Haverstock Creative Designs - Custom Picture Framing

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Haverstock Creative Designs - Custom Picture Framing

Quality custom picture framing with exceptional customer service! Also experienced in framing artwork, photographs, and needlework.

Specializing in shadow boxes for items such as military memorabilia, sports jerseys, family heirlooms, and more. Karen Haverstock began her business in 1998 in her home in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. She took Haverstock Creative Designs to Calgary, Alberta for five years before returning to the East Coast in 2004. She has been operating out of her Bedford, Nova Scotia home ever since. Karen prides her

self in producing a quality product along with providing great customer service. She works with the customer to come up with a design that will enhance the item being framed. She is a member of the PPFA (Professional Picture Framers Association), and was featured in the November 2010 issue of the PPFA newsletter.

06/01/2026

I recently finished this wedding shadow box for my customers. The newlyweds brought in a 20”x30” wedding photo that the bride’s sister had taken, along with a handfasting cord used in the ceremony, and the preserved flower wedding bouquet.

The handfasting cord is wrapped around the couples’ wrists during a traditional Celtic wedding ceremony to symbolize their commitment to each other. This is where the saying ‘tying the knot’ originated. This particular cord was crafted in Scotland by Ceotha ( , www.ceotha.com)

The wedding photo was displayed in a complementary narrow moulding from , and then floated above the background. The handfasting cord was tied in a knot and hand-stitched to the background. To keep the frame from being extremely deep, I deconstructed the bouquet and reconstructed it in a way that incorporated all the elements that were important to the bride and groom. My days of creating dried floral arrangements came in handy for this part, as well as getting some fantastic advice from a fellow framer, Alina Carson, owner of in West Lothian, Scotland.

The front of the shadow box consisted of an antique-white moulding, and a champagne-silver beaded fillet, both from . The necessary depth was achieved by adding a 1”x3” deep extension box made from basswood, and hand-finishing it to blend in with the antique-white moulding. The couple chose a lovely lilac-tone conservation mat, also from , to use as the background and line the inside walls of the shadow box. Conservation clear glass from was chosen for its 99% UV protection.

My customers were thrilled with this keepsake of their special day.

05/25/2026

My customers brought me their son’s jersey to frame, to showcase his time playing for the Saint Mary’s University Huskies ( ) soccer team. Also included were four amazing action photos by the team photographer, Eduardo Ibarra ( .foto ).

The photos were displayed in a 4-opening mat with a black fillet used as a ‘mini-frame’. For an extra custom design detail, information about their son’s university soccer experience was displayed along the bottom spacer.

A classic black shadow box moulding from was paired with black conservation mats from , and maroon conservation mats from . Conservation clear glass from was chosen for its 99% UV protection.

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05/16/2026

I will be closed Monday, May 18, 2026 for the Victoria Day holiday. Have a safe and wonderful long weekend!

05/11/2026

After framing three hockey jerseys for my customer last year, he brought me two more jerseys to frame, one of which was this autographed Mario Lemieux hockey jersey.

Jerseys are often crooked and uneven, and I try my best to make the jersey appear as straight and even as possible. Some things just can’t be adjusted, though, like when one sleeve is 3/8” longer than the other!

To help support the jersey over time, I make a form out of conservation mat to insert inside the main body of the jersey. First, I make a paper template by tracing the outline of the jersey on just one half of a folded piece of kraft paper so that the form will be symmetrical on both sides. Using the paper template, I cut a template from a less expensive, non-conservation mat. Then, I insert that form inside the jersey to see how well it fits, and make any necessary adjustments before cutting the final jersey form from the conservation mat. Besides adding support, the jersey form can hide the jersey’s tie-down strap by cutting a slit in the form to feed the strap through. This makes a smoother looking appearance.

Keeping the same design as the other shadow boxes, a classic black shadow box moulding from was paired with black conservation mats from . Conservation clear glass from was chosen for its 99% UV protection.

05/04/2026

With Mother’s Day coming up, a nice gift would be to treat your mom to afternoon tea. I painted this watercolour of a fine china teapot sitting on a lace doily close to 15 years ago when my sister and I took a watercolour class from artist Joanne Hunt (www.joannehunt.com). Joanne is an amazing artist who creates both watercolour and oil paintings. Her artwork can be found at Gallery 78 in Fredericton, NB (www.gallery78.com/collections/joanne-hunt)

An espresso-tone rustic wood moulding from was paired with with warm brown and soft green conservation mats from . Conservation clear glass from was chosen for its 99% UV protection.

04/27/2026

My customer brought in two memorable golf flags to be framed. One was from his hole-in-one back in 2002 at the Brightwood Golf & Country Club, and the second was from his albatross at Hartlen Point Golf Club in 2024. A hole-in-one is a feat unto itself, but an albatross is even more rare as he completed a par 5 hole in just 2 strokes!

Although the flags differed in sizes, I was able to make the shadow boxes the same size by hiding some of the black fabric on the hole-in-one flag by feeding the excess fabric through a slit in the mount board. A classic black moulding from was paired with black conservation mats from . A complementary mat colour was used to cover the hidden spacers, adding a special feature to the design. Conservation clear glass from was chosen for its 99% UV protection.

04/20/2026

It is so much fun framing children’s artwork! My customer brought in this wonderful watercolour of birch trees which his husband’s daughter had painting when she was young.

A rustic wood moulding from was paired with lilac conservation mats from , creating a whimsical design perfect for this painting. Museum glass from was chosen for its 99% UV protection and amazing clarity.

04/13/2026

Makeover Monday… My customer brought in this lovely small oil on board painting titled “The Haven”, by Nova Scotian artist Liz Wilcox. The linen liner of the original frame had discoloured over time, so an update was in order.

A narrow white rustic moulding was stacked inside a charcoal-black rustic moulding, both from . This design nicely complemented the crisp winter day theme of the painting.

04/02/2026

I will be closed from Friday, April 3 – Sunday, April 5 for the Easter long weekend. Have a safe and wonderful holiday!

03/30/2026

My customer studied at Oxford University, and was given this lovely print of a watercolour painted by British artist Ken Messer. What a wonderful keepsake of her time at the university!

She wanted a clean, classic design, and so she chose an espresso-tone wood-grain moulding from , and paired it with an off-white conservation mat from . Conservation clear glass from was chosen for its 99% UV protection.

Address

242 Ridgevale Drive
Bedford, NS
B4A4B3

Telephone

+19028325927

Website

https://www.haverstockcreativedesigns.com/

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