THE official framer to Norman Cornish is celebrating a move to a new home in the heart of Barnard Castle.
First Impressions Bespoke Framing opened its doors on Galgate last week.
The move has allowed owner Nigel Allison to extend the business’ offering to include a gallery and provide personalised items.
The shop was previously occupied by Barnard Castle Framers, which closed its doors in March.
Mr Allison said: “We are an established business in Barnard Castle for the past nine years.
“It is nice to be back on the high street after five years in the Hayloft. This has been a great move for us.”
The gallery space features prints by Norman Cornish, Alex Clark and Lucy Pittaway plus others.
Mr Allison said: “We are the official framers for Norman Cornish and we have been for years.”
The gallery complements the fine art printing facility the business also offers.
Mr Allison’s wife Elanor plans to introduce a service providing personalised items such as T-shirts and, more unusually, personalised bottles of hand-sanitiser.
But framing will remain the core of the business and the owner has framed some very peculiar items during his 30 years in the trade, including a fossil dating back millions of years. He said: “We recently framed a cross made from a bullet that was fired in the trenches during the First World War. Literally, we have a saying ‘we can frame anything’.”
First Impressions also has a shop at Tindale Crescent.
