Defective Frames--Grrrr.

[Artyczar]

I am frustrated with Jerry's. I originally ordered four simple natural floater frames. It cost a couple hundred bucks. Two of them arrived damaged, so I contacted them, and they sent two replacements--also damaged. The whole process has taken over a month now.

They are inexpensive frames from China, but I couldn't find any like them anywhere else online. I am trying to match ones I already have. These are a bit cheaper looking, but I don't think people will notice much. Even though you get what you pay for, why sell them in the first place if they keep arriving damaged?

I guess I'm just frustrated and wanted to vent. Thanks for listening. You may now return to your regularly scheduled program.

 

[Perry]

The downfalls of buying on line. I don't sell my art but if I need frames
I go to the local thrift store and buy some crappy print and the frame.
We bought a new couch and chair on line but when it arrived the color
didn't match how it appeared on the computer. Lesson learned.

 

[Jo Castillo]

Never had good luck with Jerry's and frames. I like framesbymail.com Reasonable and good.

 

[Donna T]

I ordered a plein air style frame from a frame company (can't remember which one now) and it arrived in a box that was crushed. There was a little packing paper around the frame and nothing else so it was destroyed. The company offered to send another frame. This time the box was intact and there was one piece of thin bubble wrap loosely wrapped around the frame and it was scratched. The company let me keep it and sent another. There was no better packing for this one but it was miraculously undamaged. You would think a frame company would pack these things more carefully!

 

[Bongo]

I feel your paint Ayin - not getting what you paid for, or what was advertised seems an across-the-board trend these days. I just unpacked a brand new Cuisinart coffee maker, am drinking the first cup as I type. So far it didn't beep when the coffee was made as it's suppose to, the "coffee left" gauge is woefully off. It took 10 minutes to brew 10 cups - seems excessive (no ?), came with a "free" gold filter basket - only it's for another model - doesn't fit mine.

But my stuff from Jerry's came today - two days ahead of schedule. So I'm one for two.

I wonder if Jerry's sends them to you straight from their supplier, and not from their warehouse. My shipments from them was/ always are packaged to the nines.

 

[Bartc]

Arty/Ayin, I have had good luck with the sturdier plein air frames from Jerry's. Never a bad one and packed correctly. Going up in price, even if they are from China. The same frames sourced locally - and I'm sure they are also likely done in China - are twice as expensive.
However, had back luck with their two piece supposedly fancier frames. They did replace them without argument, and of course, it took more time.
So I stick with their plein air line, their museum plein air line as well. These compare with what I can buy locally and elsewhere at twice the price literally. The plein air is mitered, but done well and comes in many sizes in black, white, silver, gold and mahogany. The museum lines are not mitered (at least they're finished more professionally) but their colors and sizes are more limited.
Frankly, I'm OK with these online purchases of the right frames, but since I'm painting pastels, it's the cost of the glazing that's killing me. You really need to use UV70 or Museum Glass with pastels, and that is the most expensive "white glass" money can buy! Even for a 9x12" with discount, it doubles the cost of the framing at least. Ah well.....
If I want something different, I've found the store "Frametowne" on Etsy to be very reliable. But these are almost all vintage frames, one of a kind. She's reasonable with the frame plus the special glass and packs exceedingly well. Even includes a white cotton glove and instructions for the special glass! Since she's buying and selling vintage, you have to keep looking to see if she turns up something you might like.

 

[Artyczar]

I was trying to match some floater frames I have on three other 16x20-inch oil paintings. No glass. They have black-painted backings if you look closely on the Jerry's page. I don't know where I got my original ones, but they are much higher quality and I paid about the same money for them (maybe less) in 2015. I wish I could find those receipts, but they are in an old tax box in my garage somewhere. I know there were not from China like these are.

These were packed pretty well. I don't think it was the packaging. It was quality control. Some of them had the black paint on the wood, some of the corners were not connected all the way, one had missing wood in some spots, but not exactly "chipped" from shipping. Just shoddy frame work.

Normally, I take my art to a professional framer, locally. I don't do online frames, but these are very simple frames for a couple of 3/4-inch profile canvases--as simple as it comes! They have to match the others I already have for the show.

