When you walk into Mitrebox Framing & Gifts, your eyes may have to adjust to the bits and baubles of beauty everywhere. Congratulations, you have made it into a space where art and local artists are celebrated. When Sara Nachreiner opened the Washington Avenue shop more than 20 years ago, she did not want it to feel like a stuffy art gallery, but instead somewhere where people could come as they are and explore (“Come in your gym clothes,” she says). She’s planted a candy bowl of gold-wrapped Werther’s originals, tootsie rolls, and gummy bears by the register, and has water and tea on offer. There’s even a garden patio in the back. On a recent visit, an employee told me that people are welcome to cut through the shop to reach the patio — no need to purchase anything and they encourage it, he said.
This is where I buy most of my cards because they are vivacious, artful, and thought-provoking (also because I like the curated candy bowl, something sweet for the walk home). Candles, jewelry, books and prints are also on offer. This is where you could give a graduate the gift of having their diploma custom-framed.
“It’s way more fun than choosing glasses, almost as good as choosing your shoes,” Nachreiner says. The process, like the store, is not stuffy, but fun.
For Nachreiner, getting something custom-framed, whether it’s a print or diploma, is a way to put your personal spin on it. It’s not on you, the way your clothing is, but it can still express something about you. Nachreiner says choosing a frame is akin to playing in the sandbox, where you get to play around with different looks. Mitrebox has a vast array of colors and styles of frames – from more vintage looks to more modern, futuristic ones.
She says one way to describe how the frame selection process works is “co-create something beautiful.” The well-trained staff offer their specialized skills and know-how, and the customer offers their opinions on the various options, and ultimately their personal taste. After selections are made, the custom frame is made in a workshop a few blocks away.
Nachreiner emphasizes that people don’t need to know anything about framing when they walk in. Many people, “come in and ask for black,” and she or her team will show them the black frames, but if they’re open to it, also, “charcoal, warm gray, blue gray, black with silver, black with gold…” Diploma specials are going on now, something that Nachreiner started in part because of how “corporate” and “tight” some standard framing options feel to her.
What strikes me about Nachreiner is her good eye. While it’s not shocking given her many years of experience and interior design background, it still comes out in surprising ways. When I confess I’ve often entered the shop just for the Werther’s Originals, she says, “The gold shines really well.”
