Framar
WOW Framer
Customer bought in the most darling little dress which had been worn by her grandmother about a hundred years ago. It is the sheerest silk over silk, with amazing lace and maybe a tatted cotton collar and a wide silk velvet sash. And it is in the most amazing shape of any old piece of silk I have ever seen. No holes or tears or stains. And no fold lines, either!
She wanted a silver frame and a turquoise mat and a creamy background. Nuttin' fancy. I found the perfect silverish frame - LJ's Spencer 245251 - and took the turquoise mat corner away from her and dug out the turquoisey Confetti fillet and told her I could paint it to exactly match the color of the sash.
Then I went into the back to see what I had in the way of cream-colored suede or silk matboard. But the first board I saw was one of those long-discontinued floral embossed boards. Perfect size for the dress and she went bananas over how perfect it was for her project.
Anyhoo - I told her I would sew it to the board, through the original stitch-holes, and use cotton or silk thread. I also told her I would put a bit of batting inside the dress to give it a bit of shape. She wants it to retain the blousey look.
After she left I got to thinking about how I did not want to go near that thing with a needle or thread. And that's when I thought of the nice little stack of 1/4" x 1'16" rare earth magnets I bought earlier this year. Turns out they are N35 rated, and I tried a pair out on the brocade board with a heavy microfiber cloth. REALLY held good! Did not move at all. But maybe too strong for such thin old silk? I was thinking I could punch out some mylar circles to place under the top magnet, which obviously would not lessen the pull but maybe not damage the silk? Or even a small circle of soft fabric? The whole dress weighs about as much as a feather (I will weigh it tomorrow!). Or - the batting will protect the inner silk from the magnets. Thinking out loud, here . . .
I read somewhere that these rare earth magnets can oxidize and they need to be coated. Coated with what? Would nail polish work?
Any ideas?
She wanted a silver frame and a turquoise mat and a creamy background. Nuttin' fancy. I found the perfect silverish frame - LJ's Spencer 245251 - and took the turquoise mat corner away from her and dug out the turquoisey Confetti fillet and told her I could paint it to exactly match the color of the sash.
Then I went into the back to see what I had in the way of cream-colored suede or silk matboard. But the first board I saw was one of those long-discontinued floral embossed boards. Perfect size for the dress and she went bananas over how perfect it was for her project.
Anyhoo - I told her I would sew it to the board, through the original stitch-holes, and use cotton or silk thread. I also told her I would put a bit of batting inside the dress to give it a bit of shape. She wants it to retain the blousey look.
After she left I got to thinking about how I did not want to go near that thing with a needle or thread. And that's when I thought of the nice little stack of 1/4" x 1'16" rare earth magnets I bought earlier this year. Turns out they are N35 rated, and I tried a pair out on the brocade board with a heavy microfiber cloth. REALLY held good! Did not move at all. But maybe too strong for such thin old silk? I was thinking I could punch out some mylar circles to place under the top magnet, which obviously would not lessen the pull but maybe not damage the silk? Or even a small circle of soft fabric? The whole dress weighs about as much as a feather (I will weigh it tomorrow!). Or - the batting will protect the inner silk from the magnets. Thinking out loud, here . . .
I read somewhere that these rare earth magnets can oxidize and they need to be coated. Coated with what? Would nail polish work?
Any ideas?