The others look like this:

The new ones from Jerry's have areas like this:

 

[Bongo]

That is totally unacceptable imo. Use to happen to me no matter how carefully I was on frames I made - virtually impossible to remove.

I found a simple solution (but won't help you now). That is shellac the frame first (including the part to be black ). Then paint the black, any that spills over while you paint is easily wiped off. On bare wood, wiping off even fresh paint spills is hit or miss at best.
Btw that is a gorgeous painting.

 

[KreativeK]

So aggravating for sure! Been using Graphik Dimensions pictureframes.com for many years with never a damaged edge, etc. Packing is VERY good and takes awhile to get one unwrapped and out of its box. With frequent discounts online they also give you $$$ off and run specials often. Never had good luck with The Jerry's.

That is a perfect look for your painting BTW!

 

[P. Barrie]

I like the floater type frames too as I generally dont like covering the edges of the work. I used to make strip type frames from pine oak or polar mullion/trim as I have a power chop/miter saw and corner clamps.
I’m lucky to live in Ithaca near Cornell University and Ithaca College. Due to the college related affluence, we have a flourishing Re-Use Co. that has 2 large retail locations that offer some good used stuff.
Many frames/old art pieces are donated and then sold very cheaply. I pick through them choosing mostly those that are unpainted wood and have some character that I feel has passed the test of time. There are many tacky ones as well.
I do some restoration/refinishing as needed, using my oils to mix color and match finishes.
Sometimes there are multiple sets of large glassed frames with prints that were commercially procured, became unwanted (probably due to renovations etc.) and then donated by the colleges.

 

[ams]

I am frustrated with Jerry's. I originally ordered four simple natural floater frames. It cost a couple hundred bucks. Two of them arrived damaged, so I contacted them, and they sent two replacements--also damaged. The whole process has taken over a month now.

They are inexpensive frames from China, but I couldn't find any like them anywhere else online. I am trying to match ones I already have. These are a bit cheaper looking, but I don't think people will notice much. Even though you get what you pay for, why sell them in the first place if they keep arriving damaged?

I guess I'm just frustrated and wanted to vent. Thanks for listening. You may now return to your regularly scheduled program.

How frustrating. I did get a chuckle from your last comment though.

 

[Artyczar]

Thanks everyone. Thanks for the nice compliment Bongo (and Kay). I will wait to see if they will replace this last one, or maybe I'll just ask for a refund and look elsewhere...keep searching for where I originally bought these frames from before which were pretty nice quality. I'd bought five of them way back when and they were all in great shape.

 

[AnnieA]

I love the painting and a floater frame seems perfect for it. Do you think your local framer might be able to build the pieces that would match the ones you've already used, for you to assemble and paint? That might be a way to save some money.

This isn't of much help, but I've also noticed the same problem. A while back I sold a painting at an online exhibit which was not yet framed. I ordered three very nice-looking, highly rated frames plain air frames on Amazon (yeah, I should have known better) and when they arrived, all of them were damaged! So then I ordered two from a large online art supply retailer (not Jerry's), and sure enough, those two came damaged as well. Luckily, I could return all of the damaged ones. Finally, I sent the painting off to a local framer who did a wonderful job, and finished it in a fairly reasonable time, and I didn't have to spend as much as it ordinarily would have been because I had a gift certificate. Still, after all the false starts, by the time it was ready it had been several months since the painting sold. Luckily, the buyer was very understanding. I'm wondering if some of this may be pandemic-related, with store staffs rushing too fast to get orders out, overburdened with the huge amount of orders by artists, but even more so non-artists needing a pandemic hobby.

I generally buy frames at thrift stores/garage sales, and also stocked up a number of years back when Aaron Bros. merged into Michaels and I was able to purchase deeply discounted frames at my local bricks and mortar store which was closing. But even with all the frames I have stashed away, I can't always find one that works with any particular painting.

 

[Artyczar]

Thank you for the compliment Annie!

You know, I would ask my local framer to frame the other paintings, but I was looking for ready-mades like these because I do not have two of the paintings in my possession. They are at the gallery three hours away. The point was to be able to bring the ready-made kits with me during the exhibition installation day and pop them into the frames. It was all supposed to be so easy. I think the easiest thing now is to find the merchant I bought the original frames from--just dig into those old tax boxes at this point.