I’ll talk more about how to frame below. But the two easiest options are: 

1. To take the unframed watercolor painting to a shop that does framing.

2. To order a frame through LevelFrames.com. After checking out lots of options, this group makes the process the simplest and, in my opinion, is the best value. You can order online or walk through the options with a staff member. You can send them the artwork and they will frame it, or you can specify what you need and they will send it to you. I’ve ordered many frames from them and have always been pleased. I’ve recommended them to my students for their own work, and they have been pleased, too. It you order via this link, you will get a discount and I will get a small commission: https://www.levelframes.com/?ref=4ed9270815

No pressure though. There are a number of online options. And, as you know, I always prefer to recommend local sources. So, if you have a local option, please patronize your local vendor. 

For watercolors, you want to have a mat against the watercolor paper and a frame around: 

• The backing foam board. 
• The painting. 
• The mat.
• The glazing (either glass or Plexiglas). 

When affixing the painting to foam board, it’s best to not affix the painting solidly on all four edges. Use a method that allows some of the painting to expand and contract a bit as the ambient moisture in the atmosphere fluctuates.

Also, generally watercolor paintings have a piece of paper on the back to help keep dust from getting into the front of the painting and behind the glass.

A mat between the painting and the frame is needed so that the surface of the painting is not directly against the glass or the plexi. We recommend using archival quality mats and archival quality backing foam board behind the art. Non-archival mats can turn yellowish and stain the artwork.

We prefer white mats because they provide the most flexibility for you as to where to hang the painting. Whatever suits your style is fine.

Typically the width of the mat is between 2”-4” depending on the size of the painting and your preferences.

As you consider where you might hang your painting, remember to add the depth of the matting to each of the four sides.

If you use a 3” mat, you would add 6” to the width and 6” to the height to have a better idea of the ultimate size of your artwork. That is a total of 3” on each of the four sides of your artwork.

For example, if the painting is listed at 10” x 12” on the website, you will add 3” to each of four sides which is equal to 6” to the width and 6” to the height.

Here’s the math:
10” + 6” = 16”
12” + 6” = 18”

The total estimated size of your framed piece will be approximately:
16” x 18”

That probably will not be the exact final size since it doesn't account for the overlap of the mat on the painting, or the width of the frame. But it is likely to be close enough to the final size for you to estimate where it will fit on your wall.

As with a simple mat, we recommend simple frames. To us, it's about highlighting the artwork, not the frame. But again, it's personal. Some very famous artists had some unbelievably ornate frames.

You may use glass OR Plexiglas for the glazing. Either works. Glass is clearer. But Plexi is lighter.

For watercolors, you never want to hang them in direct sunlight, but most other places are fine. Check where the light falls at different times of the year. Sometimes a wall may get direct sunlight in the spring and not in the fall for example.

We use videos to introduce you to artists and to teach “how to do…” various art techniques.

Many of the videos are filmed "en plein air” —in the open air—to capture the reality of being face-to-face with your subject matter, while showing you how to solve creative challenges as they pop up while you are painting outdoors.

Thunderstorms, wasp nests, massive winds, and dogs meandering through the shot, are all conditions "conquered" by Jane and the crew on location, as an example of a real artist on a real painting assignment dealing with the elements.

In addition to learning the techniques, in these videos you learn how to be flexible, innovative, nimble, and how to use your sense of humor, to help you get through a potential “art-in-progress crises.”

Some of these videos show a painting from start to finish. They are divided into four to six video parts of about 20-minutes each. These videos were filmed on location with our film crew from Los Angeles. We visited Minneapolis, MN; St. Louis, MO; and Monterey, CA; for these intensive real-time sessions showing a painting from planning and sketching to finishing touches. There are Playlists available to watch these series of Lessons. You will find them in our video listings.

Some of the videos are short demonstrations of how to accomplish a single technique, like painting dew drops on a petal, or how to set-up your workspace for painting outside.

Other videos are interviews with artists to connect the dots between history, culture, art, an individual artist’s point of view, and the community represented.

Most of the videos are free to watch. Some, including those developed specifically for our online courses, have a fee to view.

We sometimes use a bold signature as a “watermark” on our images. It is a temporary mark to signify that the copyright to the piece is owned by Jane M. Mason.

The bold visible signature will not be on your art. Your original art will be signed by Jane M. Mason in an attractive way. It may be signed on the front of the piece or the back of the piece.

If you happen to see pieces of Jane’s art that are used by other websites, please notify us. Sometimes people use our art without our permission. We need to protect our copyrights from fraudulent use. Please, if you can, take a screenshot and notify us via email (info.janemmason@gmail.com).

Jane uses archival materials in original paintings and she uses many recycled and upcycled materials in her other art.

FOR JANE M. MASON ORIGINAL PAINTINGS:

Watercolor Paper

Generally, Jane uses Arches Watercolor paper, in either a 140 lb. or 300 lb. weight. She almost always uses a “cold pressed” surface, which means it has a bumpy texture. The original may buckle a bit during Jane’s painting process, and that is one indicator that you have an original watercolor.

