Light, humidity, acidic materials and improper storage can irreparably damage photos; if you lose the digital original (or for older photos, the negative) that image—and a piece of your history—is gone forever. But with a few simple steps, the right archiving and storage materials and a little time, you can preserve those pictures for years to come.

First, you’ll need the proper materials:

• Clear, PVC- and acid-free photo sleeves
• Archivalware® Acid Free Tissue, which will protect prints from dust and abrasion
• Photo corners (no Scotch tape!)
• ClearBags™ storage bags, which are specially formulated and designed for long-term archival storage.
• Acid-free pens/markers
• Acid-free paper, mats and backboards
• Acid-free cardboard or metal boxes

Next, follow these simple steps to slow any damage:

• If you have photos stored in “magnetic” or peel and stick albums, remove them; you’ll probably already notice that the pages—and pictures—have started to yellow. If you want to store your pictures in albums, there are plenty on the market now that are made of acid-free paper. Use photo corners to mount the pictures.
• Using an acid-free marker (do not use a ball-point pen), gently label the back of each photo with the year the photo was taken and the full names of those in the photo. Your grandchildren will thank you!
• To store your photos in boxes, slip them into photo sleeves and layer them between sheets of tissue –preferably in chronological order—in the boxes. Label each box with dates, family names or places—any information that will make it easy to find a particular photo at a later time.
• Store photos in a dark, dry place, protected from humidity or extreme temperatures. In other words, keep them out of the attic or basement.
• For pictures you want to display, be sure to use acid-free, archival-quality mats and boards and conservation-grade glass that is glazed to protect photographs from harmful UV light rays. If you have photos framed professionally, be sure to ask for acid-free materials.
• Consider scanning print photos and keeping digital copies backed up on an external hard drive or CDs, just in case.

Print photographs are a joy to share and a beautiful way to tell your family’s stories and history. Take the time now to keep them safe. If you have questions, ask us. We’re here to help. Frame Destination carries a full line of photo storage supplies. We also have a great deal of expertise in conservation of artwork through framing. Learn more about conservation framing with our Guide to Preservation Framing of Photographs on our website.

Alternative attempts at fastening photos down can be quite damaging. Some try to use spray adhesive for the simplicity of the process, but harsh chemicals can quickly damage pictures by interacting with the substances used to process your photos. In order to maintain the integrity of their photographs, most photographers utilize archival polypropylene photo mounting corners. Polypropylene acid free photo corners will not harm your pictures. An added benefit of the self-adhesive backing is that while they remain firmly in place, there is no added distraction from the art and display of the photographic work.

Frame Destination offers photo corners that are crystal clear to allow for full viewing of your images. Multiple sizes are available to fit your mounting needs and come with 100 to 500 per box. The best part is that our Lineco adhesive photo corners have all passed the Photo Activity Test. The Photographic Activity Test (PAT) was created by the Image Permanence Institute of America to test the quality of picture storage materials.

Whether you are constructing family photo albums or scrapbooking your memories with pictures, archival grade photo corners will help protect your photos. The clear corners will not clash with your photographic design and you can rest assured that the photo corners will not yellow over time or circumstance. Our line of photo corners are high-quality yet affordable. Ordering online through Frame Destination is a simple process.

If your hobby is photography, a visit to Frame Destination is well worth your time. Frame Destination is the photographers supply stop for a wide array of photo framing supplies including as print weights, hanging kits, cleaning supplies and a full line of storage materials. We offer complete ready frames or made to order through our step-by-step custom frame process. Artists agree, Frame Destination is the perfect online store for the professional or hobby photographer.  Order your customized picture frame online today and discover how easy it is to perfectly showcase your work.

Choose from canvas floater, wood or metal frames, either custom or ready made. Our high quality wholesale frames are made in the USA – Dallas to be specific, and can be shipped anywhere across the country. Every frame manufactured by Frame Destination is hand finished and we guarantee your satisfaction with our products with a money back offer.

Our American made frames are made with quality materials, constructed with glue and v-nails. This superior assembly helps to ensure that your frame will be built to last. Frame Destination’s metal frames are made from enduring anodized metal moulding. Regardless of size or material, any frame purchased from Frame Destination will be as beautiful as it is durable. Our frames come in classic and refined styling or ornately designed – perfect to match any design taste.

