How to Measure Your Art or Photo for a Custom Frame at Frame It Easy

Measure the visible area of your artwork—the part you want to see inside the frame opening—and use that number as your starting point in the Frame Designer. If you plan to add a mat, the frame's overall size must account for the mat border, so the measurement you enter and the mat opening you choose have to work together. Frame It Easy provides a "How to Measure Your Art" guide and "Measuring Tips" in its Learning Center, which are the best references to confirm your numbers before ordering.

Step 1: Measure the Art Itself

Lay the piece flat and measure width and height of the image area you want visible. Use a rigid ruler or metal tape, measure edge to edge at the widest and tallest points, and write both numbers down in inches. For photos and prints, measure the paper edge; for canvases or thick pieces, measure the face of the piece. If the edges are uneven or you want to crop slightly, decide the visible area first and measure that.

Step 2: Decide Whether a Mat Is Involved

The mat opening is smaller than the frame's inner size, and the mat border sits between the opening and the frame. The relationship is:

• Mat opening = the visible art area (your Step 1 measurement, minus any overlap you want the mat to cover).
• Frame size = mat opening + mat border on each side.

For example, if your art is 11 × 14 inches and you want a 2-inch mat border, the frame's inner size needs to be about 15 × 18 inches. Frame It Easy's Frame Designer handles this arithmetic as you select a mat, but you still need to confirm the opening matches your art.

Common measuring mistakes to avoid

• Measuring the frame you already own instead of the art.
• Forgetting that a mat overlaps the art edge slightly—usually a small amount—so the opening is a bit smaller than the art.
• Mixing units or rounding inconsistently between width and height.
• Measuring a frame's outer edge when you need the inner opening.

Step 3: Enter Measurements in the Frame Designer

Open the Frame Designer, enter your width and height, then choose frame style, color, and mat. The tool previews the result, so check that the art sits where you expect and that the mat border looks right. The site's "How It Works" and "How to Measure Your Art" pages walk through the same flow, and "Measuring Tips" covers edge cases like puzzles and odd shapes.

Step 4: Verify Before Checkout

Compare the designer's summary against your written measurements: art size, mat opening, and frame size should all trace back to Step 1. If the preview shows the mat covering part of the image you want visible, adjust the opening or the mat border. Reviews on the site repeatedly mention precise measurements and ready-to-hang hardware arriving with the frame, so getting the numbers right up front is the main thing under your control.

Quick reference

For unusual pieces—puzzles, posters with staple holes, thick canvases—check the Learning Center's framing guides before ordering, since the standard art measurement may need adjustment.