ARTIFACT
TO ART:
Framing How
-To
By Kara E. Clark
November
2006
It’s time to come
out of the closet. No, not you,
but all of those dusty, mothball-smelling
heirlooms you have been storing
in Ziploc baggies and shoeboxes.
Whether these items were bequeathed
to you as part of a family tradition
or are souvenirs from a significant
time period in your life, you
have held on to them for the
principle of remembrance. What
better way to cherish those memories
than by displaying them? Transforming
your heirlooms into art is a
clever way to pay homage to and
preserve legacies of the past,
while also finally finding a
suitable piece to cover that
vacant wall.
From the distressed to the pristine, there is a framing approach for all budgets,
themes, lifestyles, preservation needs, and time constraints. However, juggling
the variables makes for a complex framing equation; most customers battle whether
it’s more important to select a moulding style that works with their
décor or that will appropriately enhance the quality of the memorabilia.
The expert advice? According to Ali Semon at Frame Works, since you’d
keep the artifacts longer than your furniture, select what works best for the
piece first, and then consider the environment.
The CCM® staff used their own keepsakes to test out three different
framing options:
THRIFTY
|
Artifact:
|
Great-grandmother’s
costume jewelry
|
Materials:
|
For
this frame we used…
Primer, paint, brushes, cardboard, colored paper, lace, spray mount glue
|
 The
sky is the limit when embellishing a found
frame; you can make it blend with any décor.
Here we used an antiquing process with paint
on the moulding, and paper and lace for the
interior. (Check out your local arts & craft
store for more ideas and instructions.) The
effort invested to embellish modest materials
serves as a way to commemorate the artifact
with handcrafted personal touches, making
the overall piece even more sentimental.
The only obstacle with this method is finding
a frame with the right proportions. Once
you have the frame, don’t be afraid
to gut it and use higher quality archival
materials. (The costume jewelry framed here
is not in grave danger of perishing, but
photos, documents, and other pieces warrant
the added security.) If you don’t want
the expense of mat and glass cutting supplies,
take your dimensions to a local framing expert
who can simply prep your materials or professionally
assemble the entire piece. This frame and
materials cost less than $15, but you can
put as much into it as you like. Transforming
a thrift-store bargain is the perfect method
for the Do-It-Yourself-er who desires a completely
unique work of art. |
CCM® Rating:
|
Estimated
Cost: $
Difficulty Level: hard
Archival Quality: low
|
READY-MADE
|
Artifact:
|
Grandfather’s
hand-tooled belt, with sterling silver buckle
|
Materials:
|
Pre-assembled
frame hinged to a box with a magnetic closure,
natural canvas interior, 20 hatpins, blank
and pre-printed labels
|
 For
those who are wary of buying mass-produced
items, just remember that with shadowboxes,
it’s what’s on the inside that
counts. This particular kit from Pottery
Barn will work well for a variety of objects
because its style is simple and clean, enabling
the artifact to be the focal point. If you
have a collection or multiple variations
of one type of object, then try purchasing
several ready-mades to create a grid or pattern
on the wall. The identical frames will offset
the subtle differences unique to each of
the items inside. Although ready-mades are
packaged with pins and such, be prepared
to purchase extra supplies as needed for
securing heavy or odd-shaped bits and pieces,
such as the belt shown. To hang photos and
letters without puncturing them, try using
an archival linen tape (available at most
photo supply stores), which is guaranteed
not to yellow or tarnish sensitive materials.
For the frame shown, the unbleached natural
cotton canvas won’t irritate the leather
and silver of the belt. We recommend these
types of kits for those who want a polished,
simple look without breaking the bank. At
only $50 this frame is a steal; find it at
www.potterybarn.com. |
CCM® Rating:
|
Estimated
Cost: $$
Difficulty Level: medium
Archival Quality: medium
|
CUSTOM
|
Artifact:
|
Great-grandmother’s
oil paint palette with her hand-written instructional
notebook
|
Materials:
|
moulding,
four-ply mat board, Duppioni silks, fillet,
archival foam-core backing, photograph of
notebook, mylar, foam-core spacers, cotton
thread & needle, bump-ons, museum glass
|
 Custom
framing is just that: completely catered
to your individual needs, without the mess
and time of a handmade frame. There are
thousands of different moulding styles
and mat colors with infinite layering possibilities.
Not only will your object be displayed
appropriately, but it will be well protected.
Due to the vulnerability of the materials
in this frame, no detail was overlooked
by the experts at Frame Works in San Luis
Obispo. According to Ali Semon, one should
use museum glass because it “reduces
reflection, allows for high light transmission,
and prevents the colors from fading with
97 percent UV protection.” This specialty
glass is also elevated above the artwork
to thwart moisture and condensation. The
notebook is preservation-mounted with mylar
(clear archival plastic sheeting); the
brushes and the notebook are hand-stitched
to the mat board which prevents adhesives
from touching the precious objects, and
is a completely reversible attachment method.
In addition to the technical components,
Frame Works also offered aesthetic and
practical solutions: hand-wrapping mat
board in Duppoini silks for added color,
texture, and dimension; using unique fillets
to create a “frame within a frame
effect”; photographing to display
double-sided documents. Because of the
priceless expert advice, we highly recommend
using a custom framer like Frame Works
if you have sensitive artifacts that require
special attention – and that are
worth their dimensions in gold (This one
was $500, but a frame of this size costs
$200 +). FYI: it will probably take less
than an hour to select the frame, but takes
about two weeks for the mechanics. Shop
early if this is to be a gift!
Frame Works
339 Marsh St., San Luis Obispo
(805) 542-9000
www.sloart.com
|
CCM® Rating:
|
Estimated
Cost: $$$
Difficulty Level: easy
Archival Quality: high
|
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