Tips to Preparing Your Oval Picture Frame for Hanging

Now that you've selected your oval picture frame it's time to properly prepare your photo to go inside the frame. Although this isn't difficult to do, here are some tips help make the process easier and help you avoid making any mistakes.

1. Before you cut your picture to fit an oval frame, always make sure the photo looks good in an oval shaped frame first. The best way to check is to take the frame apart so you can place just the frame over the photo. To do this, first remove the frame back and then take out the glass and set it carefully to the side. Place the oval frame over your photo and gently center it around the subjects in the picture. This step will help you decide if you like how your picture looks inside an oval picture frame.

2. Next, take the glass from your oval photo frame and place it over your picture where the frame had been. Adjust for best fit and eye appeal. Be careful when moving the glass so your photo doesn't get damaged.

3. Take your time in aligning the glass as the subject or individuals in the frame need to be straight in the picture.  Aligning a subject in an oval frame isn’t as simple as aligning a rectangular or square picture frame so make sure it looks right. Ideally, the subject or individuals in the photo should be centered and have equal space on either side. For vertical spacing, the subject's head should be about 2/3's of the way up from the bottom of the picture. Positioning the subject’s head in the center of the frame leaves too much space above and throws off the picture’s eye appeal.

4. When you've found the perfect placement for the picture, gently and carefully trace along the outside of the glass with a thin pen to create your cut line. Always avoid using thick pens or markers for tracing as they may bleed on the picture.

5. Now you are ready to cut. With a sharp pair of scissors carefully cut along the line you traced. You can also use a mat knife but just make sure you're able to make a smooth and even cut otherwise, you should use scissors to avoid damaging your photo. Be sure the scissors are sharp because dull scissors can tear or crease the picture. Once your picture is cut, clean the oval frame glass and allow it to dry thoroughly otherwise the moisture can damage your photo.

6. Double check to see if your oval frame came with frame backing. If your frame did come with a frame back, all you have to do is put the glass, photo and frame back on and you're all set. If it didn't come with frame backing, you can make your own frame back with either a piece of cardboard or a nice archival mat board. The purpose of the backing is to securely keep your picture and glass in place. If you need to make your own backing and are framing an important picture, you should use archival mat board because the acid in plain cardboard can degrade your photo over time.

The first step to making your own frame back is to place the oval frame face up on the cardboard or mat board. Then, trace along the outside edge of the oval picture frame so it will fit in your frame. Cut it out and then use brad nails (about ¼ inch) to secure the backing to the frame. You do this by placing the brad nails on the board and pushing them into the molding on the back of the wood picture frame. Once the brad nails are securely holding the frame back, it's now time to hang your oval picture frame.

As you can see, preparing and assembling your oval picture frame takes a little time but by following the steps it should make the process easy to do. Once your oval picture frame is beautifully hanging on the wall, you'll feel proud knowing that you did it all by yourself.