Worst Framing Disaster

[AndyPan, CPF]

Anyone have any great horror stories to tell, of things gone horribly wrong in the framing process.

My absolute worst is one I will never forget or live down. I was working on this one customer's order on a particularly busy day. She had three degrees that needed to be matted and framed. I took the degrees out of the flat they were in and lay them on my worktable. Now, the setup I used to have was a 4'x8' (approx) table where at one end was my Seal drymount press, and the other end was a POS no-name mat cutter. I used this cutter for cutting the mat blanks only. Anyway, I get out the first mat, and slide it under the bar. Before I can start to cut though, I get called away to wait on a customer.

After working with this customer for close to an hour, I go back into my room to pick up where I left off. The mat is still under the bar, so I proceed to cut it so the size I needed. As I am cutting, I am suddenly struck by how rough the cutting is. As I pull away the part of the mat board I won't be using, I watch in shock and horror as 1/2 of all THREE degrees flutter to the ground! They had been dragged under when I slid the mat under the bar, and I cut all three in HALF!!! I nearly died!!! :eek:

This story actually does have a happy ending. Fortunately, all three degrees were from the local schools, and actually one of them was a certificate from the Department of Health (did I mention this customer was a doctor?). With the customer's aid, we were able to get all three degrees replaced and framed up. Surprisingly enough, the customer was a sweetheart about the whole thing. We of course gave her a substantial discount for the aggravation.

To this day, I still always double- and triple-check under anything I may be cutting down. tongue.gif

[unframed_mystery]

Knew a framer once ( no, it was not me! ) who used pressure air to blow the lint off a suede mat on which was mounted a dried rose, the one remaining flower from a customer's daughter's funeral. Of course the rose petals blew off , scattering in every direction. :eek:
Fortunately we were able to locate all the petals and 'rebuild' the rose with a bit of glue and a great deal of perseverance. It was a learning experience for the framer who was one of those people who 'oops' frequently, and has since gone on to make other frameshops crazy! (actually at this moment I believe she's unemployed). Anyway, I digress...lol
Another fun moment was when a 1000 pc puzzle was accidentally dropped on the frameshop floor (it came in assembled but not glued together). It took some extra help to get that order completed on time! After that the unglued ones don't make it past the frameshop door :rolleyes:
I could go on... but I'm having flashbacks, my therapist won't let me discuss these incidents too much :( :cool:

[Reynard]

As a callow youth I tried to clean an oli painting(I thought) that belonged to my grandfather.I totally ruined it because it turned out to be egg tempera and it dissolved before my eyes with the solution I was using.

He still kept me in his will incidentally.

[BUDDY]

Some time back ( About 12 years) I was practiceing doing ruled lines with a drafting penand India Ink. At the same time my wife was retaking the measurements on an out of print s?n LE of Mick Jager. The T square I tried useing wasn't cork backed and as such the edge of the rule had ( Unknowingly) collected ink. When my wife asked for me to tell her the exact measurements I just used the same T square.You guessed it India Ink on the Print.I quickly called the manufacturer of the ink and asked if there was any way to remove it? they gave me instructions which seem easy but when i tried it it remove the ink and the smooth coating of the paper.
I fortuneately found the original artist address right here in N.O. I called and she Had a Print that she would SELL me at Straigt retail . But she did renumber it and the client was none the wiser,but my pocket book was.
BUDDY