Decorative Matting
French Lines are done at CDM with a ruling pen and Liquitex ® acrylic paint which
when dry is permanent and water-resistant. Colors can come straight out of the
tube or be custom blended for the right color. Acrylic paint is preferred over
watercolor and gauche because of its decorative flexibility and steadfastness.
In the photo there are three French Lines on the mat.
 |
 |
 |
 |
Two French Lines are required to paint in the band of color. This gives a
lovely effect to the mat as seen in the “before and after” shots.
 |
Marble papers
Marble papers are used as a decorative enhancement for many types of art work,
especially floral and wildlife images. A variety of colors are on hand and
custom made papers can be ordered. 415 tapes from 3M is a high quality acid-free
double sided transparent tape that is used to adhere the marble paper onto the
rag mat.
|
Hand washed mats
Hand washed mats are done with acrylic paints and are applied with Japanese
Hake brushes. As with the French Lines, the colors can come straight out of the
tube or they can be hand mixed. These mats are
unsurpassed in beauty and are in a class all their own. They can vary from the
subtlest color to the brightest hues. In the photos photos 1-3 the mat was painted to
look old but is conservationally sound and
aesthetically pleasing. As in photos 4 & 5 the mat was custom painted to
match part of the crest with a vibrant blue that enhances the art work but does
not over power the piece.
Hand Decorated Mats
These mats are truly custom decorated. As with photo 1 here is the double
window single plain mat and some photos showing the painting process. First the
drawing is done on the mat, and then the paint is hand mixed to match the image
which is then painted onto the mat with a step by step process until the mat is
complete. This finished product is photos 2 & 3.
|
