antique dress

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woody

CGF, Certified Grumble Framer
Founding Member
Joined
Dec 31, 1969
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107
Loc
Murray, Utah, USA
My customer wants to frame an antique dress more than 100 years old. It is made of a very heavy material and consists of a maroon velvet embellished top, skirt and underskirt. Finished size will probably be about 60x30. The customer wants to do the mounting down with a combination of stitching and velcro. She will do this herself. She wants me to provide the mounting board which I am to cover with a heavy, damask type fabric. The look is to be Victorian. The board will need to be quite heavy to hold the weight and to stand up to the mounting process. My first thought was to adhere two sheets of foam board to make a 1/4 board. However, from past experience, I suspect this board will warp badly. Fitting it into the frame will straighten this somewhat but I am still concerned about its viability especially since the customer will be handling it before I get to the fitting stage. Anyone have any ideas on a more rigid board, not too thick because of the frame depth limitation, through which stitching can be done?
 
Just my opinion Woody, but I would be trying to get to do the whole job myself! Not only do you get paid for your time in labour but you dont have to worry about fixing possibly the customers mistakes if any, then for the customer to transport it back and forth,WHEW!!!! Forget all that! Tell her its your way or the highway, who wants to put their signature on a half a-- job not me! Hope that doesnt sound cruel just sounds like head ache city to me man. Foam core sure is easy to sew thru though and Ive done alot of sewing in my time of different articles of clothing ,hope this was of help take care!
 
Hi Woody

You are going to have a rabbet-thickness problem no matter what you do - you should consider frame extenders at this early stage.

Consider sandwiching a sheet of acrylic between a sheet of foamboard on verso, and a sheet of mountboard for the recto. Foamb will add a little stiffness, mountboard will provide a conservation/preservation surface for the textiles.

Consider potential post-framing difficulties - warranty, c/p considerations, mechanical sagging etc. for which you may be held responsible - regarding customer doing own mounting.

Hope this helps.

Orton
 
Woody, check on 8 ply artcare board. It is tough and what I had held it's shape just standing for months. I have also drymounted mat board on front and back of 1/8" foamboard and it was very strong. Mounting on both sides eliminates the warp.

I agree with the others on mounting yourself. What about a hanger system? Is this moulding a double rabit so there is room for the dress or just a problem all around?



[This message has been edited by JPete (edited 02-25-2000).]
 
This is just a suggestion ,especially since I have never done anything like this .I would look into Gator-Fome it is a very strong product and it comes in varing thicknesses. It is almost like useing Masonite but light as Fom-Core.I know LJ carries it but I sure other Suppliers do also.
BUDDY
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. The customer is a good friend and to be honest I was quite relieved when she decided, with the help of another friend, to do the mounting herself. While it is a large piece it is not delicate or anything like that. Today I visited with a supplier and checked out a board called (I believe) MightyCore. Its essentially foamcore but with a much harder outside coating. Very rigid and comes in 40x60 size. Anyone had any experience with this product?
 
The 8-ply ArtCare will sag over time, particularly in large dimensions - the mid-section will either hog or sag. JPete is absolutely right on the money when she suggests laminating onto it - it will help prevent mid-body sag, especially if something heavy is mounted onto it. When doing so alternate the grain direction of the sheets being laminated onto the inner core.

The pH of whatever mountboard you decide to use should be a prime consideration. Low pH or board that will shift over time to a pH less than 7.0 is not a good idea. Regular foamboard is not a prime considerations as it will shift over time. I may stand to be corrected, but I think that you will find Gatorboard in the same boat.
 
Is the "heavy damask fabric" that is to be under the dress strong enough that it could be stretched on stretcher bars and then the dress stitched to the fabric with no backing board? Or could this fabric be mounted to a heavy canvas which would be stretched on bars prior to stitching the dress. We have used this stretched fabric mounting board with success on items such as a 4 feet x 7 feet crochet Lord's Prayer for a church. These required a lot of stitches which is far easier through fabric and not through a board.
 
I agree with Bones........Do the whole job yourself.......you're a professional! If the customer wants to watch......Fine. Just Charge Additional!

Orton is right......Gatorfoam does fall into that same "Nasty" boat.........use Mighty Core......comes in several thicknesses.

John
---------------------------
www.theframeworkshop.com
Appleton, Wisconsin
jerserwi@aol.com
 
John is right .... Mightycore is available in two thickness - 1/4" and 1/2". For jobs where you need a substrate with more durabilty and strength than foamboard, but do not the higher cost of gatorboard, Mightycore fits the bill!
 
I suggest you consider making the dress removable, rather than sewn down to the backer. Build a shadowbox with a sturdy, reinforced, turnbutton back, or an acrylic box frame that opens easily.

This way, the dress can be hung inside the frame at the display site; the frame closed up without tools, and hung on the wall. The hanger for the dress should be specially made for best possible support, out of ragboards, ArtCare foam-center boards or other Ph-neutral or alkaline-reserve materials -- cover it with fabric and stick it (hanger, not dress) to the flat background with Velcro where the hanger sticks out of the dress's neck. Or, simply hang it from a hook in the top of the shadowbox. For added effect, place poly-fill into sleeves and other areas of the dress to give it "puff" in the right places.

If you would like details on the easy-open acrylic box frame, let me know. I have drawings and instructions, used in the PPFA Framers Palette class "Object Framing for Easy Removal". By the way, that class will be offered April 8th, at the Dallas ABC show.

Good luck with the project.

------------------
James Miller,PPFA-CPF; PPFA Certification Board Member; FACTS/GAFP Committee Member
 
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