Our selection of frames offers you the options to tailor your framing project. You can choose from a multitude of sizes or order your customized wholesale picture frame. Our business is Internet-based, with a production facility in Dallas; we are able to offer a wide range of frames at reasonable prices. Frame stores have limited space for their stocked frames and need to cover the cost of their storefront. Both the cost and space considerations restrict their ability to provide wholesale picture frames to their customers.

Ordering your frames online is easy with Frame Destination’s simple process. Please use our visual guide to help walk you through the process.

1)    Don’t purchase from a retail store – skip the middle man when you can and either buy from a manufacturer, or from a distributor/wholesaler. Custom frame shops mostly buy from picture frame distributors, meaning higher prices because they have high overhead. Frame Destination is basically a wholesaler because we purchase directly from the manufacturer.  Keep in mind, however, that even if you buy from the manufacturer or distributor, you don’t always get better pricing. For example, you can buy framing supplies from Lineco and crystal clear art bags from Clearbags direct, but if you only buy in small quantities you may end up paying retail prices. If you purchase in small volumes you will may get better pricing from us or a company like ours. Look for frame distributors in your area and try to setup an account with them. Different companies have different requirements. For example, Larson Juhl requires their framing customers to have a retail store front. We have no requirements.

2)    High volume purchases – purchasing in volume is a great way to save money and it also helps you save on order processing overhead and shipping costs. For example, FedEx charges Frame Destination a few dollars for every box we ship, even if they are part of the same order, but they only charge us a few cents for an extra pound.

3)    Shop local – or at least try to shop within your part of the country. For example, if you live in California and want to purchase  clearbags, you might be able to pay less for shipping buying direct from Clearbags’ warehouse in California rather than buying from Frame Destination in Texas.  However, if you are getting a frame order from us and add some clearbags to it,  then your shipping cost may be only a $1 – 2 dollars more. Also, you have to consider size . Frame materials are large and the shipping companies (FedEx and UPS) charge based on whichever is higher, actual weight of the shipment, or dimensional weight. Dimensional weight is a formula that converts volume of the box into pounds. This means it will cost more to ship an empty 3 cubic ft. box than it will to ship a couple of bricks in a small box. Some places may offer lower shipping cost than us, however, if the corners of the mats are always damaged you may not be saving money in the long run.

4)    Sacrifice service – one of the reasons (most) custom frame shops are more expensive is because they offer great service. . The best ones will have certified picture framers on staff who understand how to identify artwork and safely frame it so it will last for generations, and how to frame it so that it will be aesthetically pleasing to both the artwork and the decor it will complement. They take the time to walk you through various options. They also do all the final assembly including getting rid of that last piece of dust before sealing up the frame package. . To a lesser degree, distributors and wholesalers will offer different levels of service. For example, our company will notify you if part of your order is out of stock. Other companies may just ship the order incomplete, so you don’t find out about the stock issue until you get the order. Different companies have different error rates, quality rates, accuracy rates, order fulfillment rates and packaging quality. Offering better customer service, quicker order turn around, less back-orders, and less shipping damage means higher quality employees (not min wage), more expensive equipment, more expensive supplies, and higher inventory costs.

5)    Buy raw material – you can  save money by purchasing raw material, such as full sheets of mat board, and then cutting them yourself. However, this requires equipment and time. If you want to save more time you have to buy more expensive equipment. You can cut mat board more efficiently and with better quality on $1200 mat cutter than a $250 one. The same is true even for the computerized mat cutters. Frame Destination has been upgrading our computerized mat cutters to help increase our quality and efficiency. Be careful when doing it yourself because time is money. Do you get a better return on your time for taking and marketing pictures, or for cutting mats? Let’s say that you are buying 16×20 Bainbridge Alphamats matboard with a window of 11×14 from my company at qty 25. Your cost is $4.70 each. If you buy an entire box of uncut mat board from us then your cost per 16×20 if you cut them yourself will be $2.31, for savings of $2.39. If it takes you an hour to cut 4 then you are saving $9.56/hr. If your time is worth more than $9.56/hr then you are losing money by cutting your own mats. Me personally, even though I own a picture frame company…I have never hand cut a mat and never will…I would rather be out taking pictures.

