By Paul Dunwell, writing for EasyFrame
© Copyright EasyFrame 2019
What this article is about
This article offers ideas for the kind of collection you might wish to accumulate and frame. I can't cover every possibility here, so my choice is a little eclectic, but it covers items that are not necessarily costly. Tickets are a prime example, hence the title.
Collectables ought to be kept in frames, because otherwise they are exposed to fading, mould, dust, mildew, discolouration and more. So start framing early, before the rot sets in. And plan ahead. Think about how the collection might grow, and how you'll display items bought decades from now in matching frames that may no longer be available.
A word on authenticity
Most people would like to know whether the Picasso in the front room is an original or a print, because of the difference in value. For cheap but intriguing displays, the owner may not much mind whether a piece is the genuine article or a knock-off.
Collectables (the US tends to say 'collectibles') often come with certificates of authenticity that supposedly underpin their value, assuming the certificate itself isn't a forgery! For the uncompromising collector, such certificates have a value of their own and may be worth framing alongside the item.
Be aware that 'authentic' can refer not to the true original but to a movie prop. Those above are all from the 1997 film 'Titanic'. If you want a prop from the biggest-grossing movie of all time, don't be duped into buying one from an also-ran production. There have been many other Titanic films, documentaries and TV series, from 'In Nacht und Eis' and 'Saved from the Titanic' (both 1912) through 'A Night to Remember' (1958), 'S.O.S. Titanic' (1979) and 'Raise the Titanic!' (1980) to 'Ghosts of the Abyss' (2003).
Reliable sources
If provenance matters to you, you should be fairly safe with sites like www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/columbus-zoological-company-1903-issued-stock-ce-04b45cd8c2, where we found some of the items below up for auction. These are genuine antiques, being over a century old, and they lend themselves to framing.
For frames from animated films, have a look at www.invaluable.com/animation-art/cc-5FFNCDPPYM/. Some of the pieces are very affordable yet instantly recognisable. Apart from the examples below, I saw Betty Boop, The Pink Panther and Pinocchio.
Documenting your life and loves
If you patiently keep tickets and programmes from the events you attend, you can quickly build a substantial collection of ephemera that records memorable occasions in your life. Pop concerts are a case in point. The tickets themselves cost nothing extra.
Tickets apart, Peter Blake's 'Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' wasn't the only album cover in town. Many more are very frameable, especially from the heady days of the 1970s, when a cover could sell a record.
Collecting with a theme in mind
Popular culture isn't just about musicians. Class acts such as Elvis Presley have always had to compete with the likes of the escapologist Harry Houdini and the greatest (and prettiest and smartest) boxer ever, Muhammad Ali. Stores such as www.fishpools.co.uk are ready sources of affordable prints like these.
If you plan a themed room or an entire venue, the Internet lets you find and source just about anything, and pulling pieces together around a theme is often inexpensive.
Matching frames
Frames don't have to match. Sometimes frames as different as the work they hold can hang side by side. But frames can be a unifying factor. However varied your material, you might do well to have all of it framed in the same materials and to the same logic. That pulls a theme together and gives it integrity.
To repeat an earlier point: a collection can grow until matching frames become hard to find. Plan ahead!
Conclusion
Collectables that lend themselves to framing can be very affordable and give any home or workplace an unusual focus. Prints are likely to hold their value, and you can often secure originals if you find something seldom collected but pleasing to the eye.
You'll need them framing. Unless you know your stuff when it comes to picture frames and mounts, it's worth going to experts. EasyFrame is an obvious and affordable supplier, whether you want everything you'd need to do the job yourself or would rather they did it for you. Any good framer will show you a range of solutions and advise on what suits the work and where it will hang.
EasyFrame is on 01234 856 501 and sales@easyframe.co.uk, and they'll always chat even if you don't want to buy!