Silver mouldings that are not!

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CAframer

CAframer

SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
Joined
Nov 19, 2003
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Orange County, CA
It's happened several times ... put together a "perfect" design using a reasonably bright silver moulding ... then the stick arrives and it's much more of a champagne color.

Happened today with Nurre Caxton Cosmopolitan 91382, previously with some Larson, and I am sure others. In today's case the customer "hates" gold and wanted a bright silver ... just like my sample!

Anyhooo ... a couple of questions:

(1) Do you think that champagne silver lightens to a brighter silver with extended exposure to light, as seems to occur with my samples? (Several times in the past I have re-ordered sticks that were too champagne in color only to find that even when they went looking for the brightest sticks in the warehouse they still came back yellowish compared to my sample.)

(2) Is there any process to modify the champagne to make it appear a brighter silver?

Appreciate your thoughts.
 
The chamagne coloring is usually a wash of some sort - I would try a solvent (lacquer thinner, acetone, denatured alcohol - whatever) to try to get back to the original leaf. Try this on spare pieces, of course - and wear nitrile gloves. Should brighten considerably - but use solvents sparingly cause cheap leaf will come off too!!!
 
Hoo boy! Acetone takes it off, just like you said!

So do you think that wash loses it's color with extended exposure to UV light?

And if you strip off the wash with a solvent do you need to apply a clear lacquer afterwards?
 
I would give it a light coat of Krylon (clear gloss or matte) when it has gotten to the lightness you want.

I am sure that the mouldings are simply no longer finished to the same exacting standards that they used to be way back when.

It is pretty rare when any moulding ordered really is an exact match to the corner sample. Some manufacturers are worse than others and some finishes are worse than others. It is a crap shoot.
 
Framar said:
It is a crap shoot.
Click to expand...

I guess that's why I often find myself saying, "Shoot! Look at this crap!"
:icon11: Rick

I recently framed a painting in a stacked design using LJ's $$$$ Aubusson moulding. It came in looking really coppery, and I had to work on it with German Silver gilder's paste to get it to look anything like the subtle color of my samples. :mad:
 
Isn't it fun to pay $$$$ for "high quality" mouldings only to have to refinish them. This is one reason Roma does not hang on my walls anymore.
 
Oh crap Dave... you took the words right out of my keyboard.

Or when it looks like the UPS driver picked up the unwrapped sticks, tied them to the bumper with a long rope and dragged them halfway to Portland from Los Angeles... then tied to back of train for a good ride in the cinder beds.... and Portland they rewrap the sticks pad out the nice box and deliver.....
 
Cut another sample to match the moulding that came in. If the customer notices the color then show her the new sample as the one she chose.

Is that crappy or what???
 
More and more silver samples aren't realy silver anymore. I get complaints from clients(not customers tho) that what a silver frame not a silver-ish frame.

Part of your problem might have come from just handling the samples which will slowly rub the was off of your samples over time. I do have samples on my wall that are more silver than what comes in from the vendor though. In those cases just as mentioned already, I replace the sample with what is being sent to me. Though I don't try to pass it off to the client, I make the vendor eat it.
 
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