By: Chris Stead and Rebecca Davis

Okey dokey folks, Rebecca come up with yet another fun and fairly easy project this go-round. If you have a bunch of stuff laying around that you would really like to have framed and hanging on your wall, then this is the project for you. Being that I spent several years working as a professional framer, hopefully I will be able to shed a little light on how to best accomplish some of the trickier parts of construction. No, we are not going to tell you how to frame anything and everything. There isn’t enough space in this single article for that. This one is specifically for producing a shadowbox, or a deep-framed piece to display 3-D objects. Let us know if you want to know more, though, let us know in the comments section and we will come up with a new, spiffy framing project to do.

So, let’s get down to it. What you will need:

• A DEEP frame. If you are going to frame something deep, then you need to make sure that your frame is deep enough to accommodate the tallest thing going in the frame, a piece of glass and the backing. The most shallow you will want to go is about 2 inches.
• Glass. If you are putting something together that you really want to preserve, make sure that you are using UV-protective glass. This will minimize the amount of fading that will occur due to exposure to UV rays from the sun.
• Matboard. Pick the color scheme and then find the right matboard to go along with it. Matboard comes in regular, acid-free and archival. It is best to ask your local framer or art store for help deciding which will be best for the project. Bring your frame along so that you can have your supplies can be cut to size for you. There is nothing worse than trying to cut all of your stuff when you get it home unless you have an industrial wall cutter. Personally, I don’t.
• Foamcore. Foamcore is a ply-board made of heavy paper and a rigid foam. You want to make sure that your backing is solid. Foamcore will add rigidity without adding a lot of weight. Please PLEASE don’t use wood or other strange things to back your frame. The right supplies are available, please use them.
• ATG. Otherwise known as adhesive transfer gum. This is not required, but might make your life easier. Mind you that if you are doing archival framing, forget about ATG. It is not archival quality.
• Glazing points. These come in packages of about 300,000. Seriously though, they are pieces of metal with a point on them, used for holding everything forward in a frame. The packages hold enough points to do several projects, so one package should do. Generally you can get glazing points for around a dollar.
• Wire and D-rings with screws. These are necessary for hanging the frame on the wall. If your frame doesn’t already have wire, you will need to get these. You can also use sawtooth hangers if your piece is small enough.

That is the bulk of the work right there. Making sure that you have the right supplies for the job. The rest of the project will differ in difficulty depending on what you want to put in your frame. We framed a couple of simple things which took a little thread and some time with a needle. Here are the steps for constructing your shadowbox. Mind that when I went to get black matboard, they were out and so I substituted black-core black foamcore. Sometimes this can be done.

1. First prepare your frame and lay the glass in.
2. Once the glass is in the frame, then put two strips of material (matboard or foamcore) on opposing sides to hold the glass forward. You will need 4 strips of foamcore or 8 strips of matboard in total to hold the glass in place properly.
3. Trim the remaining two strips to size and fit them into the frame to finish the sides of the frame on the inside and hold the glass in place. When we put the strips in, we used tacky glue to hold them in place. Only use some sort of white or wood glue. Never use any kind of silicone or epoxy type glue if you can help it.
4. Once the frame is prepared, then attach your artwork to the backing board. We used spray adhesive to hold the flier in place and thread to stitch the other pieces in place. If you want to stitch things down, be sure to put your holes in an inconspicuous place. Otherwise the holes and stitches will show when the piece is finished.
5. After attaching everything securely, lay the backing board into the frame and use the glazing points to hold everything in place.
6. Attach the wire to the back of the frame and your piece is ready to hang.

That’s everything! Have fun framing everything in your house now. Until next issue…