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How to Pick Matting for Pictures

Choosing matting for pictures is a personal decision, with many right options. A mat serves to protect the picture from the glass, and to provide a neutral space around the image. It provides a transition between the picture to the frame, and from the picture to the wall. Choosing an acid-free mat will protect your picture for years and give the picture the most visual appeal.

Instructions

    • 1

      Take your picture to a framer where you can test the colors of the mat samples against your picture and your chosen frame.

    • 2

      Select a color from the picture that is lighter than the overall print, but darker than than the wall it will hang on. Find a color that does not compete with the picture, but complements it.

    • 3

      Choose a mat that is a different color and value (the relative lightness or darkness of a color) than the frame. You don't want your picture to appear as if it has one large frame.

    • 4

      Order a matting that will be at least twice the width of the frame. Matting that is at least 2 1/2 inches wide is best for most pictures.

    • 5

      Examine the color of the mat core. A colored core might look better than a stark white core.

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