Should you frame a canvas on a stretcher?

Not necessarily. A canvas on a deep stretcher, with painted or raw edges, stands on its own. A canvas on a thin stretcher gains from a frame, most often a floating frame.

What is a floating frame?

A wooden frame without glass, in which the canvas floats with a gap of a few millimetres all the way round. It is the frame made for canvases on stretchers: it protects the corners and leaves the edges visible.

Which glass for framing a drawing or a watercolour?

UV-filtering glass if the work gets daylight, anti-reflective if it faces a window or a lamp, acrylic if the frame is large or above a bed. And always a mount between the paper and the glass.

How much does made-to-measure framing cost?

Often more than a hundred euros for a medium format at a framer, more with special glass or a large floating frame. These are rules of thumb: ask for a quote with two options.

How do you hang a heavy painting?

With a wall plug suited to the wall, two hanging points, and steel wire or two hooks on the back. If you rent, a picture rail or adhesive hooks rated for the weight, with a margin.

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Framing a canvas or a painting: frame, floating frame, glass, prices

Updated on 17 September 2026 · 6 min read

A canvas on a stretcher often does without a frame; a work on paper never does. In between, a few choices that change everything, and a few prices worth knowing before you go to the framer.

01With or without a frame: it depends on the support

The question doesn’t have the same answer depending on what you are holding. A canvas stretched over a deep stretcher, 3 to 4 cm, with edges that are painted or deliberately raw, stands on its own. Its sides are part of the work, and a frame would hide them.

A canvas on a thin stretcher, 2 cm or less, looks unfinished bare: a frame gives it weight. And anything on paper - drawing, watercolour, print, photograph, pastel - needs a frame with glass, no exception: paper yellows, stains, and gathers dust.

Ask the artist. Most have a clear idea of how the work should be shown, and some canvases were painted to stay bare.

02The floating frame, for a canvas

The floating frame is the frame made for canvases on stretchers. It is a wooden box, without glass, in which the canvas sits with a gap of a few millimetres all the way round. The work seems to float inside its frame, and its edges stay visible.

In natural wood, white or black, a floating frame goes with almost everything. Thin, it disappears; wide, it gives the work the presence of a gallery.
It is made to measure, to the exact dimensions of the canvas, by a framer or online. Measure the stretcher, not the painted image.
It protects the sides and the corners, which are what a canvas damages first when it is moved.

03The classic frame and the mount, for paper

For a work on paper, the classic frame is made of a moulding, a sheet of glass, a mount and a backing board. The mount is the bevelled card between the work and the glass: it gives the image room to breathe, and above all it stops the glass touching the paper.

A pastel, a charcoal or a chalk drawing must never touch the glass: the medium sticks to it. A mount, or a spacer, is compulsory. For a watercolour or an ink drawing, it is a comfort rather than an obligation, but the image breathes better.

An off-white or cream mount goes with almost everything; pure white hardens soft colours.
A margin of 5 to 8 cm for a small format, wider for a large one, with a little more at the bottom than at the top: the eye finds it more balanced.
Choose acid-free card and backing, known as conservation grade: ordinary card yellows the paper within a few years.

04Which glass: standard, anti-reflective, UV-filtering, acrylic

Standard glass costs the least and is enough in a room with little exposure. It reflects the window and the lamp.
Anti-reflective glass removes the reflections and makes the image readable from anywhere. It is the most visible comfort for a reasonable price.
UV-filtering glass blocks the light that fades colours. For a watercolour, a photograph or a print exposed to daylight, it is the one that keeps the work.
Acrylic glazing weighs half as much and doesn’t shatter: for a large format, a child’s bedroom, or a wall above a bed.

These qualities combine, and the price rises with them. A framer will show you the four side by side: the difference is obvious straight away.

05What framing costs

A standard frame, in shop sizes, costs a few tens of euros in a shop, glass included. Made-to-measure framing by a framer often starts above a hundred euros for a medium format, and rises with the size, the moulding and the glass you choose. A floating frame for a large canvas runs into hundreds of euros.

These are orders of magnitude, not rates: every framer sets their own price, and a rare moulding or UV-filtering glass changes the bill. Ask for a quote with two options. And compare that price with the price of the work: a frame that costs more than the drawing it protects isn’t a mistake, if the drawing matters to you.

06Hanging, without damaging the work or the wall

The weight decides the fixing. A light canvas hangs on a hook; a glazed frame needs a wall plug suited to the wall - plaster, brick and concrete don’t take the same one.
Two hanging points rather than one for anything over 60 cm: the painting stays straight, and the weight is shared.
Steel wire or two hooks on the back, never string. And a small felt pad at the bottom of the frame, so it doesn’t mark the wall.
If you rent, picture rails or adhesive hooks rated for the weight avoid drilling. Read the maximum weight, and take a third off it.

And if you are unsure, the artist who made the work is the right person to ask how it should be shown. That is part of buying direct, too.

That is what arvel organises: a gallery for every Belgian artist, original works, and a handover in person. The price you see is the price you pay, and the artist keeps all of it. The client’s money is held until the handover, and refunded if the work doesn’t match. Art doesn’t travel: we meet.

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The questions we get asked

Should you frame a canvas on a stretcher?: Not necessarily. A canvas on a deep stretcher, with painted or raw edges, stands on its own. A canvas on a thin stretcher gains from a frame, most often a floating frame.
What is a floating frame?: A wooden frame without glass, in which the canvas floats with a gap of a few millimetres all the way round. It is the frame made for canvases on stretchers: it protects the corners and leaves the edges visible.
Which glass for framing a drawing or a watercolour?: UV-filtering glass if the work gets daylight, anti-reflective if it faces a window or a lamp, acrylic if the frame is large or above a bed. And always a mount between the paper and the glass.
How much does made-to-measure framing cost?: Often more than a hundred euros for a medium format at a framer, more with special glass or a large floating frame. These are rules of thumb: ask for a quote with two options.
How do you hang a heavy painting?: With a wall plug suited to the wall, two hanging points, and steel wire or two hooks on the back. If you rent, a picture rail or adhesive hooks rated for the weight, with a margin.