It was an ordinary day. Working at Grebinger Gallery for a few hours to lend my expertise to a few of the framing jobs I wasn't able to help with as I went through my recent medical procedure. There are so many unusual projects that come into the gallery that making decisions as to how to mat and frame them are both challenging and fun. One of the projects today is framing two note cards that feature sheep as well as a sample of wool that came from the owner's sheep. Keith, the owner of the gallery, gave me his work sheet which tells the basic things such as color and style of mat board, type of glass to use, style and number of the frame and a general idea as to how the customer would like the items framed. I then made a sketch showing three openings and placed measurements on the sketch. Opened the program on the mat cutter computer and entered the measurements. This project will have two mats; the main mat and the accent mat. Most times the mat colors are chosen to compliment each other as well as what is being matted. The main, or top, mat for this project is a woven fabric mat that is slightly thicker than most mats. The computer for the mat cutter allows you to cut different depths for different thicknesses of mats. I cut the two mats and taped them together. I then cut a piece of foam board the size of the mats, cut an opening in the center which would be the opening for the wool samples, and then attached the two note cards to the foam so they would show through the top and bottom openings of the mat board. The next step was to place spacers on the bottom foam board to allow for adequate clearance for the height of the wool samples. The two mats, which now housed the two cards, was placed on the bottom foam board which had the spacers on it as well as a layer of mat board that matched the top mat. After taping everything together, I hot-glued sample pieces of wool that the customer had taken from their sheep. A piece of glass was cut as well at the chosen frame and the unit was place together. Turned out really neat and I'm sure the customer will be pleased with the final result. I hope the photos I have taken will help you understand the procedure, since I'm sure my explanation might have been tough to understand. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.
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| This photograph shows the sample of wool, two note cards and the top (brown fabric) and bottom mat that I have cut based on the measurements that were given to me on the work sheet that the customer approved. You may notice the top brown fabric mat is in two pieces. The customer wanted a "V" groove around the edge to add some interest to the job. This is done on the computer and then cut into the mat board. |
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| This is the top foam board that I have cut an opening into as well as fastening both note cards with acid free paper clips. |
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| On the right is the mat boards on top of the foam board that holds the note cards. Notice the center opening will allow for he wool sample to show through it. The foam board on the left has spacers on all four sides which are about 1/2" high to allow enough depth for the wool sample. The brown piece in the center is a piece of the top mat board, but only the top layer of the board which I carefully peeled off so it isn't as bulky as the entire piece of mat board. This piece of mat board is the location where I will glue the wool. |
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| Preparing to glue the wool sample into place. |
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| The final result with the wool and chosen frame in place. |
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