How to Frame Giclee

Preserve it forever with a framed giclee print.

Framing giclee prints follows the same rules as those of any original paintings. The key to knowing how to frame them is knowing the material they were printed on, the types of ink used and whether there is a treated finish on them. Fine-art giclees are printed on archival paper and should be mounted and matted with archival materials and protected from contact with non-archival materials.



Giclee prints on canvas do not require glass over them; most others do. Displaying them properly--avoiding direct sunlight, excessive moisture and heat--will preserve them for a long time.

Things You'll Need

• Giclee print
• Acid-free foam board, 1/2-inch thick
• X-Acto knife and metal ruler
• Archival spray adhesive
• Clean glass
• Liner frame
• Archival rabbet felt or foam
• Frame
• Frame sealing tape
• Off-set clips, turnbuckles or framing points
• Acid-free mat board
• Acid-free, double-sided tape
• UV-filtering glass or acrylic glazing

Instructions

Unstretched-Canvas Giclee Prints

1. Lay the giclee print on a flat surface to reduce the curl if it had been rolled up. Cut a piece of archival acid-free foam board 2 inches wider and longer then the exterior dimensions of the print. Dry fit the print and make a line across the board about 1 inch down from the top as a guide for placement.

2. Apply archival spray adhesive to one side of the foam board in a well-ventilated area away from the print. Place the board on a firm, flat surface. Align the top edge of the giclee along the guide line on the adhesive side of the board.

3. Gently and carefully smooth down the print with a side-to-side motion working your way down from the top to the bottom. Place a sheet of clean glass over the print to protect it and allow to completely dry for 24 hours.

4. Trim the excess foam board up to the edge of the print. Put archival rabbet felt or foam into the rabbet of the frame and then place the print into the liner frame. If only a regular frame is used instead of the liner frame, then put the felt into the rabbet of the regular frame.

5. Seal the print into place with frame sealing tape all around the perimeter of the foam board.

Stretched-Canvas

1. Select a frame that has a rabbet opening 1/8 inch wider than the canvas.

2. Line the rabbet of the frame with the archival rabbet felt or foam.

3. Place the stretched canvas into the frame. Secure with off-set clips for canvases deeper than the rabbet, turnbuckles for flush frames or framing points if recessed.

Non-Canvas Giclees

1. Fit the opening of an acid-free mat board to the giclee, covering 1/4 inch all the way around the edge of it. Select an outside dimension of the mat that fits into the frame rabbet with a 1/8-inch overall gap between the frame and the mat.

2. Adhere the print to the back of the mat using acid-free tape by forming evenly spaced hinges across the top. Space them 4 to 5 inches apart depending on the size of the print. Also secure the two top corners along the side with the tape.

3. Double mat for effect or if the print is large, to prevent the face of the print from coming in contact with the glass or other glazing being used. Place a piece of acid-free foam board behind the mat and adhere it with double-sided tape.

4. Lay the frame face down on a smooth, soft surface. Put a clean piece of glass into the rabbet. Lay the matted print face down on the glass. Hold everything in place by hand and turn the frame over to check for any fragments or dust in between the two layers. Remove them as needed.

5. Secure the print and glass to the frame with framing points. Seal the space between the back foam board and the frame with the sealing tape.

Tips & Warnings

• A liner is a narrower frame around the print that gives a visual effect similar to matting.

• The matted print should be free to float without restriction other than at the top.

• Make the width of the mat border wide enough to complement the print without dominating the visual space within the frame.

References

• Canson Infinity: Framing Tips