Wednesday, November 22, 2017

Open Studio Event • Sat Dec 2


Open Studio Event • Sat Dec 2

Join us for our Holiday Open Studio | Photo|Art Sale Saturday December 2nd 2017 • 11am to 4pm-ish Eco Framing • Business Image Group

______________________________________ Bennett Hall Studio 510•338•6160 • direct 510-339-6677


Enjoy wine, beer, hot cider, nourishment and more...
On Display: Samples of our public exhibit projects & one-of-kind framed pieces throughout our 5,000 sq. ft. production facility and showroom. Learn how we create custom framing and exhibits for our clients, such as the US District Court, Washington Hospital, the Palace & Century Plaza Hotels, UC Cal Crew and Hills Brothers Coffee.
Watch demonstrations of our framing methods and equipment. Check out out in-stock selection of over 400 frame mouldings, largest in the Bay Area.
Unique framed and unframed photographic & art prints, many one-of-a-kind pieces on display, available at special holiday pricing. Historical photography of Oakland, San Francisco, the wider Bay Area, rare original historical photographs & eclectic images from around the world and personal collection of Bennett Hall

_________________________________________________ NEED FRAMING? 10% Bonus Discount If you have framing for the holidays, bring it to our studio &amp and we will design it during the event.

755 Apple Street, Oakland 94603 Easy free Parking our door on our secure gated street. (take Pearmain south off 98th Ave from either 580 or 880 or approach from 105th Ave) We look forward to seeing you or hearing from you if you can't join us! Wishing you and yours the best for the holidays! _____________________________________________________
Custom picture framing made with sustainable best practices. Featuring renewable woods, US-made materials sourced as locally as possible. Our approach is greener, quicker and more affordable. Top quality - museum-grade services - innovative design. For more about Eco Framing, visit www.eco-framing.com
For Enterprise Art Consulting visit www.businessimagegroup.com




Monday, November 20, 2017

Are you ready to ready to join us, frame green & save?



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The picture framing industry, like many, is realizing the importance of being environmentally responsible. Most manufacturers are already making changes to produce products with a lower “carbon footprint”, managing waste carefully, controlling air pollution from the finishing process, and managing effluents that may otherwise enter the water system. Others, particularly those working overseas, may not practice responsible forestry, or pay special attention to pollution. Everything is driven by price. We even had a vender feign ignorance stating, “We don’t have to worry about going green, we buy all our moulding overseas.”

We believe it is time for change. Ten years ago we re-dedicated our picture framing business towards reinventing our processes, deploying “green best practices” aiming to lead our industry, and focusing on suppliers that share our point of view.
We discovered this was not easy, and is not a destination but rather a journey. We constantly refine and improve our methods as well as encourage our clients and our supply chain to join us in this mission. Our focus is moulding “Made in the USA” from sustainably forested woods. These are our featured products, which we strive to make as affordable as possible to our customers than less eco-friendly alternatives. This also includes designing in optimal sizes to minimize waste and using every scrap possible for a productive purpose.
We take recycling as far as humanly possible, with cut-offs and scraps reused in creative ways, converted into products, or given away through local online sites such as Nextdoor and Craigslist. This has cut our waste by over 75% - far beyond government regulations.

We have the landed largest inventory of frame moulding and matt board in the region—over 50,000 feet in 450 styles. As we purchase our raw materials in bulk, which is more cost efficient, and reduces packaging and shipping, small special orders are virtually eliminated. This reduces cost to our clients, shortens turnaround and is less wasteful. 
Our clients learn how to “buy green” and therefore we help them save - both in the carbon footprint of the work and reducing the cost of framing.

In summary, we discovered that our strategy simultaneously cuts waste, reduces labor and paperwork costs, saves on packaging and shipping, reduces our cost of materials, enables faster turnaround and saves on our clients’ budgets. We hope you like our approach and work with us as we continually refine our methods, striving to offer exceptional design, value and craftsmanship on your next project.

Are you ready to ready to join us, frame green & save?