Jane loves Arches paper because it has a luxurious feel, and absorbs, in Jane's opinion, the "right amount" of paint and water.

It is important to Jane to choose high quality paper especially due to its archival provenance. Arches was first fabricated in 1492. It is made of 100% cotton fiber. It is acid-free, with no optical brightening agents, and has a fungicidal treatment to prevent mold. It has been the paper of choice for artists such as Van Gogh, Matisse, Chagall, Picasso, Braque, Miro, Dali, Warhol, and Jane M. Mason.

From the Arches website:
https://www.arches-papers.com/our-papers/arches-aquarelle-watercolour-paper/

Jane may also use other fine art papers of similar quality, such as Fabriano. These paper makers also have the archival credentials, expertise, and history similar to Arches. Fabriano was established as the first European paper mill in 1264, in Fabriano, Italy.

If you are in the area in Italy, you can tour the original site of the mill and factory. It is wonderful!
http://www.savoirfaire.com/manufacturers/fabriano

Watercolor paint

Jane uses several manufacturers of paint including Winsor & Newton, Daniel Smith, Holbein, M. Graham, Schmincke, and a few others. Each manufacturer has a slightly different technique for creating its paint. Some are smoother. Some seem brighter. Some are grainier or more granulating. Jane might, at various times, prefer any of these characteristics in any hue she selects.

All the manufacturers she selects subscribe to the highest standards of creating paint to the best practices in the industry for permanence, consistency, and according to safety standards.

Winsor & Newton, founded in 1832 in London, was a manufacturer of some of the watercolor paint used by John Singer Sargent. Winsor & Newton remains by Appointment to HRH the Prince of Wales, and may display the Prince of Wales’s coat of arms.
http://www.winsornewton.com/na/discover/about-us/timeline

Another brand Jane uses is Daniel Smith, a relative newcomer to the industry, first established in 1993. From its website, it is “a classic watercolor of unsurpassed purity and permanence.” The founder’s vision for the formulation of new watercolor paints was twofold:

• First and foremost, to produce watercolors that are the best in lightfastness and permanence.

• Second, to offer a selection of truly unique colors.”

They are lovely, intense paints that Jane uses nearly every day.
http://danielsmith.com/watercolor/

On the Daniel Smith website, you can download helpful information such as its brochure on how its paint is manufactured.

Generally, original watercolor paintings will not be framed. You will be buying the individual piece of watercolor paper that the art was created on. This process saves you tremendously on the shipping costs as opposed to shipping a framed piece. In addition it allows you the opportunity to select the mat and frame that best suits your special place for the painting.

Sizes for original watercolor paintings are approximate.

FOR JANE M. MASON ORIGINAL HOOKED RUGS:

Jane uses primarily wool cut into narrow strips to be pulled through a fine linen backing for her hooked rugs.

The wool is a combination of new wool from well-known vendors, such as The Dorr Mill Store in New Hampshire.

Some wool is purchased from second-hand stores in the form of skirts, slacks, or other clothing. It is washed at least once by Jane and then deconstructed as a piece of clothing. Eventually, it is cut into strips for the rug hooking process.

Sometimes other materials such as wool yarn, Sari silk ribbon (recycled from Saris in India), silk fabric, knit fabrics, metallic fabrics, cotton embroidery floss, and embellishments such as buttons, are also included in the finished hooked rug.

As much as possible, the material used consists of recycled items or scraps from the manufacturing process of garments or other fabric items.

Hooked rugs may be shipped framed, or as a pillow cover, or as a mat with finished edges for your floor, or for your wall. The description by the product will indicate the format for each specific piece.

Sizes for hooked rugs are approximate.

FOR JANE M. MASON ORIGINAL COLLAGES:

Jane uses an eclectic combination of materials in her collages. Individual pieces may include paper from old discarded books, buttons or closures from recycled garments or from yard sale button boxes. Or, pieces might include cleaned used tea bags or coffee filters.

The fabrics involved will probably come from Jane’s collection of fabric in her studio, or pieces she has traded for with other textile artists.

The collages are intentionally a collection of found and salvaged pieces to give the final piece of artwork its unique story and identity. They are truly one of a kind.

Due to the fragile nature of the many components of a collage, the collages will be framed by us before being shipped. The framing is part of the purchase price. We will not be able to change out frames for these pieces.

The size listed for the piece will be the exterior dimensions of the frame.

You are buying the piece of art you paid for as described online or in a catalog listing.

For example, with a watercolor painting, you are buying the original piece of paper with the watercolor painted on it. You are not buying any rights to the art. You do not have permission to copy, photograph, or reproduce the art in any way to repurpose it for your benefit or resale.

You may not make any copies, photographs, sketches, tracings, or any other derivations of her work for your own benefit or for resale or for any financial gain for you. You are purchasing the one product whether it is a downloadable page, or a painting, or a three-dimensional product such as a hooked rug.

Exceptions:

1. For paper patterns for rug hooking, punch needle or other needle arts, you may make an additional copy of the pattern for your own personal use.

2. For downloaded coloring pages, you may download additional copies for your own personal coloring or drawing experience.

