It all started with a photo in The Guardian of designer Luke Edward Hall’s bedroom in his London townhouse. There is so much to love about it – that pink scalloped mirror! – but I couldn’t stop looking at the artwork.
Specifically, those cobalt frame mats. I immediately wanted to switch out every boring white frame mat in my apartment for deep, distinctive blue ones. It was one of those rare moments of inspiration, and I grabbed on tight.
Luke Edward Hall’s funky frame mats.
But then, few days later, I came across another blue frame mat in the wild. Jenny Komenda, blogger and founder of design firm Juniper Studio, had stuck an illustration with sky blue matting smack in the middle of her gallery wall. It was so unexpected, so sweet. Maybe that moment of inspo wasn’t so rare. I decided right then and there: blue frame mats should be a thing.
Designer and blogger Jenny Komenda’s gallery wall.
Once I made that decision, I swear they started popping up everywhere. Here are a couple more. . .
What’s great about these funky borders is they work kind of like a neutral, in that they go with every type of art. Weird, but true. They make quiet, black-and-white line drawings pop, and they make bold, colorful posters even bolder. For once, a trend you can try where it’s pretty much impossible to go wrong.
