Thank you for stopping by Frames First Chicago.

We are a full service frame shop designed to help you with a classic design task of picture framing.  We realize this is not something you do every day. There can be some uncertainty in finding the right “treatments”, the generic term for frame selection.  But once you see what we can do, uncertainty turns quickly to confidence!  We believe there is nothing more satisfying than bringing home a beautifully framed piece of art.
Like our name says, we first help you find the right frame your fine art, digital images, diplomas or posters.  But we can do so much more!

What kind of things can I frame?

The people who work in framing love to be creative and the staff at Frames First Inc. is no exception. We can frame just about anything our customers want to embellish or archive.

The definition of “framing” has expanded over the years to include more than putting something under wood and glass, although these certainly remain very important components of framing. Framers refer to 2-d and 3-d projects which are just short terms for two dimensional and three dimensional. Traditionally paper art is 2-D while objects, like medals or plates are 3-D. The staff at Frames First Inc. has framed shovels, woven tapestries, World War 2 medals, and antique wedding objects.

What style framing goes best with my art?

Because we greatly care about what we want to custom frame, selecting the “right” design becomes very important. The choice of textures and colors can be overwhelming when first encountered by the framing customer. The “rules of thumb” listed below will help get your thinking organized before going into the frame shop.

• Color/Texture -When people start out to frame they usually want to match (pick up) an element of an image. This is the fun part of choosing a treatment but “rule of thumb” here must recognize proportion. The visual area of a frame is usually larger than the art and it is easy to overwhelm a piece using too much color or texture. Use the samples provided by a framer to help with this proportion. If they only have a flat table, then ask the sales associate to hold up the art and sample like it is on the wall to give a clearer idea of proportion. At Frames First we have a magnet board for this purpose.
• Environment-Most art is framed to go in a “room” even if we do not have the room chosen yet. A priority gets established. Some people care about coordinating the art/framing to match décor. Some only want what specifically goes with the art.
• Value -Darks and lights make up the VALUE of a project. In most pieces of art there is a classic ratio of 2/3 dark and 1/3 light or vice versa. The two thirds part makes up the background or negative space. The smaller proportion usually is what the artist wants the viewer to focus on (foreground or positive space.) Simply put, when picking a framing treatment be sensitive to the “darkest darks” and the “lightest lights,” by choosing mid-tones.
• When in doubt here is a quick rule. Select the mat to go with the art, select a frame to work with the room and, for both, pick-up the background tones to keep the foreground the unique element in the work.