By Daniel Arimborgo
“Things are just flying off the shelf,” said owner Donna Drimer a few days before Christmas when business was brisk. The store, which has been in the neighborhood for 29 years, is open six days a week Monday through Saturday.
Benjamin Moore, a customer, came by to pick up a picture he had had framed. The picture of Moore in a cap and gown after he graduated from kindergarten was cleverly composed from smaller pictures from his life, which were digitally pixilated by a computer to make the larger graduation photo portrait of him.
“It's made from a collage of pictures with all my friends,” Moore, who lives in nearby Hollis, said of the mosaic, which was made by a company in California. The frame cost him $148.
Frame Art sells more than just picture frames, however.
“We also sell unusual handcrafted items – we're very eclectic, Drimer said.
“We have it all. You have it, we frame it. We have a very personalized service here.”
The shop also sells small furniture, jewelry, paintings, unique art pieces and glassware.
“We have a Midnight Madness Night a week before Christmas every year,” Drimer said. “We put a lot of things on sale that night.”
The store has everything from small scented bags for the car to imitation cat and dog figures.
“We used to put them in the window, and people would knock on the glass trying to wake them up,” Drimer said of the realistic-looking replicas, which are made with rabbit and goat fur.
In a discount section, items are labeled with color-coded stickers. A nearby chart tells what price each sticker, or pair of stickers, represents. Discount prices range from $2.50 to 75 percent off the original price.
Nearby the discount section, metal garden ornaments sit next to lengthy glass tulip replicas. On the other side of the aisle, metal crafted menorahs sit in a glass display case along with diamond-studded picture frames.
“I travel all over the country to find items to sell, and some people get in touch with us” Drimer said.
“You can come back week after week and you won't see the same things.”
Frame Art is at 185-11 Union Turnpike. Custom frames are available and discount printings can be ordered as well as discount stationery for weddings and other events. The store also ships and gift wraps.
