• Acid Burn: Yellowish staining resulting when acidic matboards come into contact with paper products used in framing. The staining is evident in “bleeding” in some circumstances. Archival materials prevent acid burn.
• Acid Damage: Similar to acid burn, dark spots throughout the picture from older sometimes cheaper framing methods. Modern techniques can remove acid damage.
• Acid Free: Materials must have a PH value between 6.5 and 8.5 to be considered acid-free. Paper material with a 7 pH is considered to be neutral. Acid free paper is less likely to damage artwork.
• Acrylic: Strong resin that is sometimes used in place of glass. Is often used for frameless display. Artwork can also be mounted to the back of acrylic.
• Acrylic Paint: A type of oil-paint substitute with a water base that is quick drying.
• Allowance: The amount of space between the objects being framed and the inside dimension of the frame.
• ATG (Adhesive Transfer Tape): The preferred double sided tape chosen by professional framers.
• Aquatint: Etching in which a powdered resin reduces the level of etching over specific areas of the plate in order to provide a tonal effect. A variation is called mezzotint.
• Artwork: A broad term describing many types of art: drawings, paintings, collages etching, etc.
• Bevel: An angled edge; typically on the opening edge of mat and mountboard that is cut with an agled blade. Beveled edge openings allows the mat core to be visible, and compliment the colors in the image being framed.
• Blackcore: A matboard with a solic black inner core.
• Blank: An unused, uncut piece of matboard.
• Board: Generic term in the framing industry, to descibe a full sheet or cut size piece of mat or mounting board.
• Bond: To glue or hold with adhesives.
• Box Frame: Also referred to as a shadow box. Often used to store memorabilia or assorted items meant for display on a wall. Items are typically three dimensional or a combination of pictures and objects.
• Brilliant Cut: A term generally used in the framing industry to describe mounts.
• Burnishing: Gold and silver leaf applied on a moulding. Also has a gesso coating.
• Canvas: Fabric for painting purposes that is course. Canvas is stretched over a wooden frame to provide a surface on which to paint.
• Chop: Mitred moulding that has not been assembled. Mitre is a type of saw used for cross cuts.
• Conservation: The preservation of art to ensure that chemical residue is not present, or at very minimal levels. It is also a relatively chemical free and treated piece of mountboard.
• Core: The central piece of mountboard (or mat) for stability. The color of the core is also the color of the bevel. Variations on Core are Blackcore, Redcore and Whitecore. The most common core colors are Creamcore and Whitecore. Also available in Blackcore.
• Double Mat: Refers to the process of using two layers of matboard to frame an image. Typically, the exterior mat is ¼” smaller then the interior mat. The process of layering two pieces of matboard inside a frame to add an extra sense of depth and contrast in color.
• Dry Mounting: This is a process in which pieces of artwork are fixed under a combination of high temperature to ensure they retain their rigidity and strength.
• Embossing: A pressed effect which leaves an impression in the medium through heat and/or pressure. Can be used on wood and other surfaces such as metal or plastic.
• Etching: A print that is created from an etched plate. Chemicals or pressure combined with ink creates the etching. Aquatint and mezzotint are also considered etching.
• Fall-out: The Remaining portion of mat cut from the center of a mat. Typically discarded or recycled.
• Fillet: A small moulding placed inside of a mat or frame. Used to embellish or enhance artwork and frames.
• Floater Frame: A lipless moulding that is designed to fit stretched canvas.
• Foamboard: Also referred to as Foamcore; Backing board for framing. Varieties include acid free black and gator. Thickness of 1/8” and 3/16” are the most common thickness for Foamboard.
• Frame: The outside of a piece of artwork designed to hold a piece of artwork. Often made of wood, but metals are often used. Staining and adornments are variations that are used for frames.
• Giclée: Derived from the French term 'gicleur.' It is a digital print process that is of exceptional quality and is high resolution.
• Gouache: Paint mixed with Gum Arabic that resembles watercolors. Variations are Gouche inks. Gouache and Gouche inks should be treated as watercolors.
• Gum Arabic: A binder for watercolor painting made from two types of acacia trees.
• Mat: North American term for material used to enhance framed images.
• Mat Board: Colored board composed of bound papers. The top layer is the colored portion that is seen.
• Mat Cutter: Fixed blade cutter used for mat cutting, can be either hand held or machine operated.
• Mezzotint: A method of etching in which the metal plate is covered with small recesses to hold ink. Recesses can be altered to hold different amounts of ink, giving a high level of customization with light and dark levels.
• Mixed Media: The combination of multiple materials. Often glass wood iron or metals. Softer materials are sometimes as well.
• Moulding: Components that make up the rim section of a picture frame. Materials vary from to wood to metals.
• Mount: A crafted sheet that fits between a piece of artwork and the glazing of a framed picture. Used to protect images from outside damage Mounts often utilize bevels for visual effect. Mounts are almost always used for fine and very valuable artwork. Mounts come in single double and triple; referring to the number of mount boards used in making the mount. Standard thickness is 1-2 mm or 1/16th. Term is commonly used in the UK. The North American term is mat.
• Mountboard: The base from which the mount is cut. The board is most often made from wood. Variations of Mountboard are Standard, Conservation and Museum. Each method has varying levels of Ph, with the museum form having the least acidic properties. Standard has the highest acidic properties, while conservation is second.
• Mounting: The two types of mounting are Mounting, and Dry Mounting. The mounting technique is intended to keep the artwork, securely held in place, to ensure a quality, lasting frame job.
• Oil: informal term for oil painting. Also used to describe the oil itself, which is used in oil painting.
• Oil Paint: oil-based solvent traditionally made of walnut poppy or linseed. It dries slowly and is easy for artists to work with. Its malleable properties made it the preferred paint for many great artists.
• Oil Painting: More formal term for oil. It is a piece of artwork on canvas painted with oil paint.
• Over-cut: A technique where a cut exceeds the bounds of the stop line.
• Picture Frame: The border around a picture used to enhance its appearance and provide stability and ease of placement. Materials are typically wood or metal. Sometimes frames are stained painted or otherwise adorned.
• Print: Typically a print is made from an etched plate and is a copy made from other artwork. Copies or digital copies and conventional printed copies are also considered prints. Giclée is a high form of print that is of the highest quality.
• Restoration: The act of Repairing a picture, or process performed to bring the picture to its original state or close to it. All forms of artwork can be restored, though the processes will vary. Oil paintings are the most commonly form of art that is restored.
• Rim: The exterior portion of a picture frame. The Rim’s components are Moulding, glue, and any reinforcements that hold the picture together.
• Serigraph: Variation of Screen printing.
• Silk Screen Printing: Variation of screen print with silk as the material in the process. Commonly used for commercial purposes such as t-shirts and mass produced products.
• Screen Print: An image created when ink is pushed through fabric and over a stencil or other design. A popular method for commercial applications and also fine art. Often used for company products such as logos and promotional items. Also popular for creating t-shirts. Variations are Serigraph, and Silk Screen. The Silk Screen method uses a silk cloth for ink to pass through instead of common fabric. Today the majority of screen printing is done with synthetic materials.
• Stop Lines: Guidelines for starting and stopping. Lines that are marked on the back of the mat.
• Squaring Arm: Utility tool attached to the mat cutter. The arm that is used for cutting mat board. Allows for mat to be cut with greater ease.
• Undercut: Performing a cut that is short of the stop guidelines.
• Undermount: Backing mount between artwork and mount. The mount is visible after assembly. Undermounts are typically made from the same material as the Mountboard.