SPORTS SHIRTS framing

SPORTS SHIRTS

Quite often customers will bring in all manner of sports shirts in to our studio to be framed.

Over the last twenty years or so Custom Frames have framed literally hundreds of football, cycling, rugby, Ice Hockey shirts and so have an in depth understanding of the correct way that this should be carried out for our customers.

The main reasons for framing a sports shirt is obviously so this looks great on your wall and possibly to show signatures upon the item by famous sports stars. The other reason is so that the shirt is kept in the same condition of the time that you requested this to be framed so that it will not deteriorate and any monitory value may have a chance of increasing in years to come if the garment is in prime condition.

If you intend to take your sports shirt to be framed its worth asking your picture framer how he goes about this. (most reputable framer will be more than happy to go through this with you) .

FRAME TYPE

So that the shirt has enough room, once fitted into the frame the glazing needs to be to the front with the shirt to the back (the shirt should never be pressed against the glass!).
The frame has to be deep enough to accommodate the glazing, any mounts, the shirt and back mount plus backing board without anything being squeezed in. Some framers prefer to do this by making a back-box ( sub-frame) and fitting your chosen frame to the front to extend the overall depth.
At Custom Frames we prefer a single frame method where no back box is visible and everything is fitted within a deep frame type of app 40mm..

FITTING THE SHIRT

The shirt (after ironing) is stretched over a "forma" (a piece of acid free card or foamboard cut to fit each individual shirt. The shirt is stretched tightly around this and any excess material from the shirt is folded neatly and pinned in place to the back of the forma. This forma should reflect the shape of the shirt, slightly wider at the shoulders and tapering down to the waist so this looks aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Once this has been completed the shirt and forma can be centralised and pinned to a backing mount board (colour of your choice) which will be fitted inside the frame.

A WORD OF WARNING!

If your framer is unwilling to talk through how he will frame your sports shirt we would strongly recommend that you take it to someone who will. Occasionally we are asked to rectify shirts that have been framed elsewhere. Problems that we have identified have been where the shirt hasn't had enough space in the frame and literally held in place by the pressure of glass pressing against the shirt. As there was no room for air circulation in the frame, mildew formed on the glass and garment with possible long term damage was caused. Other examples are shirts stretched over rectangular pieces of board making the shirt look uninteresting. The very worst examples where shirts that had been stretched over cut-up corrugated serial cartons with the shirt kept in place with heavy duty double sided carpet tape. This after time, solidified when placed in a warm room and the tape adhesive after time oozed out through the shirt front. Sadly there wasn't a lot we could do with this one.

Once framed, your shirt should look fantastic. Don't be worried in talking through your requirements with the framer pointing out say badges, signatures to be shown and whether you want the front or back to be shown. Remember there is an awful lot of work involved in framing a sports shirt (hence the price !) so the framer needs to be clear on what you require. If you haven't explained or missed some information out, he may charge you for any corrections made!

PRICING

Costs will vary around the country and clearly the more you add in to the equation i.e specialist glass certificates / photos, larger or more expensive frame types this will increase the cost onto a standard Price.

To give a " Ball Park" Figure however in the East Midlands region I would say you need to be looking at around £140.00 - £170.00 for a basic framed shirt with bon of the frills above so it's probably worth getting two or three reputable quotes from established framers.

At Custom Frames we would be at the lower end of this price range due to our buying power of materials and our experienced staff who can cut time spent working on the project due to the latest equipment and work methods.

If you do get a quotation very much below the £140.00 I would have to question what you are getting for you money and what the final quality would realise.

We hope you have found this of help, should you need any further information regarding framed sports shirts or anything else. Call, email, or contact us and we'll be glad to give free advise.