For the love of the ocean: NF x artiplaq™

SURF’s UP, ARTIPLAQ™ photo with gold standard bevel

Serendipity… that is what I’ll call it. One of those times when things align and have a certain “rightness” that is undeniable. For a few years, I watched and wondered as the previous owner of ARTIPLAQ™ prepared for retirement and announced he was looking for someone to take over. I knew it was coming, so when it became available, I shot my shot. I purchased ARTIPLAQ™ one year ago, and have not looked back. It has been a year of amazing growth for everyone involved and we are riding the wave of excitement. We are excited and inspired by the possibilities.

If you are not familiar, ARTIPLAQ™ is a plaque mounting business, an amazing product and Newburyport Framers has offered for many years. Your photo, chart, map, or print is adhered to an mdf substrate, coated with UV protection and finished with a beveled edge of your color choice. It is a low cost alternative to custom framing but can also be elevated with a custom floating frame. The options are endless, and we stand behind the quality. With UV coating, DRYTAC adhesive and laminate, and 15 new edge colors to customize your piece, ARTIPLAQ™ has the Newburyport Framers stamp of approval.

The interesting thing is how Newburyport Framers has been a very supportive big sister to ARTIPLAQ™. The crew has shown skills beyond my imagination. Matthew, AJ and Cooper are making the wheels turn smoothly and steadily.

Abby’s graphic design background has brought the new brand and vision to life. I shared with her my hope for the brand to feel casual and welcoming. Orange was on my mind and a certain California ease. She has a way of creating exactly what I hope for with just a few words of direction. It’s amazing. She also has had some fun adding some of her work to the wall art offerings. My favorite is Free Dive .

The inkjet printer at Newburyport Framers has been put to work more than ever, printing nautical charts, corporate and commercial content and uploaded favorite photos, all ready to be plaque mounted.

One of our favorite parts of ARTIPLAQ™ is the connection to the sea, and we all LOVE the sea. A huge amount of the business is devoted to Nautical Charts. The charts celebrate the places where land meets sea. From secret fishing spots to the paths of our vessels to the coordinates of our sand castle creations, the charts bring summer into our homes. Printed to order right here at Newburyport Framers in land and sea tones, the offerings include over 900 charts to chose from. They can hang without a frame, or they can be enhanced in a floating frame. We have a few favorite frames to put them in and you may have bid on our annual Plum Island Sound chart (#13282) donation at the NEF Lighthouse Auction. There will be another this year, so don’t worry if you didn’t win last year!

Newburyport Harbor and Plum Island Sound Chart #13282, ARTIPLAQ™ in distressed white wash floating frame

This fall, we are donating a chart to the 6th Annual Save our River Festival on September 11! This is a family-friendly annual event in Newburyport, MA which benefits the Merrimack River Watershed Council. As a non-profit stared in 1976, this group is devoted to cleaning up and protecting the Merrimac River and surrounding marsh to make the water clean and safe for people and wildlife. Chart # 13282 will be available for auction, all dressed up in a hardwood ash floating frame from Picture Woods, a company committed to creating frames from sustainably sourced woods. It’s a match made in heaven, we are thrilled to take part and we hope you can support the cause!

There are so many applications for ARTIPLAQ, ranging from simple uploaded photos to fully framed corporate content, and everything in between. For today, as we start to wrap up this gorgeous sea-side season… let’s shout out to the salt water. Thanks for the soul-healing dips and the sand in our toes. We are among the lucky to live in this magical place we call the coast and ARTIPLAQ™ is happy to represent!

Cheers!
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