judging how much space for signatures on a mat

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There's different thoughts on this, and a search will yield some more info. I usually use a minimum of 4" and mark off a 1/4" pencil line all around so they don't sign past it OR put the frame back on it so they can't sign it and have it covered.

Another factor that we run into, is whether or not the customer wants it to fit into a standard size frame or if custom size is okay with them. Budget is usually the issue; whether its up to the newlyweds to frame or if the poor depleted parents are paying!

my 2 cents
 
how about a little math.......

If a signatue is... lets say 2 1/2" X 1" .... that is 2 1/2 sq inches... round that to 4 square inches times (for space) you have about 600 square inches. 3 square inches each, will equal 450 square inches if you think people will not have any special additions to their signatures.

if you have an 8 x 10, that is 80 sq inches --- 680 total sq inches

A 22 x 28 is 616 square inches ( a bit tight in my opinion) and a 24 x 30 is 720 square inches.


I was at a party last Saturday where they had a Detroit Pistons shirt stretched over foam center board (XL) for about 100 kids plus relatives and friends to sign. Not a bit of space was unused.
 
Susang are they already signed? Have the prints already been made?

If not don't cut the mats til you have them in hand! I have a PITA customer that has me do this for him. He had initially ordered 100 and I had cut the mats and made 20+ of the frames and had the glass cut and when he waltzes in and his signature is beyond the space I had allocated , the prints were done in 5 different batches by the photog and were all easily 1/8" off in either direction.

Had to recut all the mats, ....

Moral measure twice, cut once. Measure the work, not the quoted work!
 
my two cents: lotsa couples, or singles? Couples will sign "mr and mrs. smith" while singles will sign"Joan smith" bill jones" etc. We did a mat for 300 people and did a five inch mat only to find out there were mostly marrieds who signed "mr and mrs jones" and had TONS of leftover space
 
You can't tell. There is always some John Hancock wannabe running amuck all over the mat. If you cut it big but pleasing for the size of the picture they will fill it up.
 
Originally posted by JFeig:
if you think people will not have any special additions to their signatures.
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For our son's wedding, we and the bride's parents signed first with sentiments so that the guests would feel free to add their thoughts. We didn't want just signatures - the quotes are fun to read later, too.

So you might advise the parents to "set the example" of what they expect.
 
We usually recommend a larger frame such as 16 x 20 or larger for weddings. In my opinion, small frames such as 11 x 14 frames for weddings look cheap. If they have few guest then we recommend them having a larger photo opening so it fills the frame.
 
The smallest I recommend is a 5x7 or 8x10 in a 16x20. I like to upcenter the picture a bit, so I make the top and sides the same leaving the bottom very wide. It makes the picture look better. To me, a centered picture always looks like is just below center.
 
This is actually a mat that will contain twelve photos of differents sizes. One hundred fifty children will sign the mat around the photos. They won't put any comments, just their names. I can make it whatever size I want. I just don't want to go too small because I will be in trouble. Thanks Elaine, I will put some type of barrier around the edges so that the children don't sign too close to the edge. Kids LOVE to sign on the edge of the paper! I'll get out the calculator and do some figuring Jerome. Thanks!
 
Originally posted by susang:
This is actually a mat that will contain twelve photos of differents sizes. One hundred fifty children will sign the mat around the photos.
Click to expand...
I have an article in my current newsletter - "Signature Mats - they're not just for weddings, anymore!"

I just finished one for a presentation to a host of a meeting, signed by all the people who were there.
 
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