Business Conversation: Framing Iconic and Sentimental Objects at Framer Haven

Frame Haven owner Andrew Anderson is polishing the glass on a framed 1994 Bruins ticket signed by Cam Neely. “It’s a ticket, so you gotta make something out of it,” he said, smiling. He’s setting it up for a new frame. “You have to be dedicated to this line of work. You have to be dedicated to paying attention to detail.”

He put the cloth down and took a few minutes to talk to Winchester Patch about the art of framing.

How long has the shop been here on the Common?

Shop has been here since 76, took it over in 87.

How did you get into this line of work?

I did it for a while in high school. Went back to it later in college, worked at a startup company and came back to it.

What are your clients usually looking for?

Mostly, I’m a framer but I do sell artwork. My clients are usually people who have a portrait or an artifact like a WWII jacket from the navy or an airman’s jacket, or a flag. Sports jerseys are a huge part of the business. I’ve done christening gowns before. It’s about anything that can go into glass. Silver spoons with the dates engraved. Hockey Sticks, stuff like that. All kinds of object framing, pastel portraits, seascapes, landscapes, photographs.

Is it harder to put a jersey in a frame than a portrait?

No, not really. Everything is time. It’s labor intensive. If you bring in a portrait, you have to design it, het the right mat on it, and put the right frame on it, get the right tone to for the backing it, it also depends on how you mount it, you could hinge it or you could whole-mount it. Then you build your frame, cut the glass, wash it, put the backing on it. It all takes time. To set the chopper, for example, each molding is different so you set it up for this one, then you’re on to the next, so there’s a set up/breakdown time.

Is there an average time?

Well… there is an average, but it doesn’t always work. Eight jobs a day is a good pace, but some days you’ll do 12 and others you’ll only do six. And then every three months I’ll have a week where I get nothing done because something comes in wrong or a piece is missing and the wheels come off the wagon, then you get back on track and you go again. But yeah, once everything three months, you go to start something and you’re waiting on a piece that never comes in or something just goes wrong and it’s part of business. It’s floundering along. You’re not really doing anything, but you’re busy. You can’t figure out why you’re so busy and got nothing done. This isn’t a difficult job, but everything is a slow, very exact process.

How do you mount the jerseys? (Pointing to a Bobby Orr jersey. See photo gallery.)

You stich them into a linen background. There’s a puck mounted here with a mirror in the back so you can see all sides of the puck. You just have to think about these things before you do them.