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Tape the glass in an X so broken pieces stay in place, fit corner protectors, wrap the frame in bubble wrap, and pack it upright in a box with padding so it cannot shift. Flat packing puts the glass under the weight of everything above it, so upright is safer.
If you can, ship the frame without the glass, wrapped separately. Glass is the part most likely to break, and a broken pane can scratch the artwork or photo beneath it as shards shift in the box. When the recipient is a shop or a framer, they often prefer glass removed anyway, since they will fit new glass locally. If the frame must travel glazed, tape an X across the glass face, plus a border of tape around the edges: the tape will not stop a break, but it holds shards against the frame instead of letting them rake across the print. Put a sheet of tissue between the glass and the artwork as well, so any loose fragment meets tissue first.
| Step | What to do | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Tape the glass | X across the face, tape around the edges | Holds shards in place if it breaks |
| Protect the corners | Foam or cardboard corner protectors | Corners take impacts first |
| Wrap | Two layers of bubble wrap, taped closed | Cushions drops and bumps |
| Box | Upright, padding on all sides | Glass carries no stacked weight |
| Seal and label | Tape all seams, label on the largest face | Box stays shut, label scans cleanly |
A frame packed flat becomes a shelf: anything placed on the parcel presses straight down on the glass. Carriers stack parcels, so a flat frame near the bottom of a pile can carry real weight. Packed upright, like a book on a shelf, the frame edge carries the load, and the glass faces sideways where nothing rests on it. Mark the outside with an arrow and the words "This side up" as a helper, not a guarantee: the padding and the upright position inside the box are what actually protect the glass if the parcel is turned.
Oval and round frames need a box larger than the frame in every direction, with padding shaped around the curves: crumpled paper fills curves better than flat foam sheets. Very large frames may need a purpose-made picture box or two boxes telescoped together, with a cardboard sheet on each face for stiffness. For a frame with a hanging wire or sawtooth hanger, tape the wire flat against the back so it cannot poke through the wrapping or scratch a neighboring parcel. If the frame holds an original artwork rather than a print, consider a rigid inner panel behind the artwork so the piece itself cannot flex.
Remove valuable or irreplaceable originals when you can, and ship the frame empty: no packing method fully protects an original from a hard drop. For prints, keep the print inside the frame only if the glass is taped and tissue-separated as above, and note the print value honestly for insurance purposes. Take a photo of the framed piece before packing, front and back, so any damage claim has a clear before picture. A photo also helps the recipient confirm they received the right piece when several frames ship together.
Weigh and measure the packed box before buying a label, since a large framed piece is bulky. For shipments within Canada, a Canada Post Xpresspost label through LetterAgent covers parcels up to 5 kg at a flat rate: ask your AI assistant for a per-label quote, approve the exact price, pay once through Stripe, and print the label PDF provided. If a large frame plus its box passes that weight, split the shipment or use a different service for that piece rather than forcing it into a parcel that strains the label terms.
Ready to ship it? Get a shipping label with LetterAgent: describe it to your AI assistant, approve the exact quoted price, and get your label.
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