3. For social media posting, you may use a photo of the art your purchased or the coloring page you have colored in. For these instances, you must use the credit line: Artwork copyright Jane M. Mason, janemmason.com

If you infringe on Jane’s copyright, you may owe her significant financial damages including a financial penalty, and any profits you make on anything that has been derived from her artwork. She owns the copyright on all the content on this website including images, drawings, designs, and all narrative content. (Unless credited to another artist or source.) This copyright protection is guaranteed to Jane by law via the copyright Act, 1976.

If you are interested in securing any rights for licensing, you must receive written permission from Jane, the artist, in advance of any project or use of any intellectual property. Please contact her via our contact form.

We do our best to provide accurate photos. Colors may look different depending on what you view them on such as your computer, phone, or tablet. In addition, colors can appear different depending on the lighting when the product photo was taken. Or even whether we used an iPhone, camera or iPad. Please try to leave a margin for differences when considering the specific color of the product you are purchasing.

These marks are the brush strokes Jane uses to test colors as she is painting. If she wants a color to be lighter or darker—or just different than what is on the painting, she often tests various shades on the edges of the painting or the reverse side of the painting.

These marks are an indication of an original painting by a real artist, in a studio or plein air setting. In a museum they would say that these marks show the “true hand of the artist.”

Please see our returns policy.

We accept everything that Shopify payments accepts, which includes Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, JCB, Diners Club, Elo, Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Facebook Pay..

Please allow 4-5 days to process your order and prepare it for shipping. Once shipped you will be alerted as to delivery dates.

Please see our shipping policy for additional information.

Well, yikes, shipping is expensive. We reward you for spending more by paying for part of your shipping costs. FYI, Amazon loses billions of dollars a year in the shipping expenses that they “eat” for their Prime Members. For them, it is such a valuable perk for their Prime Members to offer “free shipping” that it is worth the expense. But Amazon Prime Members pay over $100 per year in fees. Part of the fee covers the “free” shipping.

We continually innovate with our shipping processes and emphasize the use of recyclable, recycled, and lightweight compostable material. We not only strive to have a minimal impact on the environment, we also work to keep shipping weights and prices as low as possible.

You will pay for shipping on Special Custom Products unless other arrangements have been made.

If you have ordered a Special Custom Product, we are very excited about creating the perfect product and putting all the finishing touches on it for you.

A shipping schedule cannot be confirmed until:

1. The art has been created and after it is approved by you;

2. The art cost and estimated shipping has been paid for; and,

3. You are alerted that it is packaged and shipped.

Our website was designed to work on most devices, be it a smartphone, tablet, or desktop.

Most of our videos are hosted on YouTube or Amazon, which also provide for viewing options on different device types.

If you aren’t able to view a video and scrolling / zooming doesn’t help, please contact us and let us know which page / video you are viewing as well as the technology you are using to view it on (ie iphone with Chrome). We will do our best to help you resolve the issue.

First, clarify whether the product is a physical product or a downloadable product.

If it is a downloadable product, as soon as your order has been placed and confirmed, you will be able to see a button to download it. You are welcome to use the pattern, design or coloring page that you download as often as you like for your personal artwork experience.

All my designs are copyright and the rights are owned by me. You are purchasing the right to use the pattern, or the design, or to color on the coloring page. You may not develop any products to be sold, reproduced, or traded based on or adapted from my designs.

First confirm that your system meets our minimum requirements.

Suggested minimum PC system requirements:
• Windows XP or Vista
• 1GB of RAM
• Color monitor with at least 800x600 screen resolution, 1024x768 recommended
• Windows sound card
• Speakers or headphones

Suggested minimum Apple Macintosh system requirements:
• Mac OS 10.5 and above
• 1GB of RAM
• Color monitor with at least 800x600 screen resolution, 1024x768 recommended
• Speakers or headphones

If you have an issue, please contact us with your details and we will do our best to resolve your issue. We do not have a technical staff, so our expertise is limited. If the problem can’t be resolved, we will consider refunding the price you paid for the download.

Please sign up for our newsletter! We have a sign up form available at the bottom of every page on our site, but you can also visit the following page to sign up:
fromjanemmason.com/newsletter

We will not bombard you with emails. We will inform you of new work, special offers, new educational opportunities, and updates on things we think you’ll enjoy hearing about. We typically send out a newsletter every other week.

Also, please follow us on Facebook and Instagram. We post paintings-in-progress, events, special offers, articles on artists and art history, and links to new videos as we post them featuring Jane demonstrating painting techniques.

Additionally, if you happen to be in the right place at the right time or like to travel, we have a page where we share our exhibit dates.

We are delighted to add your friend to our email list. As you know, we will never sell our list. We use the list to send our newsletter about twice a month. In addition, we will use it periodically to announce promotions, major policy changes, etc. A reader may unsubscribe at any time.

You can forward a copy of your newsletter to them and suggest they sign up. There is a place to sign up at the bottom of the newsletter.

Or, you can send them an email with this link to sign up for the newsletter:
https://fromjanemmason.com/newsletter

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