short framing how to

I have been doing my own framing for some time now.  In school, a friend and I took some lessons and then did some framing for the school to earn extra cash for art supplies. As we both ended up working in paper, it has saved us lots of money over the years.

There are lots of things I do not do when I frame but what I can, I will. I purchase raw (unvarnished) wood frames from Wyndham Art Supplies and then sand, stain and varnish them in the studio. I am fairly particular about these things so like to make sure that the corners are nice and smooth and the colour is consistent throughout the frame. Doing my own staining and varnishing also allows me to create specific colours and sheens, depending on the work or venue.

A long time ago I used to cut my own matts and had a simple ruler with a matt cutting blade attachment but have since given that up and now purchase my matts cut, also at the art supply store. I buy acid free matt board (and acid free foam core for backing) by the box- I use it all up and save some money this way. Glass I purchase cut to size when I order  the matt and raw frame. So from here I do the rest.

Once the frame is sanded, stained and varnished I can start to cut the foam core backing and assemble the pieces. Here I will do a step by step of a small piece by Gillian Wilson that I purchased from Graven Feather and thought it would look good float mounted in the frame. ps (Gillian has a solo show of some recent work, title Dry Spell at the Redbrick Cafe right now)

 So here is the piece that I have attached to a foam core backing that is the same size as the glass to fit the frame I purchased. The artwork is attached to a smaller square of foam core to raise it off the backing so that it looks like it is floating in the frame. I like framing pieces like this that are like objects and where a matt would not be necessary.

Here are all the pieces I need to assemble the work. Foam core backing with artwork adhered, glass cut to size of opening of frame (opening size from the back of the frame), strips of foam core that I cut to fit tightly around the inside edges of the frame. The thickness of these foam core strips is measured by placing the glass in the frame and measuring the space left to the edge of the frame side. To get the right thickness, you will have to subtract the thickness of the backing board while leaving some space for the framers points.

Once all of the pieces have been measured and cut and measured again, I set them out of the frame in the way that they were inside the frame so that I don't mix them up. Nothing is ever truly square, so to save disappointment I lay the top strip at the top, etc. They will fit back where you want them when you are ready. I clean the glass thoroughly and then place it in the frame first. Now I start to stick the strips in place by giving them a light coat of white glue or paste and pressing them into place- snug against the glass and making sure that the edges are stuck firm, especially in the corners.

Once all of the strips are in place and there is no glue or fingerprints on the inside of my frame and glass, I can place the artwork and backing board into the frame. This should sit and just fit into the opening at the back of the frame and rest snug against the strips that are separating the glass from the backing board and artwork.

Above is the back of the frame with a few framers points holding the back in place. I used to do this with a staple or small nail but if you frame enough, this tool (a framers gun above left) is the best investment you can make. At this point I flip the frame over to check for dust, hair, etc. and if I find anything, then I pull the points out with pliers and dust out with a fluffy brush and try again. This can be the fussy part and especially with very large works- time consuming. When all looks good, I put points around the sides and corners to keep the back tight against the inside sides of the frame.

I then press double sided tape (though brushing white glue works here too) onto the back edges of all sides of the frame. All sides sticky, I place a piece of kraft paper onto the back. If I am doing a large work, I cut a piece larger and roll it up onto a firm cardboard roll and roll the paper firmly onto the back- this helps to avoid wrinkles.

Now to cut off the excess backing paper (or dust cover). I use a sharp blade and a ruler. Here I have my quilters square which I love for lots of things but probably isn't the best ruler for this task. I cut just inside the outside edge of the frame.

Now for hanging hardware. I drill a hole slightly narrower than the screws I will be using. I will do this a bit less than one third the length, measuring from the top of the work.

Time to attach the hardware to hold the hanging wire.

Put some hanging wire on there. So many ways to tie and tighten wire, I err on the side of caution and twist it up all along. Also some small rubber bumpers stuck on the bottom corners will help the artwork hug the wall a little bit and not swing to and fro when big trucks drive by. Also prevents scratches on your wall. Not really necessary, but nice.

Ta da! So there it is (hanging in the studio with a big hole beside it). Looks lovely at home now. 

Here are two pieces that I recently float mounted for a client. They knew the artwork that they wanted but were curious to frame the work in a different way than I usually do (with a matt in a dark frame). I think they look pretty good, especially on that lovely blue wall.