Lake Tenaya, Photograph by Bennett Hall • 8 x 10 view Type C

Cover: Niles Canyon, Alameda Creek, by Bennett Hall

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Information to Help manage your budget on picture framing projects







Information on Pricing

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OVERVIEW
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Our pricing structure is designed to encourage you to purchase in the most cost effective ways possible.
This will save materials and furthers our green best practices, especially when you select from our current inventory which therefore eliminates the need for special orders which by nature is inefficient and consumes excess packaging and shipping services.

We encourage you to purchase in the most eco-friendly way possible from sustainably made materials, and to determine the best blend of style, budget and quality.

How do I get the best pricing?
Framing is by nature custom work, therefore the best pricing comes when we work together to save labor and material cost. Parameters for discount consideration include the overall scope of your order, how many pieces are made in the same size and specifications, if materials are used efficiently, and whether we can make your project from in stock inventory.

The best part is that in many cases the "greener you get" the more you save.

In-Stock Selection
This is one of the best ways you can save, and help protect the environment as nothing has to be ordered in, the workflow is simplified and we can produce your project quicker as well. Special orders are inefficient as they consume time, purchasing costs, packaging material waste and transport fuels, and delay your order.

How much can I save by buying in-stock moulding? Mouldings are automatically 20% less for in stock, and can be as much as 70% from regular retail.

Discounts apply, even if you only order ONE, frame

Matting is also discounted for mats in-stock

Scope of your order
The more pieces you order at one time the lower the price, even if you order different mouldings and specifications. However, if it is appropriate to use the same moulding, or your pieces are standard sizes, and you are doing batches, this can save considerably on labor and material efficiency, and we pass that savings on to you depending on the specifications.

Same Vender?
If your order is with one vender, we may be able to extend savings further. This is especially important for special orders to reduce the costs of shipping, save packaging, and administration expense.

How is a frame price determined?
Custom framing is a composite of the following:

• Size of the artwork and frame
• Moulding Selection - prices vary considerable!
• Complexity of specifications: matting, frame space, filets
Matting: Acid Free vs 100% Rag, 4 ply vs 8 ply, single vs double matting, fabric wrapping
• Conservation services:
Glazing: UV-screening, reduced reflection Standard glass

Standard Sizes
If images are standard sizes, frames made the same size from the same specifications will result in much higher discounts due to increased efficiency in production. If the sizes vary, but you use the same specifications, your pricing still improve, but not to the degree possible as when you have standard sizes.

We review the overall volume of your order, identifying efficiencies and help you obtain the best possible savings.

Moulding Selection and pricing
A frame is priced by measuring its effective outer dimension and multiplying this by the footage price. The price you pay is only for the actual frame - and it includes all our labor to chop, join, inspect the finished frame and we assume the overcuts and everything related to inventory costs.

Moulding selection is a key consideration to the design of the piece. We believe that style as well as suitability for the scale of the piece is paramount to this decision, therefore first, we never want you to regret a selection.

Frame mouldings range in base price per framing foot from $5 to as much as $200 for closed corner real gold gilded. 
The normal range is $8-25, the lower being for imported moulding the higher end sustainable craft made US made hardwoods
Top line profiles can however range up to $40/linear foot joined

IF you select from our in-house collections, this saves the environment and also provides a discount which ranges from 20-60% from the normal retail price.

Accommodating diverse design objectives means that we are full-line dealers for all leading manufacturers of frame moulding. However, we will guide you to products that are forest friendly, as local as possible, Made in America, certified and with the best supply-chain and transportation methods possible,
Purchase from our Standard Selections
We purchase moulding in case lots specifically to offer a wide range of styles at discounted prices. We offer many mouldings at accelerated discounts from retail!

If price is the most important aspect of your selection process, we will help you identify the best moulding that meets the project requirements highest possible discount.

Materials Optimization - Standard Sizes Equals more savings
Frame materials typically come in standard sizes. Therefore, designing your work into those sizes will result in lower pricing due to improved materials utilization. This is especially important when designing volume projects. 

For example, if you order frames that are 17 x 21, you can only get two mats from a sheet of 32 x 40" whereas 16 x 20 frames yield four sheets per mat board. Although the labor may be the same, materials costs are reduced, and there is less waste, therefore we are able to pass the savings on to you.

