What Do I Do with My Artwork Once It's Framed? Placing Artwork Around the Home

A picture frame, which is often sold as a component in picture frame kits, is used to edge your fine artwork so that it looks finished and so that you have a structure in place for applying a hanging kit to the back to hang the artwork. You may decide to frame your own artwork, which is a great idea because you have the most choice in the final look of the artwork, and it is a cost-effective choice if you have several pictures to frame. Knowing which choices to make with picture frame kits and then having some ideas about how to situate the artwork on the walls of your home help to accentuate your rooms because the artwork then functions as an accessory to the room, in a similar way that jewelry is used to accessorize clothing.

You can choose from metal pictures frames or wood. While a wood picture frame is traditionally used to frame paintings that will be hung in rooms with a casual ambiance, such as those with a rustic or country design, metal picture frames are well-suited to use in a contemporary or modern interior design. If you have a lot of artwork that uses various media and is brightly colored, adding color to the picture frame can result in a room that looks too "busy" to the eye, and so uniform metal picture frames may be the best choice in this instance. Black pictures frames of metal are often used for framing fine art photography and are paired with wide-width white mat board, for a clean and crisp look. You will also see both metal picture frames and black picture frames in use in fine art galleries, because uniform black picture frames help to throw the eye's focus on the artwork rather than the frame.

If the artwork will hang in a vintage-style room, you can add picture rail molding near the ceiling of the room, and then hang artwork in black picture frames from picture hooks. Picture cord is attached to the picture frame, and then the cord is hung from the hook, which rests over the top of the picture rail molding. You can vary the height of the pieces of artwork to create an arresting display that will become the focal point of the room. You can also measure a narrow strip that runs across a wall, and from that strip that is left empty you can place your metal picture frames so that either the top or bottom edge is on the strip, and you end up with a interesting look to the edges of the frames when they are lined up on the wall.

For more ideas, please consult interior design books and magazines, as well as fine art framing suppliers online.

Susan Slobac is a consultant in the frame industry. Susan writes about trends in metal picture frames & black picture frames.