Huge NO NOs - bad habits to break

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Verdaccio

Verdaccio

MGF, Master Grumble Framer
Joined
Jan 22, 2007
Posts
757
Loc
Berthoud, Colorado
Thought I would start a thread to see if we could all learn from each other's bad habits. :)

Mine is the glue bottle. I adhere my mats with white glue and I find myself passing the upturned glue bottle over the artwork.

Huge NO NO

It has not bitten me yet, but someday if I don't curb that habit, I am gonna find a spot or string of glue right across the image.

Instead, I try to take the bottle around the edges, keeping it well away from the image.

What's your bad habit that others will learn from?
 
Oh, like I'm really gonna tell you.

Not a habit, since I don't use them much, but recently a mounting corner fluttered out of my hand, and even though it didn't land on artwork, irreplaceable or otherwise, it sure as shooting could have. It changed the way I handle those things.
 
Michael, I used to keep a pencil in my hand while designing....just asking for trouble...living on the edge as it were.
 
-No food in the mouth at any time while working on/with/around artwork.
Red M&M drool will not come off a print.
Don't ask me how I know this.:icon19:

-When the timer goes off on the drymount, drop whatever you're doing right then, even if you're with a customer, and attend to it.

.
.
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Give me awhile, I have a bunch of these.
 
Framer's need a six month class in "SURGERY"! That will cure you of NEVER passing anything over the "operative field"!

As a surgical assist, instruments, pads, etc. are passed to the surgeon away from the operative field.....for obvious reasons! I had just enough experience in the operating room to remember the procedure - it is SO in my head! And I use it in framing every day! The art IS the OPERATIVE FIELD!

Hope I didn't just jinx myslef ;)
 
Sherry, that is funny. We used to perform surgery daily when I worked at Michael's. somebody would pick their art up upon completion and inevitably there would be a fuzzball or a hair lodged inside the package. We would take it to the back and open her up and remove said offense with an assortment of tools. I would call out for the tools and have them handed to me one by one. "Staple remover".... "razor blade"...."Air"....."lint remover, we have a bleeder here"......Then when we were successful we would stitch her back up....."staple gun"......"ATG, stat!".......Since we usually had the customer waiting glaring at us through the window or "Viewing theatre" somebody would stand by ready to mop a sweaty brow...................Sorry for the diversion, your use of "Surgery" brought back a fun memory. Had to make it fun somehow in that environment.
 
Years working in a veterinary hospital operatory taught me the same thing, Sherry! And Kathy, we've done that same surgery scenario many times! Ha!!

It's a great analogy!
 
We use a single bladed miter saw. I think my worse habit is flipping the little wedge remnant out with my fingers while the saw blade still running.
 
I also need to improve my safety with my saw. I use a double mitre saw and always keep the cover up to high and wedges are always flying out at me and my fingers are always coming a little to close to the blades when sliding the moulding down for the next cut...not good I know!
 
One time at a place where I used to work, a customer wanted to see a corner sample up at my end of his valuable signed Steeler print. Then he leaned over and picked it up to put it on his side and dropped it in the middle. The store had a work table that was covered with carpet. Needless to say, the print was ruined. In my OWN world, I will never have design table covered with a soft surface of any kind, and I never let anyone pass a corner sample over top of artwork.
 
Using the saw when I am in too big a hurry, tired, worn-out, fed-up, talking to somebody, hungy, or cranky. Bad enough that I mess up (my own) artwork at those times...I can't afford to lose any fingers!
 
I read somewhere, probably on The Grumble, to never have ball point pens anywhere near the design counter. I have tried to break that habit, I haven't succeeded yet. Now instead of just ball point pens, we have both, pencils and pens.

I think it is the tool gremlins that come in at night and move all the tools around the shop, so you can't find them without hunting the next day. I think they just haul a bunch of pens out front to the design counters.

John
 
Employees sitting drinks on counters near work areas. I'm constantly scolding them about what happens when a pepsi or coffee meets a S/N print or original piece of artwork.

Employees wearing stylish open top shoes. I once had an employee drop a piece of glass on top of her foot, and it took 12 stitches to fix it. Now when they forget, and wear those type of shoes, I send them home to change into something safer.
 
When setting the stop on a metric Morso, remember to check that the chop length is at umpty-seven millimetres, and not umpty-two.... :o :rolleyes:
 
Razor blades. I use quite a few single edge razor blades. I also use scrap razor blades to open packages, trim, etc. I will grab a blade and I grab the wrong side and start cutting because I don't see the bevel, and I will cut my finger (or what ever) instead of what I want.

I now have a plastic cocoa can to store used blades. I also put a piece of tape on the non-cutting side, when I place one on the counter for trimming.

as some once said, "I learned a bloody good lesson..."
 
moglet said:
When setting the stop on a metric Morso, remember to check that the chop length is at umpty-seven millimetres, and not umpty-two.... :o :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

That’s the real advantage of metric. On my English system scale, I can’t extend my Morsø any further than 60 inches, so I can’t chop moulding as long as umpty. :icon11:
 
I really need to try to put customer artwork away as soon as they leave. I just keep a huge pile going until I can get to it. For some reason I think it saves time>!:nuts:

Also no PUTTY on the work suface! Gotta remember not to do that!!!!!:p
 
Forgetting to turn off the air compressor

I try to make sure that I turn off the air compressor at the end of the day. I am guilty of leaving it on...Cliff warned me at the PPFA convention last year that horrible things can happen in the middle of the night if the air compressor has a fit!

Susan MCPF
 
One bad habbit I might never break is flirting with trophy wives on Super Bowl Sunday so that we can both enjoy the unmoderated use of her husband's credit card.
 
erick said:
One bad habbit I might never break is flirting with trophy wives on Super Bowl Sunday so that we can both enjoy the unmoderated use of her husband's credit card.
Click to expand...

