Creating the perfect presentation for your artwork involves accurately calculating the dimensions of both the matting and the final frame. This calculator helps you determine the overall external dimensions of your framed piece based on your artwork's size, desired mat widths, and the width of your chosen frame molding.
How It Works:
The calculation involves several steps to account for all components:
Matting: The mat board adds a border around your artwork. We need to add the top and bottom mat widths to the artwork's height, and the left and right mat widths to the artwork's width.
Frame Molding: The frame molding surrounds the mat and artwork. The molding width is added to each side of the combined artwork and mat dimensions.
The Calculation Logic:
Let:
AW = Artwork Width
AH = Artwork Height
MWT = Mat Width – Top
MWB = Mat Width – Bottom
MWL = Mat Width – Left
MWR = Mat Width – Right
FMW = Frame Molding Width
1. Calculate Matting Dimensions:
Total Width with Matting = AW + MWL + MWR
Total Height with Matting = AH + MWT + MWB
2. Calculate Final Frame Dimensions:
Final Frame Width = (Total Width with Matting) + FMW + FMW (Add molding width to both left and right sides)
Final Frame Height = (Total Height with Matting) + FMW + FMW (Add molding width to both top and bottom sides)
Example:
Imagine you have a print that is 16 inches wide and 20 inches high. You want a mat that is 3 inches wide on the top and bottom, and 2.5 inches wide on the left and right. You choose a frame molding that is 1.5 inches wide.
Artwork Width (AW) = 16 inches
Artwork Height (AH) = 20 inches
Mat Width – Top (MWT) = 3 inches
Mat Width – Bottom (MWB) = 3 inches
Mat Width – Left (MWL) = 2.5 inches
Mat Width – Right (MWR) = 2.5 inches
Frame Molding Width (FMW) = 1.5 inches
Step 1: Matting Dimensions
Total Width with Matting = 16 + 2.5 + 2.5 = 21 inches
Total Height with Matting = 20 + 3 + 3 = 26 inches
Step 2: Final Frame Dimensions
Final Frame Width = 21 + 1.5 + 1.5 = 24 inches
Final Frame Height = 26 + 1.5 + 1.5 = 29 inches
Therefore, your final framed piece will measure 24 inches wide by 29 inches high.
Use Cases:
Custom framing shops calculating final dimensions for customers.
DIY framers planning their projects.
Artists determining how their work will appear once framed.
Interior designers selecting appropriate frame sizes for spaces.
function calculateFrameSize() {
var artworkWidth = parseFloat(document.getElementById("artworkWidth").value);
var artworkHeight = parseFloat(document.getElementById("artworkHeight").value);
var matWidthTop = parseFloat(document.getElementById("matWidthTop").value);
var matWidthBottom = parseFloat(document.getElementById("matWidthBottom").value);
var matWidthLeft = parseFloat(document.getElementById("matWidthLeft").value);
var matWidthRight = parseFloat(document.getElementById("matWidthRight").value);
var frameWidth = parseFloat(document.getElementById("frameWidth").value);
var resultDiv = document.getElementById("result");
// Input validation
if (isNaN(artworkWidth) || artworkWidth <= 0 ||
isNaN(artworkHeight) || artworkHeight <= 0 ||
isNaN(matWidthTop) || matWidthTop < 0 ||
isNaN(matWidthBottom) || matWidthBottom < 0 ||
isNaN(matWidthLeft) || matWidthLeft < 0 ||
isNaN(matWidthRight) || matWidthRight < 0 ||
isNaN(frameWidth) || frameWidth <= 0) {
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Please enter valid positive numbers for all fields.";
return;
}
// Calculate dimensions with matting
var totalWidthWithMat = artworkWidth + matWidthLeft + matWidthRight;
var totalHeightWithMat = artworkHeight + matWidthTop + matWidthBottom;
// Calculate final frame dimensions
var finalFrameWidth = totalWidthWithMat + frameWidth + frameWidth; // Add frame width to both sides
var finalFrameHeight = totalHeightWithMat + frameWidth + frameWidth; // Add frame width to both top and bottom
resultDiv.innerHTML = "Final Frame Size: " + finalFrameWidth.toFixed(2) + "\" wide x " + finalFrameHeight.toFixed(2) + "\" high";
}