Non-glare glass

Create a Post
Susan May

Susan May

PFG, Picture Framing God
Forum Donor
Joined
May 28, 2000
Posts
5,929
Loc
moved to Clermont, Florida
I have noticed on another thread a few questions about non-glare glass, and instead of derailing that thread I thought I would start this one.

Non-glare glass... The bane of some people's lives, or worth it's weight in gold... that is the question.

Personally, I have Conservation Reflection control on all of my artwork; stitchery, posters, photos, collectable pins, watercolors, pastel, even a t-shirt. I framed them while I lived in Maryland, and I now live in Florida, and have HUGE windows which let in a lot of light, and the non-glare glass is a wonderfull product. I never have a time of say where I can't see my artwork, and the stitchery is easy to see. Matter of fact, I often can't tell there is any glass on any of the pictures. I have even had friends ask if there is glass on my pictures, because they don't see reflections off the glass. So, in my opinion, Conservation Reflection Control glass is worth it's weight in gold.

So, my question is, which do you use on your own artwork, and why?
 
Hullo, fellow Grumblers!

Been following threads, working in a custom frame shop/gallery, and learning lots for a couple of years, and decided it was high time to get involved with the shenanigans. This seems to be a wholesome new thread to start out on.

If scrap Museum glass wasn't in such abundance at the shop I work in, it would be CRC for me as well. The soft etching is quite lovely, and when not spaced off I see no real decrease in detail...for flat art. Living in Alaska, most of my light is not natural and not terribly bright, so there is a niche for an in-between reflection control glazing such as the etched CRC. It also helps hide any slight imperfections in the matting (if they be insignificant enough to not require replacement.) I am curious though, how, on dimensional items such as your stitchery and Tshirt, does the etching not completely obscure the piece? Assuming you are using an etched glass...we use TruVue.
 
We have slowly switched most of the glass in our home from CC to Museum Glass. I have never liked the soft focus of etched glass. However, I do have corporate and retail customers that sometimes ask for it. We delivered a cycling jersey shadow box to a client last week with client-requested Conservation Reflection Control. It would not have been my first choice, but they were happy. We sell much, much more Museum Glass than any brand of NG acrylic or glass. Subjectively, it seems to us that the etch on acrylic is more fine than than on glass and it looks less fuzzy. In corporate settings, I prefer Reflection Control acrylic to NG glass when called for.
 
One of my pieces is a large cross stitch, double matted, with a fillet between the matts, and it has CRC on it. It hangs in a room which gets natural light for the first half of the day, and lamp light the second half of the day. If I am at the wrong angle, I will see a bit of the blur from the glass, but that is only where the reflection would normally be. Most of the time, all I see is the stitchery.

I guess I just don't ever hange things where the light will cause massive reflections, because that is the only time I would notice the blur.

Oh, and yes, the glass on my work is Tru-Vue CRC. The last piece I framed was in 2001, so if the glass has changed since then, I haven't noticed.

(Not quite true, I have framed a few pieces reciently, but most of them have ended up at someone else's home.)

Right now, I am painting a suede mat for a quilling piece my daughter did. Cathy (Chicky) has already cut my mats, glass and frame for me. I just need to get up the nerve to put a paint brush down on my daughter's matboard. The glass for this paper quilling is also the CRC.

What I can't stand is when you get a harsh reflection from regular or clear glass. I find that more distracting then any blur CRC might cause. (Just my opinion.)
 
I prefer Museum or con. clear. Don't like the blurriness of CRC.
We do offer it, though, as about six ladies will use nothing but.

Make that three.
 
My favourite would be Museum glass, but it's very expensive out here in the UK so, we tend to sell more of Groglas's ARTGLASS aruv which is an optically clear glass with 92% uv blocking for items where optical clarity is a necessity and not enhanced uv protection.

For standard jobs and where the customer has asked for it we stock reflection control, and also offer con ref con where uv blocking is essential but customer is not prepared to stump up the cash for museum.


We also have a sample of optimum museum acrylic. But as that is at "remortgage your house prices" over here I don't hold out much hope of selling it
 
The stuff over this side of the pond is generally termed 'non-reflective'. Etched both sides. Some people love it. The only time I have ever used it is on items that are close to the glass. Snapshots in readymades. Certs that are not of any great import. I would never use it on matted things because of the fuzziness.

There is a phenomenon that I have read about in several books on framing. Damp Fade. :icon20: The principle is, using NF glass encourages moisture inside the frame which causes pigments to lose color. It may be all bull-feathers, but I have had many people tell me thay have a picture at home that has faded. I always ask if it has NF glass in it. To which they invariably reply "Yes. How did you know?".

Not that it proves anything. :icon21: So is it all a myth?
 
I use Museum Glass for any personal framing I do for myself or family.

I essentially only offer two glass alternatives... CC or Museum Glass. However I do have available and minimal stock on regular picture glass and lots of leftover regular non-glare glass. Any plexi product I order on a as needed basis.
 
shayla said:
I prefer Museum or con. clear. Don't like the blurriness of CRC.
We do offer it, though, as about six ladies will use nothing but.
Click to expand...

Amen to that.

We sell less than 6% non-glare and conservation non-glare. Don't like it most of the time, though there are cases where I think it's fine. But we do a lot of double-matting in my shop, and NG just starts looking terrible with more than 1 mat. So we sell a lot more museum glass than NG glass.

All of my personal art has either CC or Museum glass on it if I framed it. Pieces that I had framed elsewhere years ago certainly only have regular clear glass on them, as nothing else was ever offered.
 
