Remove Mat From Frame. Carefully remove the mat from the back of the frame. Remove photo and set aside if using again. Cut a piece of wallpaper that is slightly larger – 2″ on all sides than the size of the mat. Center mat face down or cut wallpaper and check that the cut piece of paper has at least 1-1/2″ to 2″ on each sides.
How do you use a mat board for a picture?
The mat gives your picture a finished look by creating a frame within the frame. Choose a mat that complements your picture by using a color within the artwork. You want to pick a color of mat board that will not detract from the picture, but set off the artistry.
How do you fix matting on a picture?
Choose a mat board that is acid free for replacing your matting. Many framing places sell archival mat board because the paper will not slowly deteriorate your print. Look for brands like Bainbridge or Crescent for preserving your print or picture. Cut your new matting by using your old matting as a guide.
What is picture matting used for?
Picture matting can become damaged by broken glass or water or can discolor with age. The mat gives your picture a finished look by creating a frame within the frame. Choose a mat that complements your picture by using a color within the artwork.
How do you change the size of a mat board?
With a pencil, outline the old dimensions of your matting onto the new mat board. Set the new mat board on a piece of card board. Cut out the outline with an X-Acto knife. You can use a measuring stick to keep your knife steady. Place your new matting and picture in the frame.
How to cut a flawless mat for framing?
How to Cut a Flawless Mat for Picture Framing. To cut a flawless mat you must let go of the idea that there is anything automatic about mat cutting. To the extent that a “machine” provides a predictable result, flawlessly, without the know-how of the operator, a mat cutting machine doesn’t exist. Cutting a mat is, to a great degree, ...
What happens when a mat board is dull?
A dull blade can also lead to blade flex. When the blade is new it passes through the mat board with little resistance, but as it becomes dull it drags more and more. The more it drags, the more it flexes. If blade flex occurs, three steps should be followed to eliminate it.
What is a flawless mat?
Cutting a flawless mat is more of a craft than most people assume. Understanding the materials and tools are the key. But if you can cut a mat that doesn’t exhibit over cuts or under cuts, a mat where the edges are sharp and clean, and a mat that has a consistent 45-degree beveled edge without any wavering in the line of the cut, you have, by definition, a flawless mat.
What does it mean when a mat cutting blade is oblique?
All mat cutting blades penetrate the mat at an oblique angle, meaning that they penetrate the back of the mat at a point further back than they emerge from the face. If the mat board is thicker, it takes the blade longer to emerge, leading to under cuts. If the mat board is thinner, the blade emerges earlier, leading to over cuts.
What is mat board thickness?
Unbeknownst to most novice framers, mat board varies in thickness. Even within a so-called line of “standard thickness” mat board, minor variations are common due to the different thicknesses of the face papers. These different thicknesses are largely responsible for the most bedeviling issue in mat cutting, a seeming inability to stop precisely and consistently in the corners, leading to over cuts and under cuts.
Why is the blade used to cut paper thin?
The blade used to cut it is very thin. It must be, because if the blade was too thick it would tear the paper. But because the blade is so thin it has a tendency to flex as it drags through the mat board, and if the blade flexes, the line of the cut will waver.
What does it mean when a mat is rough?
Different manifestations of the problem can be detected by different feels in the cut. If the cut feels crunchy, the blade is dented or chipped and must be changed. If the cut feels like it’s pulling or tugging slightly, you are cutting repeatedly in the same score on the backing sheet and the backing sheet must be moved slightly one way or the other to find a fresh place to cut into.
How to cut matting?
Cut your new matting by using your old matting as a guide. With a pencil, outline the old dimensions of your matting onto the new mat board. Set the new mat board on a piece of card board. Cut out the outline with an X-Acto knife. You can use a measuring stick to keep your knife steady.
How to fix crinkled edges on mat board?
Use an iron to fix crinkled edges. Place a paper towel over the mat board, and with the iron on a low setting, iron the matting. Be careful not to burn the picture matting. A lot of mat board is made from cotton rag, which will respond well to ironing.