framing question

Hi all,
I am a custom picture framer by profession, and due to my obsession with
textiles and needlework I get about 98% of the textile frame jobs that come
into our store. This brought to mind a question I wanted to pose to y'all.
How do you prefer to frame your work? Many are fanatic about no glass,
others want to stretch it themselves and just want us to cut matting and
help them select a frame, others just want to hand us a finished, blocked
piece and pick it up stretched and framed two weeks later. If you stretch
your work yourself, how do you do it?
Working in the framing industry, I always do my own work. I pin stretch my
X-stitch (using pins stuck into the middle "foam" layer of foam core,
wrapping excess fabric to the back and taping it in place with acid free
tape. this is the standard for my store) and then use 2-3 layers of matting
to keep it away from the glass. everything I use is archival quality, and I
use a UV glass.
I'm especially interested in needlepoint, as I have limited experience with
it and always feel stuck (no pun intended) when customers seek ideas.

If you have read this far, I thank you for your fortitude. I look forward
to everyone's replies and ideas!
Deana

On Wed, 7 Jul 2004 07:52:03 -0700, Deana Reynolds
muttered something like:

Working in the framing industry, I always do my own work. I pin stretch my
X-stitch (using pins stuck into the middle "foam" layer of foam core,
wrapping excess fabric to the back and taping it in place with acid free
tape. this is the standard for my store) and then use 2-3 layers of matting
to keep it away from the glass. everything I use is archival quality, and I
use a UV glass.

I stretch mine with pins as well; it's how I learned 'way back when I
worked in a frame shop. A lot of folks swear by lacing but I've never
been able to do that without the lacing thread pulling big gaps in the
ground fabric. Probably one of those things that you learn with practice.

I've always put glass on mine, with mats or spacers to keep the glass from
actually touching it. Mainly because I'm really bad about touching things
that attract my attention and I'd get them all dirty if I didn't put glass
on them.

-Bertha
--
B&B ENTERPRISES BIRTH CONTROL PILL
Directions: Female should place pill on inside of right knee and hold in
place with left knee applying steady pressure. This method of birth
control provides guaranteed results with no side effects.

I've very rarely stitched anything that will fit in a standard frame so
custom framing is usually a must. For Fire & Ice (by Kustom Krafts), it
took the framer and me about 2 1/2 hours to find the right combination
to set it off properly! I sure miss her!


Did your framer move on or did you? usually your custom framer will
remember you.... I have many favorite customers that ask for me by name,
and I really miss the ones I no longer see. I've had some of those 2-3 hour
design jobs-they usually are stunning when finished!

Deana Reynolds wrote:

How do you prefer to frame your work? Many are fanatic about no glass,
others want to stretch it themselves and just want us to cut matting and
help them select a frame, others just want to hand us a finished, blocked
piece and pick it up stretched and framed two weeks later. If you stretch
your work yourself, how do you do it?
I pin mine to the foamcore and then lace it, removing pins when I'm
done. I can't find stainless steel pins around here and I don't want
them left in the fabric. When I lace I keep the "stitches" (where it
goes through the edges) approx. 1/4" apart. It uses a *lot* of thread,
but I haven't had any pictures buckle on me yet (knock on wood!). I
usually do my own lacing to save at least a *little* money on the whole
process.
As far as glass, if it's for my house, I put glass on it since I'm not
a fastidious cleaner. If it's for my mother, it probably won't have
glass. Depending on the design (and, therefore, effort put into it), I
might splurge on conservation glass.
I've very rarely stitched anything that will fit in a standard frame so
custom framing is usually a must. For Fire & Ice (by Kustom Krafts), it
took the framer and me about 2 1/2 hours to find the right combination
to set it off properly! I sure miss her!