This just shows that there is no one answer that covers all situations. The effects created by the different surfaces are subjective, and some people do prefer the soft sheen of etched glass. I agree with Kirstie that the Reflection Control acrylic looks better than the glass version. I actually think it is a very nice looking product. Personally I'm not crazy about RC or CRC glass, so would probably recommend CRC acrylic to someone who didn't want to use MG or CC.
:cool: Rick
 
I use a lot of CRC on photos I frame for our own home. Mostly MG on other things for ourselves. I have no problem with the so called 'blurry' effect either and can see how in some light it would be better than MG. In the shop, I have two original paintings side by side, big light overhead. One framed in CRC and one in MG. I prefer the CRC as I can see the light in the MG but just some diffused shape in the CRC.

I guess there is no right answer!!!!

As for selling it, some customers like it, some hate it. I stock all three, CC, CRC and MG in 32x40
 
One concern I always have for using MG in offices and other commercial spaces is that cleaning crews are never going to use proper techniques for cleaning it, and are going to make a big mess. Even if your contact person on the job understands how it should be done, he or she won't be there at night when the crews are doing their work.
:kaffeetrinker_2: Rick
 
Amen to that. Most of the production/contract jobs we get specify regular acrylic, and of course we tell the pick-up contact to reiterate proper cleaning instructions to the janitorial crews so they don't carve maps onto the surface. Does it make one ounce of difference? Nope. Go to hang a new piece and boom, the old glazing looks like homemade reflection control!
 
Hatter said:
..Most of the production/contract jobs we get specify regular acrylic...Go to hang a new piece and boom, the old glazing looks like homemade reflection control!
Click to expand...
If your customers are conscious of cost beyond the initial price, explain that AR (abrasion resistant) acrylic would cost $X more initially, but after the first replacment of acrylic ruined by careless cleaning, the better acrylic would cost $x less, and would look better for the long term.
 
Rick Granick said:
One concern I always have for using MG in offices and other commercial spaces is that cleaning crews are never going to use proper techniques for cleaning it, and are going to make a big mess. Even if your contact person on the job understands how it should be done, he or she won't be there at night when the crews are doing their work.
:kaffeetrinker_2: Rick
Click to expand...

This is one of the reasons I became very interested in the Artglass product at WCAF. Can't scratch it, can't hardly get a fingerprint on it, and cleans super easy.
 
For my own work I only use Museum Glass. I do a lot of mat decoration, and also different levels so I don't want fuzzy edges. My shop default glass is CC, with Museum as the alternative.

If a customer wants something less expensive (I never use the word cheaper), I explain I have a few sheets of regular glass left over from a commercial Job 4 years ago, 24 x 36 inch, and I'm sure I cut it down for them if they wanted, and they could save a few dollars, but for the slight difference in price, CC is, in my opinion, a better value. I haven't sold a sheet of the left over glass in 4 years.

And my display for museum glass is 2 black and white night prints, with black mats, silver grey fillets and a black/ silver frame. They are displayed in a low light level area, and you can easily see the difference between CC and Museum.
 
This particular commercial client changes quite a lot of their pieces out every few years, so longevity definitely takes the backseat to cost. They don't replace components but rather the whole piece...at least the scratches let us know someone is indeed cleaning:)
 
the comment about improper cleaning by the cleaning crew, reminds me of a visit to a branch office of one of the larger frame and supply / distribution companies. (name will remain undisclosed)

In their work shop / meeting room, several of the pictures had streaks on the inside of the glass; they couldn't even get their cleaning crew to clean the glass properly!
 
No "etched" reflection control/non/glare glass here. Selling a ton of TruVue Ultra for those who want less reflection/no glass look. Upgrade to Museum if necessary .
 
Even in the late 1960s I wouldn't use that frosted ****.

You would have to stick a gun to my head to make me sell it to you now.

Shar has about four partial cases left..... and SHE sold a lite a few months
ago.... the first one I knew of in the 10 years I've been there.
She can't bring herself to pitch it.... but we could use the room.

Now - - personally.... I'm with PaulSF Esq.

If I could, there would be nothing but Optium in our house.
Some is ConClear, and some is Museum.
 
OK this is a good thread. Just in time to ask about LJ's new promotion of True Vue UltraVue Glass.
I don't have any samples of it in the shop (LJ is bringing in some). It's described as 2.0mm water white glass and is anti-reflective, anti static, scratch resistant, and offers 65% uv protection. They are also promoting the TV StaticShield Acrylic, (pricy) 3mm 48x96. Has any one used these glass options? If so what do you and your customers think of them? Any info would help.

I use only CC, Museum and AR for my stuff at home-depends on the art. If it were up to me all of it would be Optimum too. We have our limitations don't we.
 
The Ultra View is the same product as Artglass so there are many threads on that in the past. Water White glass has been around forever but it is now very easy to buy from a couple of competitors. The WW glass is just like generic clear as far as handling and storage so no inside or out and no scratching even leaning against the wall with all the other scraps. Many people like the color of artwork better with the WW than Museum and it is simple for anybody to clean. Using Artglass I have not found a single flaw in dozens of cases so far.
 
Thanks Jeff

I hope to offer this product to my customers as an alternative to Museum and anti-reflective.
 
Selling a ton of TruVue Ultra for those who want less reflection/no glass look. Upgrade to Museum if necessary .Looking forward to taking advantage of the LJ special to stock up for Christmas.
 
Create a Post
Back
Top