Oil Painting Frames

So you just stole the Mona Lisa painting and now you need to frame it. Or far more likely, you bought a regular oil painting by legal means and now you want to safely frame it. You can't frame the oil painting like a standard photograph can you? Oil painting involves the process of painting with pigments of drying oil. Artists will prepare a surface, usually of canvas, though cardboard, linoleum, paper, pressed wood, slate and wooden panel have been used. The artist then sketches an outline of their drawing, then gradually, slowly, applies pigment mixed with oil to the surface. The various types of oil dry different creating infinite effects. However, if you were to put an oil painting in a a regular glass frame, you might damage the painting, since it needs breathing room for the drying process – which last many years.

How To Frame Oil Paintings

How do you frame an oil painting? For starters, your canvas will either stretched on a wooden frame, mounted on wood or unstretched. If the oil panting is unstretched (such as rolled into a tube) then you must have it professionally stretched. An oil painting frame shop will take care of this for you. The next step is to find out the oil painting frame size you will be dealing with. Standard oil painting frame
sizes include 5 x 7, 6 x 8, 8 x 10, 11 x 14, 12 x 16, 14 x 18, 16 x 20, 20 x 24, 22 x 28 and 30 x 40. If your painting is not standard size then a profession oil painting frame job will most likely have to be done.

When you buy your oil painting frame you will not have any glass, backerboard or hardware to secure the painting or hang it. For this, you will need two mirror hangers, two strap hangers, four screws (#8 in size) and a good length of hanging wire, about one-half the measurement of the frame. (Horizontally speaking) You also need nails to put into the wall which will hang the painting. At this point you can put the canvas in the back of the frame using the clips. Place one on each side and then screw them into place using the screws. (Make sure you balance it, either top and bottom or left to right) Measure about one third down the length of the frame (vertically) and then place a strap hanger on each side, using the screws. Don't tighten the screw all the way down, so the hangers can freely rotate. Slip one end of the wire in one strap hanger and then wrap the end several times, at least five times. Hold the wire securely while inserting it into the other strap hanger. Now your painting can hang on the wall.

When Should I Frame My Oil Paint Board?

You may be thinking to yourself, when should i frame my oil painting? Making frames for oil painting has no set deadline, except that if the painting is obviously still wet, do not yet put it in picture frame for oil painting. Timelines on oil painting frames are also determined by climate and types of pigments used. Though oil painting can actually take years to fully dry, at some point the paint becomes hardened enough to frame.

Oil painting is a great art and what better way to display the painting's beauty than to frame it for public display?