shop sticker on pre-matted artwork

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Hobbes03

Hobbes03

SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
Joined
Dec 4, 2001
Posts
1,727
Loc
Torrington, Connecticut, USA
I've been wondering what you most of you do when you frame artwork that customers bring in which they purchased "pre-matted"? Do you not put on your shop sticker, or do you apply your sticker and note on the back that the matting was done by "others"?

All along I have not been applying my shop sticker in these cases, simply because I don't want my name associated with those mats. You know, all degrees of hooked corners and over-cuts about 1/4" long and so on. But then I got to thinking, since I did put a nice frame around it, I should at least take credit for that.

Such a quandry.

What DO you do??

-Mike.

[ 11-13-2003, 03:13 PM: Message edited by: Hobbes03 ]
 
Hey, good question, Mike!

I think you could make a case for putting a shop sticker on everything that goes out of your shop - even refit jobs. The idea is to get your name out there, not to certify that the job is a perfect example of your work.

If you omit the sticker on the pre-matted work, where do you draw the line? What if the frame the customer insisted on isn't your first choice? What if they wanted etched non-glare glass with a triple mat?

What if it's a Thomas K****** print????

If you're concerned about what someone else may think, especially if they ever dismantle the package for some reason, maybe put a copy of the work order inside the frame package.

Then there's no question about what part of the work you actually performed.
 
Put your sticker on everything!
We add a second sticker that says somting like "Some materials provided by client".
I'm not at the shop so I can't give you the actual version.
 
Yup. that's pretty much what I do. If I frame it, it gets my label and notes on condition and items that were original to the art; mats, mount, etc.

If it comes in framed for repair, cleaning, etc., I just make notes on work I performed.

If I use the original frame and I re-mat, mount, glaze, etc., I will sometimes put my label and condition notes; original frame, etc.

I always save original labels and/or use my color scanner to copy verso of art for historical documentation, and apply it to the dust cover.
 
We make a special comment on the POS workorder so it prints right on their slip, and gets saved in the computer for future reference. If they come in later with a claim about the customer provided mat yellowing, and want it replaced free, it will be noted right there on the slip that they signed. Sometimes people forget details like this, and will just go by the name on the sticker.
 
We put our logo stickers on the reverse of the frame package <u>only</u> when we have done everything – mat, frame, backing (glass may be the exception).

Whether we place our sticker on or not, in all cases we place a small label on the back with a notation of the work order number which we keep on file.

If we did not provide the mat or frame or backing ourselves, the appropriate line on the work order will have the notation “existing” and, of course, no charge for that item, so there’s no confusion in the future of who did what.
 
Thanks for the input everyone! Makes sense to me.

I will use a different approach.

Thanks again,

-Mike.
 
Looks like I'm in the minority. I do not put my lable on work I did not do start to finish. If the customer has made choices I feel are wrong(rarely happens, though), I won't lable that, either. Sorry, but since I can't be sure the work won't get taken apart sometime in the future, I don't want some other framer finding sub-standard work, thinking it was done in my shop, and telling others. How many times have I seen it on the Grumble- "I took something apart done by XYZ framer. You should see what I found"!
 
Speaking of "look what I found", a customer brought in two framed illuminated manuscripts from around the 1400s. They had been beautifully framed by a New York shop. Silk covered mats.

I opened one up. The " framer" had stapled them around all four sides with those heavy electric staple gun staples. Each staple was about 1/4 inch apart. These where large pieces, approx 18 X 24. The staples had totally cracked and destroyed the edges of the parchment. They also had trapped the parchment so that it could only expand into itself.

OK now here is my favorite part. The parchments were stapled directly to 1/4" plywood, not even a piece of barrier PAPER was behind them.

The " frame shop " did not put their sticker on the back.

The customer said her sister had them framed in New York City and that everything had been done at the frame shop.

John
 
I'm with you Pam! I don't want my shops name associated with the poor workmanship of others. The only thing, I think I will consider, is creating a label to attach to the back with the existing conditions which would offset having our label there - AS LONG AS someone takes the time to read the label!!

my 2 cents

elaine
 
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