--
Joan

See my first-ever design he
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/joan.jpg

"Stitch when you are young and poor, frame when you are old and rich."
- Elizabeth's (rctn'r) sister's MIL (Barbara Marr)

Deana Reynolds wrote:

Did your framer move on or did you? usually your custom framer will
remember you.... I have many favorite customers that ask for me by name,
and I really miss the ones I no longer see. I've had some of those 2-3 hour
design jobs-they usually are stunning when finished!
She was in her business alone and decided to retire and work on some of
her weaving. You're right, they do come out stunning with the right frames!

--
Joan

See my first-ever design he
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/joan.jpg

"Stitch when you are young and poor, frame when you are old and rich."
- Elizabeth's (rctn'r) sister's MIL (Barbara Marr)

Here are my experiences with two types of framers, others fall somewhere in
between.

I knew within 5 minutes that the one wasn't up to the task of framing
needlework despite being in business 10+ years and supposedly having framed
a lot of needlework. I don't know how to explain it but within a few minutes
I knew I was in the wrong place.

With the other, within a few minutes I knew I was in the right place. I
could feel an air of professionalism that's hard to explain. The feeling was
such that I indicated an approx.$ amount that I thought I wanted to spend
then and I handed her my two completed designs and told her to ply her
skill. I had nothing to do with selecting the mats or the frames or how it
was to be done. A few weeks later I picked up the framed designs. I was
completely satisfied with the price, mounting, mats and frames that were
used. Needless to say I am a repeat customer and I never select mats and
frames. IMHO when one commissions a framer one should let them demonstrate
their skill. Have I ever made suggestions? The odd time but they weren't
even close to the finished piece. You can see some of the pieces at RCTNP.

I was fortunate to have her demonstrate to me the art of blocking and
mounting some needlepoint. I have seen her block pieces that were only
mildly distorted and asked her how long the pieces would stay straight
within the frames after mounting. Her answer, "200 or more years!" I believe
it. The blocking is done by moving (stretching isn't really the right word)
the stitched material on a pin board in very small increments. Each piece
took almost 3 week to block. When the stitched material was removed and
placed on a work bench you could put a metal straight edge along any
horizontal or vertical thread and see no distortion whatsoever. We now have
an excellent working relationship - I don't tell her how to frame and she
doesn't tell me how to build furniture - well not too much. LOL.

As you can see none of the above answers your questions - what I'm trying to
say is, get your experience and apply all your skills to every piece in a
professional manner and your customer base will grow because new customers
will sense your degree of professionalism. Something that was passed on to
me by an old country craftsman, "When one thinks their pieces of work are
good enough, it is time to retire."

Fred
http://www.stitchaway.com

W.I.P. - "Fiddler on the Roof"
W.I.L. - "Oriental Maiden"


"Deana Reynolds" wrote in message
...
Hi all,
I am a custom picture framer by profession, and due to my obsession with
textiles and needlework I get about 98% of the textile frame jobs that
come
into our store. This brought to mind a question I wanted to pose to
y'all.
How do you prefer to frame your work? Many are fanatic about no glass,
others want to stretch it themselves and just want us to cut matting and
help them select a frame, others just want to hand us a finished, blocked
piece and pick it up stretched and framed two weeks later. If you stretch
your work yourself, how do you do it?
Working in the framing industry, I always do my own work. I pin stretch
my
X-stitch (using pins stuck into the middle "foam" layer of foam core,
wrapping excess fabric to the back and taping it in place with acid free
tape. this is the standard for my store) and then use 2-3 layers of
matting
to keep it away from the glass. everything I use is archival quality, and
I
use a UV glass.
I'm especially interested in needlepoint, as I have limited experience
with
it and always feel stuck (no pun intended) when customers seek ideas.

If you have read this far, I thank you for your fortitude. I look forward
to everyone's replies and ideas!
Deana

"Fred" wrote in message
...
Here are my experiences with two types of framers, others fall somewhere
in
between.

I knew within 5 minutes that the one wasn't up to the task of framing
needlework despite being in business 10+ years and supposedly having
framed
a lot of needlework. I don't know how to explain it but within a few
minutes
I knew I was in the wrong place.

Unfortunately, I have employees like this... I have a few that I would
wholeheartedly recommened to anyone at anytime, and a few whom I don't allow
in the frame room!

