Flax Art & Frame

Flax Art & Frame is second to none in Chicago. Nice staff, exceptional quality work, and good prices. I had a canvas re-​stretched here, the price was quite reasonable, they found a useful provenance document for me, and the turn around time was only a couple of weeks. I have used other framers in Chicago, but Flax is a true gem.

I was in there last week to buy a frame, although they had what I needed and it was convenieint to go at lunch, the lady helping me was not very courteous and seemed dissapointed that I didn’t need her to handle my framing. If i treated my customers that way I wouldn’t have any. Next time I will go to Michaels.

Flax Art & Frame has framed seven pieces for me, including a really challenging 5′ x 7′ painting (which they later hung). They are sensational. They’re extremely professional, do quality work, and have excellent taste. If you have good art, bring it here. Do triple check the expected delivery or completion date – I had one mix-​up when I thought they were confirming a deadline, but they were confirming a «it’ll be ready roughly then» date. They are expensive, but you may be able to get a discount if you bring in multiple pieces at once.

SAVE YOUR FINE ART FROM DISASTER AND BRING IT ALL TO FLAX
My wife and I didn’t go to FLAX first: we made the mistake of trusting another very professional-​looking frame shop in the Loop which, despite their overtures of experience and only after we paid and gave them our pieces, turned out to be incapable of dealing with fine art. The other shop not only couldn’t stretch the canvas well but also used inferior, damaging materials and permanently damaged our EXTREMELY valuable paintings in the process of framing them!
Brian Flax of FLAX in the loop was more than an unpretentious expert framer– he was a godsend. Obviously we were skeptical of anyone after our first experience at the other shop, but Brian quickly laid our concerns to rest. Not only did he and his capable framers fix the mistakes of the frame job the other shop made– visible (such as smeared putty, stretch job, crookedness) and invisible, preventative mistakes (like wood and nail types to prevent long term corrosion), but he was extremely friendly and helpful, unassuming and educational without being condescending, and he even documented the damages the other shop had made as a favor to us and our attorney.
Price: FLAX is well regarded in the loop and comes highly recommended. Considering my situation and their expertise I was compromised– he had me over a barrel. But while I was admittedly nervous about their pricing, it was better than I ever would have imagined. The same or less than the other shop even though at the other shop we had used a Unilocal coupon of 20% off. Considering their capabilities and expertise, FLAX is an absolute steal.
Looking at their work which shows such immaculate attention to detail, and thinking back on our conversations revealing Brian and Dana’s expertise, they are clearly an upper-​echelon framer representing the pinnacle of the industry. FLAX has earned our lifelong trust and Brian’s business card goes in a very small stack of unquestioned go-​to businesses I don’t ever have to think twice about. Thank you team FLAX, we will remember you forever as we admire our artwork.

I went in today with a simple project — to frame a large, square photo. The service and price were both outstanding.

We are so very impressed by the level of professionalism and knowledge of the people at Flax Art. My wife recently broke/​cracked the frame on a family heirloom Warhol of her Uncle, we were crushed. We went to another frame shop and they told us the type of gallery style framing could not be done (at least not at their establishment). Fortunately we found Brian at Flax and he set our minds at ease– he used his resources and completely replicated a frame and restored our piece to its former glory. Whew! (and BRAVO!) We were updated via email on the progress of the project and were returned the original framing, showing a level of sensitivity and a nod to our sentiment– it was much appreciated.
Will be back for any and all framing needs.

I found these guys online (I live in Colorado, far far away from their brick and mortar shop) and spent a good hour on the phone with the owner, Brian Flax, who did a spectacular job trying to find the right kind of matboard for my project. Without me being able to see any samples, he was able to find the PERFECT material and was incredibly helpful, patient and courteous. I wish I lived closer to this place just so I could give them more of my business more often! Thank you Flax Art and Frame for your superb customer service and excellent quality products!

Simply put — this place is great! They will always be my framers — even if I leave Chicago. I’ll make it work!
I stopped in here years ago when I lived in the loop to have a painting framed that was painted by my partner’s grandmother in 1928. Brian Flax helped me then and the experience was fantastic. I referred a few friends to Brian after that, but didn’t need anything else framed for a while.
In December, 2014, my partner’s mother passed away — as we were processing through her things, we found several different types of things that we wanted framed (old post cards, another painting from grandma, items from a once-​owned bakery, and a series of small cards from the 1920s). I took the items to the shop — walked in one afternoon (making a special trip downtown and taking time off work as I no longer live in the loop). Without a thought, Brian spent the time it took to make sure we designed the perfect setting for each piece. I took about 2.5 hours of his time and he didn’t even seem to think twice about it. He’s not afraid to tell you when something doesn’t look good, in a very nice way! — and he has a great sense of color and design.
He called me a few weeks later as they were beginning to work on the projects. The bird cards were a series of 30 and numbered 1 – 30 (we were putting into 3 frames, 10 per frame). Apparently the first card was missing (showing my attention to detail — I had no idea!). We didn’t notice the day I placed the order either. He called to let me know that he had found the same set of cards on ebay, ordered them, and inserted the #1 card into the project. That’s pretty amazing service. I will always tell that story every time people look at the birds (and they look AMAZING!).
For pieces that you want to look perfect and plan to keep in your life for a long time — take them to Flax. I already have a few more projects to bring down to Brian and his team!

