A craft built over decades.
Forty years of bespoke framing in Northumberland — a quiet, careful business under new ownership.
From 1986 to now.
The Framing Department is a family owned and managed picture framing business based in Ventex House, on the Willowburn Trading Estate in Alnwick. Husband and wife team Mick and Amanda Davison have worked together over the years to provide a friendly, high quality, bespoke picture framing service. We have easy access and limited short-term parking.
Mick has been framing since 1986. He was joined by Amanda in early 2006 when they set up and opened The Old School Gallery in Alnmouth, before concentrating solely on picture framing again in 2013 and relocating to Alnwick in May 2014.
After 40 years of framing, Mick realised he needed a change and a rest. The business has been sold to a very capable young fella called Callum Barnes, who is the new owner. They've been working together since September 2025 and Callum has had a great start, with very nice work coming in.
Mick strongly believes that through time, Callum will take the business up a level — and he wishes him the best of success.
The absolute best in the North East.
It is our goal at The Framing Department to be recognised and regarded as the absolute best in the North East of England. Everything is produced here by us in-house, handmade to the highest quality.
We have a great setup at our in-house facility in Alnwick — quite large, with lots of work capacity. We aim to turn all single 'one off' orders around within 2–3 weeks. Larger orders and batch work timescales will be discussed when taking the order.
At The Framing Department we are not a large mass-producing company. We do not have any form of online sales — everything is done in person, one to one. It is one of the key reasons we stand out from our competitors: unlike other framing businesses, every customer's needs are catered for individually.
One recent investment of ours is a fully computerised mount cutter, allowing us to cut mounts more accurately than ever. We can cut full oversized mountboard right here in-house — which other framing businesses cannot do.
How the process usually works.
A bespoke framing project usually moves through five stages — from your first visit to the finished piece leaving the studio.
Consultation
You bring in the artwork or object and we discuss it together — there is no pressure, and no obligation to proceed.
- Style
- Budget
- Where it will hang
- Conservation needs
Material selection
We help you choose materials suited to the piece and the room it is going in.
- Moulding profile
- Frame finish
- Mount colour and depth
- Glazing type — standard, UV, museum glass, non-reflective, etc.
Measurement & construction
Everything is cut specifically for the piece — there are no off-the-shelf sizes here.
- Frame joins
- Mount apertures
- Backing
- Spacers
- Hanging systems
Assembly
The artwork is mounted carefully — no glue, no pins where they aren't needed — to avoid any damage or stress.
Finishing
Cleaning, sealing, checking alignment, and preparing the piece for display. We then contact you when your order is ready.
We often handle the tricky or unusual jobs that chains won't easily touch.
- Jerseys
- Medals
- Signed memorabilia
- 3D objects
- Oversized artwork
- Delicate paper
- Sentimental items
We will then contact you when your order is ready.
Ventex House, Alnwick.
We’re based at Ventex House on the Willowburn Trading Estate in Alnwick — easy to find, easy to drive to, with limited short-term parking right outside.
Opening Hours
When you can find us.
- Monday – Friday10am – 4pm
- SaturdayClosed
- SundayClosed
- Bank HolidaysClosed
Appointment preferred — please check we are here before visiting.
Get In Touch
Make an enquiry.
Studio
Ventex House, Willowburn Trading Estate, Alnwick NE66 2PF
Hours
Mon–Fri 10am–4pm · Closed weekends