Common Standard sizes
16 x 20 - efficient matting size, box glass
32 x 40 - standard mat board, foamcore, glass
36 x 48 - largest practical glass size; good for Acrylic (48")
40 x 60 - standard mat board, foamcore oversize
48 x 72 - limited mat board selection in this size
48 x 96 - foam core, mat board* -(100% white rag only)
48 x 96" Plexiglas
*white rag only, some oversize mat board available

Can I get a price over the phone or the internet?

We encourage you to come in for a complimentary design session so that by working together we can find the best budget and style for your work. However, if you email your specifications, including size, quantity, glazing preference and style we will give you a range of pricing.

How much is a Frame?
The answer is "That depends" on the following:
How big and how many are we making at one time?
What style, type and quality of the moulding?
How many mats and what type?
UV, Plexiglas or Reduced reflection glazing?

These are some of the consideration that combine to determine the price of a custom frame.

Notes on Oversize pieces
Standard mounting and backing materials are limited
to 48 x 96. Frame moulding is normally not much longer than 96", sometimes ten foot. This is important to keep in mind in producing larger scale pieces.  Larger acrylic is available by special order, we stock to 60 x 120"

What about Ready Made Frames? 
The question to ask yourself is "Do I require custom framing. Readymades are often inexpensive as they are foreign made in large volume in factories. It is possible that they can be successfull for a range of projects, especially for smaller pieces. We can order these in for you and you may also have seen these in the larger 'Big box' stores. If you are OK assembling your piece and price is the most important factor, then you may not need custom framing and this could be a good solution. you will find the selection and sizes limited, and it will be very hard to match if you need to in the future. However, If you find something you love - chances are the price IS unbeatable.

Our Ready Mades and Overstock
We also have a variety of pre-made frames to choose from that we offer at discounted rates. These are often created from overcuts of our larger projects, and we provide full service with these orders such as matting and fitting. We encourage this as this way we are able to utilize a far greater percentageof our materials and reduce the amount of waste3 created in our shop that may otherwise occur.

Note on Special orders - turnaround
If your order requires a special order for materials we do not have in stock, your turnaround may be up to 3 weeks. This allows us time to aggregate orders, and maintain your best discount. If you must have a special order on an accelerated schedule, we may not be able to provide the same pricing














































































































Tuesday, August 1, 2017

New exhibit program for U.S. District Courts-Oakland















Our latest projects for the United States District Court was among our "greenest" to date, the best practices applied at every step of the process.  This program presently covers the 3rd and 4th floor of the Courthouse, the 2nd floor program is temporary in storage while a new courtrtoom is being constructed.

Framing was produced locally in our Oakland production studio, printed in Montclair by Bennett hall using an artisan labor approach. The frame moulding is a U.S. forested and manufactured solid Cherry wood; produced using FSC certified methods by Larson Juhl, a Warren Buffett Company. Matting is all rag board or the new Biltmore line from Larson, also FSC Certified.

This project consists in total of over 150 historical different fine art giclee prints which provide an educational local history experience for jurors, judges, staff, lawyers and visitors for the facility.  The program includes Oakland, Alameda, Richmond, Fremont area and Contra Costa County.  Stories about the development of Oakland, Lake Merritt, the Waterfront, the transcontinental railroads, ferry systems, the airport including Charles Lindberg and Amelia Earhart, the Liberty Ships and war effort in the Area, UC Berkeley, Mission San Jose, Martinez and much more.Each image was digitally mastered from the best available historical original - editorial collaboraton was by the local Hon. Judge Jensen, former Alameda county District Attorney/

Why Green?
Larger projects are done often produced using lower cost materials imported from Asia, "jungle woods". Production operations often do not practice suitable forest stewardship, manage the effluents from their mills or control the exhaust from their finishing operations in an optimal manner (VOCs).

This project is 100% "Made in the USA"
-doing what we can to keep America working

In our process, we repurpose overcuts into smaller frames, further reducing waste from the project.

We commend the United States District Courts for choosing to go local - producing in San Francisco, as well as selecting renewable low-carbon impact materials throughout this project.
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See California Images Story on Oakland Exhibit

website: US District Courts
http://www.businessimagegroup.com/USCourts.htm

California Images Public Galleries -how to acquire selected views from this exhibit
 
Article from Mercury News: US Courts Programs 2008