Thursday, March 26, 2009

Night of 1000 Shadowboxes

Whew! This is the after photo and I did all the sidewalls and fitting in one afternoon.
This collection of fans was brought in previously framed by the collector. She had ordered metal shadowboxes online (the type with the glazing channel) and thin plexi cut to fit. And as most home framers do, she did the mounting and fitting herself with her own invented techniques. I will not embarrass her by posting the before pics (but framers, pm me for details), but I will show some of my professional 3D object framing process for future home framers.

I prefer to sell wood shadowboxes, though we do offer metal with channels, too...I just don't like how the glass rattles around in them. Wood frames give you a better fit, but require sidewalls. I now do my sidewalls in a pinwheel configuration rather than top and bottom first, then sides. (Thanks, Raf!) and ALWAYS atg AND glue. These are done with black foam instead of a coordinating mat over foam to reduce cost.









And as for 3D object mounting, my basic rule is to show no visible attachment, almost at any cost. It should look like it's staying up by magic and should be able to stay that way forever. And as always, the mounting should do no harm to the object. I have many secret and creative solutions to this problem. The fans were mostly done with stitchery tape and my new favorite glue.











And this bowl was recessed slightly through a small circular opening in the mat.


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