creating own moulding style

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wizard1

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Joined
Sep 5, 2006
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24
Loc
Buderim, Queensland, Australia
Hi All,

For some time now I have been thinking about creating my own paint finishes on mouldings. My existing suppliers don't appear to have raw mouldings for me to use so I will obviously have to shop around for that.

Has anyone experimented with their own finishes and would you care to share your experiences?
 
Don't bother unless you are loaded or are in it only for the hobby!
 
My best-sellers are hand finished plainwoods, especially ash. My sources would be useless to you, but I buy this one

DSCN1315.jpg


for 24 pence (44 cents) per foot, (after qty discount) - stain and wax it (this is 'Colron' Jacobean dark oak - Liberon neutral waxed and I have glued the mount fillet to the moulding rebate for a matching sight edge) and as shown I price this as a 80p ($1.44) per foot (to me) moulding PLUS the fillet.

If you can find a good supplier of quality plainwoods and get handy at staining and waxing, which is SIMPLE - you can make BIG profits.
 
Although my forte is not the wood staining, waxing thing, I really enjoy painted finishes. They seem to be popular with designers.

I've created designs using waterbased paints... latex, acrylic. I'm looking into milk paint. Add a little gold leaf and you're a star!

I say experiment. But do time studies as you go. It can be a time waster if you're not efficient.

Raw mouldings are pretty easy to find here in the states.
Maybe shipping wouldn't be so bad????

Foster Planing Mill in CA.
P,B & H in NY (They will custom mill your profile @100')
Xylo in GA
 
Originally posted by wizard1:
My existing suppliers don't appear to have raw mouldings for me to use so I will obviously have to shop around for that.
Click to expand...
There are a number of suppliers in Australia who do have a limited number of raw mouldings. You may just have to increase the number of suppliers you use. I don't have details to give you as I am at home at the moment.

For me, doing this is the last thing on earth I would want to do, due to the time it takes and the mess it makes, but if you have plenty of time and a space to do it in and you think you can make money doing it, then go for it! It's just not for me and many others too, I imagine.
 
Acrylic paint tends to look "plastic" but if you add starch, it looks "older"
and enough starch can make it crackle. For final toning, casein or artists
tempera are most useful. They can also be used to make commercial leaf
frames look older and more antique.


Hugh
 
Interesting idea, Hugh. I may want to try it sometime. What kind of starch? It's getting harder and harder to find those dark blue boxes of ARGO that I cook up to use on my sheets and pillowcases. Would cornstarch work?

Kit
 
Cost/effiency issues aside, this can give you a great deal of flexibility. I am primarily gilding, but have also started doing other finishes on raw wood (one supplier is Stephen Izzo, in Pawtucket, RI).

I work primarily with antique works, so often do not want a new looking frame for them. Even though there are moldings with beautifully distressed/patinated finishes, they do not always have the right effect when chopped and joined, as they will have consistency along the length. When I chop and join raw wood, then do finishing, I can vary the tones, etc. at natural wear points, get deeper tones at the corners, etc.

I have also gotten some wonderful ideas from a book published when frameshops apparently did more of this type of thing, such as working with textured gessos, etc.

As for cornstarch, I have not tried it in paint, but there was an article in PFM some years back about using it in a gesso reciped to created a cracked/aged ground for gilding. I believe it was by Michael Kulicke.

Joseph
 
I have had success with hand painting fillets. I saw this as a way to ease into "In House Custom Finishes," with minimal time commitment.

I also like the way fillets completely 'customize' a commercial frame.

I have several raw fillets that I doll up, they are from Picture Woods. I tend to paint them in colors and combinations that don't seem to be available on frames. I use acrylics, usually layering several colors and liberal applications of steel wool. Then I use a coat of paste wax on top, which gives a nice mellow finish that I like.

I have lots of ideas for custom frame finishes, but no time (yet) to do them!

edie the toobusyspinningmywheels goddess
 
Cron starch will work just fine. To get crackle takes more starch than
one might think. Using a heat gun will change the shape of the crackle.
It takes practice to get consistent results, but that can be fun.


Hugh
 
Rob Markoff does a "Simple Wax Finishes" class. It will be offered at PPFA 2007 in Las Vegas next March.
 
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