.. Something that was passed on to
me by an old country craftsman, "When one thinks their pieces of work are
good enough, it is time to retire."
I love your quote! Thank you for taking the time to reply to my post. You
actually did answer my questions, as I have no experience with blocking (we
don't do it at our store, pieces must be cleaned and blocked before
framing), and it was really interested to hear about your framer... it
sounds like I could learn a lot from here.

I daily feel the constraints of working in a retail chain shop.... I wish I
could spend time learning the craft from a true master framer!










essage
...
Hi all,
I am a custom picture framer by profession, and due to my obsession with
textiles and needlework I get about 98% of the textile frame jobs that
come
into our store. This brought to mind a question I wanted to pose to
y'all.
How do you prefer to frame your work? Many are fanatic about no glass,
others want to stretch it themselves and just want us to cut matting and
help them select a frame, others just want to hand us a finished,
blocked
piece and pick it up stretched and framed two weeks later. If you
stretch
your work yourself, how do you do it?
Working in the framing industry, I always do my own work. I pin stretch
my
X-stitch (using pins stuck into the middle "foam" layer of foam core,
wrapping excess fabric to the back and taping it in place with acid free
tape. this is the standard for my store) and then use 2-3 layers of
matting
to keep it away from the glass. everything I use is archival quality,
and
I
use a UV glass.
I'm especially interested in needlepoint, as I have limited experience
with
it and always feel stuck (no pun intended) when customers seek ideas.

If you have read this far, I thank you for your fortitude. I look
forward
to everyone's replies and ideas!
Deana

Then allocate your employees according to their skill sets. Some may be good
at cutting mats, some may be good at blocking, others may be good at
mounting and framing/assembly.

IMHO the blocking is the hardest to master. It takes time, patience and
"strong fingers". I know of one person who did professional blocking and his
fingers only lasted 12 years and he had to give it up. I would say that
depending on the amount of distortion in the ground fabric - something like
$60 to $80 would be a reasonable price for a quality blocking job. Most
places I know either bury that charge in the framing costs or show the cost
up front. If the costs are not there the job has not been done and you get
what you pay for - ground fabrics that creep inside the frames - vertical
and horizontal threads no longer running parallel to the edge of the mat.
However, some people don't give a hoot!!

Fred
http://www.stitchaway.com

W.I.P. - "Fiddler on the Roof".
W.I.L., "Romantic Venice",
"Ocean Princess", "Southwest Charm",
"Rainbow Trail", "Indian Pottery", "One Earth",
"Spirit of the Full Moon"
and "+?", "+?", "+?".


"Deana Reynolds" wrote in message
...


Unfortunately, I have employees like this... I have a few that I would
wholeheartedly recommened to anyone at anytime, and a few whom I don't
allow
in the frame room!



I daily feel the constraints of working in a retail chain shop.... I wish
I
could spend time learning the craft from a true master framer!


essage
...
Hi all,
I am a custom picture framer by profession, and due to my obsession
with
textiles and needlework I get about 98% of the textile frame jobs that
come
into our store. This brought to mind a question I wanted to pose to
y'all.
How do you prefer to frame your work? Many are fanatic about no
glass,
others want to stretch it themselves and just want us to cut matting
and
help them select a frame, others just want to hand us a finished,
blocked
piece and pick it up stretched and framed two weeks later. If you
stretch
your work yourself, how do you do it?
Working in the framing industry, I always do my own work. I pin
stretch
my
X-stitch (using pins stuck into the middle "foam" layer of foam core,
wrapping excess fabric to the back and taping it in place with acid
free
tape. this is the standard for my store) and then use 2-3 layers of
matting
to keep it away from the glass. everything I use is archival quality,
and
I
use a UV glass.
I'm especially interested in needlepoint, as I have limited experience
with
it and always feel stuck (no pun intended) when customers seek ideas.

If you have read this far, I thank you for your fortitude. I look
forward
to everyone's replies and ideas!
Deana