I concur. That's not a bad habit. That's a fun, revenue producing activity.
 
erick said:
One bad habbit I might never break is flirting with trophy wives on Super Bowl Sunday so that we can both enjoy the unmoderated use of her husband's credit card.
Click to expand...

Ahhh! One of those rare-but-wonderful "Win-Win" situations. :)
 
moglet said:
Ahhh! One of those rare-but-wonderful "Win-Win" situations. :)
Click to expand...

A friend of mine was in a situation as you described. She did not like the unwarranted attention. So she walk out taking her $10's of thousands of $$ worth of framing ($60,000 over 3 years) with her and bad mouthed the framer/frame shop for years. A few moments fun can lead to years of bad word of mouth.

I our case the customers hit on the front room staff. When they came back the good looking guys and gals had jobs to do in the back room.:cry:
 
Here's a GOOD habit.

I have my office desk in the gallery area. It's clearly a work desk, not a guest desk. Once in a while a customer would let their child sit at my desk and play with my paperwork, etc.

So my solution.... leave several razorblades on the desk.

Next time someone's kid is on there, I say:

"Oh, ma'am? You may want to move your child from the desk. There's a few razorblades on there".

Works like a charm. :)
 
Fake Zorro said:
A friend of mine was in a situation as you described. She did not like the unwarranted attention. So she walk out taking her $10's of thousands of $$ worth of framing ($60,000 over 3 years) with her and bad mouthed the framer/frame shop for years. A few moments fun can lead to years of bad word of mouth.

I our case the customers hit on the front room staff. When they came back the good looking guys and gals had jobs to do in the back room.:cry:
Click to expand...

Alas, if I ( Or Erick I might guess) flirted with her in the shop she's sure to spend $120,000 in two years. One must work within the skills that god granted, don'tcha know.
 
I used to be in the habit of working all the time with a pencil gripped in my mouth. It was the only way I had to keep from losing them. Probably not a good idea sanitation-wise and it could have easily dropped on a mat or artwork.

It's also probably not a good idea to keep pencils behind your ear and walk out with them still there every night until every pencil in the store is in your car. I'm looking at you, WizSteve.
 
susang said:
I try to make sure that I turn off the air compressor at the end of the day. I am guilty of leaving it on...Cliff warned me at the PPFA convention last year that horrible things can happen in the middle of the night if the air compressor has a fit!

Susan MCPF
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So glad that you brought that up. I am guilty as well and have two compressors. Thanks for the heads up on that one!!
 
I dont think leaving razor blades on a desk in your gallery area qualifies as a GOOD habit - though it may be effective (at keeping children off your desk) it also unnecessarily exposes you to huge liabilities for a customers injury.

Think about it, then check with your insurance company to make sure you are covered.....
 
FramerDave said:
I used to be in the habit of working all the time with a pencil gripped in my mouth. It was the only way I had to keep from losing them.
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On the subject of pencil location, I used to either have them all at the design desk, or all in the workshop, and the location of the writing implements was never the location in which I needed them. Drove me nuts personally, and made me look like a complete numpty when I had to run round the place like a headless chicken looking for something to write down order details for a customer (POS-free zone here at the moment...).

Then I got divine inspiration: I spotted that one of the young ladies who works in our local newsagent had a pencil stuck through her ponytail! Genius! Been training myself to do the same ever since (never could keep one behind my ear). Now I only look like a numpty 20% of the time! :o
 
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What I want to know is

Howcum they are all pencils when I want a pen, and then transmogrify into all pens when I want a pencil? Hmm?
 
Where was I

Walking away with ANYTHING in my hand!!. I never return with it. It dissapears. I do not remember where I stopped, or where I have been. I have to circle the entire shop before I can recover the item.

Why does that happen? How can I change?:shrug:

Ah

N
 
Bending on price to try and make the previous customers of my out-of-business competitors happy. Apparently they were big into "This one is discontinued and so it's really cheap!" among other stellar marketing habits, 40% coupons and what-not. Why, why, why would you give a customer, especially a customer that is already at your counter, what would be tantamount to a $3 per foot discount on a proper frame so you can get rid of moulding that cost you $1.25 per foot and they have a frame that looks like ### on their piece and you have less money. What am I missing here? Gotta stop clicking that discount button.

Meh, arggghhh.... never had so many people come in asking for discontinued moudling... No! I don't have any discountinued moulding! If I had it, it wouldn't be discountinued. I certainly wouldn't be training you to buy frames at 40 cents on the dollar with it, would I? Not for long anyway.

Hey, I think I'll go out tomorrow and find as many custom made product stores as I can and ask them for discountinued crap merchandise. See where it gets me.

Maybe Ben & Jerrys will have some discountinued flavors I can buy without having to pay them a sustainable price for some freakin Cherry Garcia.

Meh.
 
moglet said:
On the subject of pencil location...

Then I got divine inspiration: ... a pencil stuck through her ponytail! Genius! Been training myself to do the same ever since (never could keep one behind my ear). Now I only look like a numpty 20% of the time! :o
Click to expand...

My pony tail is grey and my wife thinks I look numpty probably 40% of the time. - she is always telling me it looks like a rat's nest. I like your idea of of placing a pen or pencil into my rat's nest, but then she would probably think i'm numpty at least 80% of the time.
 
nikfrz said:
So glad that you brought that up. I am guilty as well and have two compressors. Thanks for the heads up on that one!!
Click to expand...

I'm not guilty of leaving the compressors on, but I am guilty of not draining my tank compressor at least once a week.
 
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