6)    Sacrifice Quality – For example, one of the mat boards we sell is Bainbridge Alpharag. It is the best and has the most archival features built in. If you do not care about the Artcare technology in that mat board you can buy Crescent Museum Rag, which does not contain Artcare protection, but has all of the other features. However, in the case of the 8-ply, the Crescent mat board is not quite as thick and sturdy as the Bainbridge so you also sacrifice a little depth. If you are not concerned about Museum quality archival mat board but still want to carry rag mat board, you can get the regular Crescent rag board. You can continue to sacrifice features, quality and density all the way down to the lowest end paper mat board.

Durable and Lighter
Acrylic is a resilient material that is less likely to shatter than glass, given the same circumstances. Acrylic glazing is best used in larger format artwork and if shipping will be a concern. If you will be shipping large pieces of artwork, the cost to ship will be cheaper and the trip easier – with less likelihood of breakage, with a picture framed with acrylic glazing. Another consideration is if you artwork will be in an environment with children. Framed artwork with glass can fall and shatter, both the heavy frame and the shards of glass can be dangerous if young children are nearby.

Allows for More Light
Acrylic lets in about 10% more light than standard glass, making it clearer and giving better light to view your work. Your artwork will shine with the clarity and radiance that was intended when glazed with acrylic. But with more light comes the greater possibility of damage from sunlight and UV rays.

Other Glazing Factors
Other glazing factors to consider are UV protection and glare potential and protection. The choice to use the optional UV protection on acrylic matters most if you need to conserve your art piece. A properly protected acrylic glaze should provide about 98% protection from direct sunlight. Another factor is decreasing glare and reflection. Non-glare, which has a single side chemically ‘etched’ to diffuse light or anti-reflective, which has an optical coating applied to it. However non-glare glazing reduces the brilliance of your artwork to your work, decreasing the clarity and color with a flatness to the glaze. Anti-reflective coating is more expensive but the clarity of your work is not affected.

Custom Glazing with Plexiglas®
Frame Destination, online retailers of custom framing and acrylic glazing uses Plexiglas® as their provider of choice. You can opt for any profile – size, shape, portrait or landscape orientation or completely custom. Our selection of acrylic glazing ensures that we can meet your framing needs – no matter what they are. We offer this high quality, resilient glazing in standard, Non-glare or UV protected or both.

Ordering your glazing online is easy with Frame Destination’s simple process. Please use our visual guide to help walk you through the process or get further information on your options in acrylic glazing.

Photographs are priceless gifts – the faces, smiles and memories of our loved ones caught forever. But the prints themselves are fragile and easy to damage. Safe photo storage requires the proper archival supplies.

While walking down the aisle in any big box store, you can see flowery boxes or kitschy photo albums meant to store the visual reminder of your memories. But the choice isn’t between the kissing toddlers on the book or roses on the container but do the boxes and albums have the proper materials to archive your pictures.

There are a few things that you need to ensure for proper photographic print storage. The photos need to be kept dry and cool – both moisture and heat can destroy your prints. The photographs should not be kept in a garage, attic or basement. These environments tend to be humid and have fluctuations in temperature that might damage your prints. Lastly, any archival photo storage supplies need to be acid-free to keep your photos safe and protected for years to come.

Our archival boxes for photographs are museum quality construction and acid-free. They come in a wide selection of sizes to accommodate your pictures. These boxes are an ideal solution for storing your pictures. So instead of asking are roses or daisy the best photo box, you should ask are these photo boxes acid free.

We also offer a variety of photo print sleeves. It is essential for secure safekeeping of your prints and photographs that whether in an archival box or photo album that they be enclosed in acid free print sleeves. This type of archival print storage will keep your pictures away from dangerous elements like water and humidity. Our photo boxes and archival print storage are museum quality and acid free. Whether you need to store photographs or display them, they will remain protected.

Frame Destination has a wide selection of ready made and custom wholesale picture frames, framing supplies like matting, moulding and glazing. We have everything that you need for your framing, archival and cleaning needs. Find out more about our print storage solutions.

The general rule of thumb is to choose a wood frame for a painting and a metal frame if the artifact is a photograph. This is not engraved in stone, and of course, your own tastes in décor should be your guide. Furthermore, if for example, you have some old family photos dating from the late 19th or early 20th Century, you may wish to use a traditional-looking wooden wall picture frames. Even a round one would not be inappropriate in this context, particularly if your more or room décor leans more toward Victorian or Edwardian.