Went in today to purchase a couple basic frames and the service was nothing short of amazing! Will not shop anywhere else for frames!

The service here is the difference.
This was my first experience with a custom framing shop and they guided me through the whole process and provided many options and expert opinions.
The shop is in a weird little area, but I assure you it is worth going down there. I have also stopped by for hanging hooks and they helped me pick the right ones for my needs. This is a local little shop that values their customers.
Ask for a discount when framing multiple items! I got 10% off my second framing job.

Truly as good as it gets. You can buy a simple poster and get it framed here or bring in anything from a masterpiece to a family photo and you will get personal guidance and professional delivery. We have worked with Dana for years and she has helped us with projects for our offices and our home and have been delighted every time. She has a great design eye and then she builds the frame and mats it perfectly. The highest recommendation!

I found this store online and when I read that they were «customer-​service friendly» I decided to call the store directly. I spoke to Dana, who was awesome! She was professional and extremely helpful, answering a myriad of questions I threw at her about frames, matts and picture hanging. I told her I was FINALLY getting around to framing family photos taken several years ago and she suggested frames that were actually less expensive than the ones I was looking at online. That savings allowed me to spend more on matting and I LOVED the result! True to their word, when I suggested I could drive over in an hour and pick everything up — Dana said to just «pull up front» and she would come out with my order. She appeared with everything nicely wrapped just as I turned the corner! As a small business owner I understand and appreciate when another business «goes the extra mile.» This one did.

I stopped in Flax Art & Frame to have a portrait framed for my mom for mother’s day. Mr. Flax was extremely pleasant, professional and helpful. He took his time to speak with us about our options and made helpful suggestions as to what might be best to achieve our desired result.
Mr. Flax provides personable customer service that just can’t be found in today’s world of big box retailers. I am very happy with the quality of the product and will undoubtedly be a repeat customer.

i had a great experience at Flax. the owner clearly knows his stuff. he was very helpful, had great suggestions for matting and took a lot of time with the bf and i to make sure we were happy with our choices. i didn’t feel rushed, and more importantly, didn’t feel pressured to buy the more expensive options.
custom framing isn’t cheap, but i was very happy with the pricing here and blown away by the service. i will absolutely be coming back to Flax for framing in the future.

We came here with a Groupon to have a poster framed and they did a really wonderful job. The framing order was much more expensive than we budgeted for, however we did opt for good quality glass, a walnut frame and some beautiful matting so I do think it was worth the price as we we have this in our home for a long time.
My only complaint is that we were given an estimated completion date and were told they’d call us when it was completed. Almost 2 weeks after that date we had heard nothing and when I called they told me that there was a measurement issue so they had to redo some things and it would be ready within a week. That’s fine, but I wish they would have proactively called to let me know that so that we weren’t just sitting around wondering. It was still another week and a half before it was completed.

Mr. Flax (yes its named after the owner) runs a nice place here: great frame store for custom and pre-​made frames. A small business feel within the confines of the loop high-​rises. I came for the Groupon but ended up spending much more as I came with my diplomas, which I finally felt like I could afford to frame. I was reassured by the professionalism, time and care in taking the order, and their ability to adjust the size and quality by what I was willing to pay. Took a couple weeks, but the product was top notch, now hanging in my redecorated office. You will pay the price for quality but if quality is what you want, this seems to be the place in town.

A great little frame shop tucked into a small space in the Loop. Owners are great, I had to get an award framed and they just handled it, and delivered it back. Top notch, and great owners too, very friendly!

I’m delighted to give Flax Art and Frame the highest rating for service, professionalism, creativity and craftsmanship. Both Dana and Brian are attentive, personable, knowledgeable. I’ve worked closely with Dana on a couple of interesting challenges, one to frame a large charcoal still life that I drew as a wedding present for a close friend, one a collage of pencil drawings illustrating a surgical procedure, and most recently to build a delightful narrow shadow box. Dana’s suggestions have always been exactly right, very playful and creative. For example Dana suggested a narrow black frame for the charcoal drawing that had a subtle texture to echo and enhance the tactility of the drawing, and to float the drawing over a black silk back mat, so that the edges of the drawing could be visible. The main mat for the drawing was a warm grey to echo the cream tone of the paper. The latest project, the shadow box, was custom designed by Dana collaboratively together with me and my husband to suit very specific space and functionality requirements, and the result built by Dana is gorgeous, with pride of place on our desk. The clever hinged top is out of pale blue Italian marquetry with inset glass, and the box is lined with pale aqua silk mat.