all my questions, as they are so insightful and elaborately presented.

jumbojones wrote: ↑Actually mat board can be quite costly, especially if you layer them, you can buy them uncut at Michaels I believe. You can also buy a metal ruler, self healing cutting mat and a 45 degree exacto to use with it to cut your own mat board.

What gets more costly is the custom cutting of the frame and glass.

I'm sure all of which you can source and cut yourself, all depends on how much you value your time and photo.

JumboJones - do you know, where I could purchase that 45 degree tool? The photos are not that important, so I think I'm going to take your advice, try making the cuts myself and fit that mat into cheaper standard sized frame. Quotes I have been getting from framing stores for a basic frame and single mat have ranged from $160 to $220.

dunhilldarts wrote: ↑JumboJones - do you know, where I could purchase that 45 degree tool? The photos are not that important, so I think I'm going to take your advice, try making the cuts myself and fit that mat into cheaper standard sized frame. Quotes I have been getting from framing stores for a basic frame and single mat have ranged from $160 to $220.

I've been looking into this too, as I've had alot of things I want framed, but it costs so much to do.

From looking around, costco does seem to be the cheapest place to go, if you don't want to do it yourself.

To buy a 45 degree tool. Michaels has that too.. and often they have the 40% off one item. I was use that coupon to buy the tool... I've been thinking about doing it for years, but I haven't pulled the trigger. If you do get it, let us know how you found doing it yourself. There were a few variety's last time I looked, with different ranges of prices.

I'm not sure how much Mat board is either? I think you can also get it at Michaels, but I'll looking for cheaper options, cause Michael's regular prices are ridiculous.

Do you own framing... it'll save you quite a bit. However cutting matte boards is a bit of a pain - Michael's will cut the matte boards for a minimal charge.

You can check some smaller framing shops out, their prices are usually lower than Michaels.