On the other hand, modern décor – and even vintage styles such as Art Deco (which itself was strongly influenced by the Machine Age and industry) – call for wall picture frames with clean, straight, minimalist lines. This is true even of wood picture frames for traditional paintings. This said, we carry wooden frame packages here at Frame Destination that feature different types of metallic finishes such as the Silver Leaf and the Tarnish Copper frames. These are appropriate for art photographs, sketches or paintings, and fit in with a range of interiors. You can see these and other frame selections here.

Ordering online from Frame Destination is easy and delivery is prompt; customer orders usually go out within 1-3 days and will arrive at your door within five to seven business days of leaving our Dallas facility. Expedited shipping is also available if you require something sooner. We can also offer shipping discounts for bulk orders. If you are not sure about what you need or what is best for your purposes, please call us at 1-877-5FRAMES during regular business hours (Central Time), and we will be happy to offer our experience and expertise.

We offer a complete selection of different types of photo mounting board. Some are just for mounting the photo or artwork and some are ideal picture frame backing support:

• Acid-Free Foamcore Mount Board
• Non-archival Foamcore Mount Board
• 3/16″ or 1/8″ Thickness
• Bainbridge 2-Ply Artcare™ AlphaRag Mounting Board
• Economical 1/16″ Papermat
• Black Acid-Free 3/16″ available

Just select the size “32×40 Raw Sheet” in the size pull-down for the product.

Popular colors are also those found in nature; browns and grays tend to most popular when it comes to modern picture frames. Many interior decorators are even going with modern picture frames made with “distressed” wood, such as lumber that has been salvaged from old structures such as barns. When it comes to metal frames, often the choice for photographic images, dark silvery tones have been increasing in popularity. Some people like the “distressed” look in metal as well, with finishes that suggest some soft hammering or a “pebbled” look.

In the end, it’s all about one’s personal taste. If you are going to create a frame from scratch using old barn wood, you had better be a craftsman of considerable skill and experience. For us mere mortals, Frame Destination carries a wide variety of framing kits and materials that can enable framers of all skill levels to create modern picture frame for paintings and art photography. We carry only the finest, acid free mount board and mat board as well as a wide selection of glazing in both glass and acrylic. Framing kits are available in wood and metal, and we have resources available at our website that can help you to make your framing project a success.

For more information on what Frame Destination has to offer, please visit our product gallery. Orders usually go out from our Dallas facility within seventy-two hours (and often sooner), and you should receive it within five days. Rush delivery is also available, and shipping discounts are available when you order framing materials in bulk.

Minimalistic, natural and even distressed are the hallmarks of today’s contemporary picture frames. The lack of detail and understated appearance of contemporary picture frames puts the artifact front and center, without ornate detailing to detract from the painting or photo. The growing appeal of modern Scandinavian design has been a major influence on today’s preferences, particularly the increasing popularity of minimalist furniture.

Clear, satiny wood finishes that feature the natural beauty of the wood grain are becoming a favorite with interior decorators, as well as frames made from salvaged wood with a “distressed” look. Painted wood frames are out this year; more natural shades of brown and gray are in.

Metal frames in silvery shades are in vogue these days for the purpose of framing photographs. Here too, the “distressed” look is popular, such as a surface that has been hammered slightly for a “pebbled” appearance.

Many Color Tones and Profiles Available

Of course, you as the framer are the final arbiter of what you like. Our job at Frame Destination is to make sure you have access to the materials you need to create the contemporary picture frames you want and that match your unique vision for interior décor. Whether you are an experienced, expert framer or a novice just learning the art, you’ll find a wide variety of framing kits and supplies, from acid-free mount board and mat board to wood moulding and metal framing material and your choice of glass or high-quality, scratch-resistant acrylic glazing and acrylic sheets.

Find the style to match your modern home and play with a variety of ideas and contrasts for the best effect. At Frame Destination, we offer many options in wood tones with a variety of depth and width for the mouldings. Accent your photographs or artwork with one of the many clean and modern frames in our extensive line.

To order, just visit our online ordering page, where you can custom select your fame options. On our site, we also offer many resources for those who are learning the art and science of framing, including web articles and instructional videos. With a Frame Destination account, you can easily place an order (all orders are shipped from our Dallas location in seventy-two hours or less) and even view your order history. Rush shipping and bulk shipping discounts are also available.