MILLEDGEVILLE — A local frame shop has been transforming ordinary artwork, photographs and memorabilia into extraordinary pieces with its unique and custom frames for more than 20 years.

The operation of Frames & Things began when a Florida couple opened the shop in downtown Milledgeville before moving its location to its current spot.

“They were in the basement of what is now [Amici Italian Cafe], which is sealed off now. When Hatcher Square Mall opened, they moved where [Margaritas] is, which used to be a wine shop with an exterior entrance,” said Frames & Things’ previous owner David Salisbury. “After several years there, [the owner] decided that she would find the smallest retail space in Milledgeville and move her store over to that space, which is here in Heritage Suits.”

Salisbury purchased the frame shop in 1999 after working as an apprentice for the Florida owners for two years.

“I worked in the back room and when they decided to sell the store, they were unsuccessful so they asked me at a reduced asking price,” he said. “I originally didn’t want to buy the store because I lived in Sandersville and didn’t want to commute five to six days a week, but I did and I have enjoyed the Baldwin County clientele ever since. I had no self-esteem and I didn’t think I could do anything, but when I worked here, I learned to cut a good mat and learned the skill of how to custom frame.”

Salisbury suffered a stroke on the left side of his body in November 2009, leaving him unable to use his left arm. While recovering at the Medical College of Georgia for 10 days, his dear friend, Cindy Rutledge, volunteered to process any work that needed to be taken care of at the store.

“Everyone that comes in here realizes that I’m good in mechanics and my skills in customer service were lacking. [Rutledge] was able to work with customers, which she is stellar at doing, and with her background as a teacher, she knew a lot of people in the community,” Salisbury said. “I could no longer do the quality of work that’s supposed to be put out, so I had to rely on [Rutledge’s] expertise. In March, she was in between jobs and she told me she could no longer devote the time that she was generously donating to Frames & Things, so at that point, I sold the store to her.”

With Rutledge as the new owner, she decided to change the shop’s name to Frames & Things Galleria while training and learning under Salisbury’s expertise about the proper way to custom frame different pieces.

“Everything in my house is custom-framed, and I was a regular customer here, but this is not what I was trained to do,” Rutledge said. “It’s not easy because it’s been real hard for me. [Salisbury] had two years to learn and I had two months. If he wasn’t here training me, the quality wouldn’t be here, but since I started in December to now, I’ve gotten better.”

Frames & Things Galleria offers custom framing with thousands of frames to choose from and custom regular or acid-free matting made of high-end quality material ranging from $100 to $500. Ready-made custom frames are also sold at a lower cost without compromising quality.

“We custom cut whatever you want done, but our primary job is to do total custom framing,” Salisbury said. “We cut the glass, regular or non-glare, cut the mat, mount the artwork to the mat and fit it to the frame correctly. We have custom pieces done within two weeks.”

Various local and Georgia artists’ pieces are also available for purchase, with more than 1,000 signed and numbered prints in stock.

“Good framing has to be completely reversible, which means we don’t use glues ... so you can take out the piece five to 10 years from now and it will look exactly like it did going into the frame,” Salisbury said. “We don’t do restoration of artwork because we’re not trained to do it, but we can advise anybody on preserving their artwork.”

While operating as the only Baldwin County custom frame shop, Rutledge is hesitant in moving from its current 500-square-foot space.

“If I had more space, there’s a lot of things I would like to do. I would love to do more photos and have more variety of artwork here,” she said. “I would love to do custom framing and have people come in for artwork. I really don’t want to move because this place is so well-known.”

Located across from the Baldwin County Water Department on Heritage Road, Frames & Things Galleria is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and with selective appointments on Monday.

“I believe in custom framing. If you graduate from college, you need to show people that you’re proud of your accomplishments and not put your diploma in a cheap frame,” Rutledge said. “We’ll frame anything, from newspaper articles, Monopoly boards, puzzles, jerseys and original artwork to needlepoint and pictures, and sometimes we do things that makes our eyebrows pop up.”

For more information, call (478) 453-3379 or visit www.framesgalleria.art.officelive.com.