Rag board is the top-quality option for matting your most important artworks.  When you mat your artwork, you can either use mat board or rag board.  How do you know when to choose rag board over a paper mat?

Rag board is the ideal choice for matting artwork that is important and/or valuable.  Rag board is made from 100% cotton rag which is naturally acid-free, so it is untreated by the chemicals that are needed to make paper mats acid-free.  This is what makes rag board a superior option over paper mats.  When longevity and conservation are a major factor in deciding upon the presentation of your artwork, matting your artwork with rag board is the obvious answer.

Because rag board is the museum-quality option, it also costs more than paper mats.  Therefore, if you are matting open edition prints or photographs where longevity is not an issue, you might be better off choosing paper mat board instead of rag board.

Documounts offers three types of rag board: 4 ply Alpharag Artcare Solid Core, 8 ply Alpharag Artcare Solid Core and Crescent Ragmats:

• 4 ply Alpharag Artcare solid core rag board is available in 29 colors.  The bevel of each of these rag boards is the same color as the front of the rag board.
• 8 ply Alpharag Artcare solid core rag board is twice as thick as the 4 ply options. It is available in 13 different colors. The 8 ply rag board allows for a more dramatic presentation due to its deeper bevel.
• Crescent Ragmat is a 4 ply rag board that is available in 6 different types of white.  Five of them have a standard white core, while the White Classic Rag has a classic solid core.

If you’re not sure which Alpharag colors you would like to use, you can order a sample mat pack that includes all of the colors available. This allows you to place different colors next to your actual artwork, so you can see firsthand how each color will look against your art.

In addition to rag board, you can find all of your other matting, mounting and framing supplies at Documounts, making us the one-stop shop to get you ready for your next art show!

Tags: alpharag, crescent rag, matboard, rag board

This entry was posted on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 2:08 pm and is filed under Archival Quality Framing, Framing, Picture Mats. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.