Sometimes it just isn't worth it.

Jacob

True Grumbler
Joined
Dec 9, 2004
Posts
50
Loc
NY
My most recent PITA job has reduced me to browsing the internet for a little relief. So after lurking here on and off for a while, (OK a couple years) I decided to finally register and unwind a bit.

The job is an American flag roughly 110 years old. It's small, about 14x18. I took the job with full disclosure that I thought it would be much better off in an acid-free keepsake box than in a frame. Light and gravity wreak havoc on old threadbare cloth items. The customer insisted he wanted it framed. He felt he would not enjoy it otherwise.

Of course I couldn't charge enough for the work that I knew lay ahead. There's a reason museums display old tattered garments and cloth items laying down. So, let's see, first, you can't use adhesive, you can't friction fit it, and you shouldn't penetrate the cloth with a needle. (and he would not pay for a cloth conservator to mount it properly) So I stitched it to a piece of linen, using only the hem stitches to hook it down. This way I didn't have to penetrate the cloth which would be a big no-no. It also took about a hundred carefully placed stitches due to the fragile nature of the item.

Christmas is not the best of times to be working on time consuming frame jobs. (or surfing the internet) Mixed in with the hundreds of other things I have to do, I also have two rugs, a job to frame two rings, and then there's always a couple jerseys that come in before Christmas. I hate object framing at this time of year. There are just too many photos, posters and artwork that you can make money off, with about a ten minute assembly.

So... any of you folks have a time consuming project that would be better if it had not come in now?
 
Welcome to The Grumble, Jacob.

Too bad you didn't find us before you started that flag project. One of us surely would have suggested you try an overlay of Stabilitex (polyester) or Crepeline (silk) fine-mesh fabric to hold the flag in place, on a toothy fabric background. It's almost invisible on a textile, and gently gives the item support.

Also, it's a good idea to use a deep frame and put as much angle on the mount board as possible. Even just 10 degrees from vertical helps a lot.

If you want to torture yourself about this job you've just finished, check the archives for more ideas.
thumbsup.gif
 
I turned down a job today where the lady wanted a stetson hat, belt buckles and spurs framed (in New Hampshire?).

Ordinarily, it would have been fun if it weren’t for the season’s rush and her insistence in grabbing corner samples that were less than one inch deep.
 
Jim, for future reference who sells the Stabilitex or Crepeline? I just knew there was an easier solution. Alas.

Bill, I have to say, in all the weird things I've done, I have as yet to frame a Stetson.
 
Bill: I suggest you use a plexi box with a small flange all the way around its outside back edge that will rest inside the rabbet of the frame. This will allow you the depth you need for the hat while using whatever frame you or she wants, including those shallow ones. This approach also allows the objects to be seen from all angles.
:cool: Rick
 
I feel quite guilty right now. I decided to give the owner of one of my former shops some business. Last week, I brought her my daughter's graduation photos which are simple enough. Three will be for me and my husband, five will be Xmas gifts. I'm feeling guilty because I also dropped off a limited edition Red Sox baseball bat my husband wanted framed in a shadow box, with hinges on the frame so he can remove the bat. I also suggested she add two newspaper sports pages and a plaque in the package. I told her to take her time. Today I had second thoughts on the bat. My husband is extremely hard to buy for, plus his birthday is Dec. 14. He is the type of guy who, every year, he goes shopping for himself in December. I think it has to do with the fact he is out shopping for Xmas, and if he sees something he likes for himself, he buys it. I called her today and asked her if she could possibly have it ready for Xmas. She didn't say yes, but she didn't say no, either. I told her not to worry about it. (But I really would like to have it.)

It really is funny how quickly one can forget how stressful the holiday season can be.
 
Another option for Jacob's flag would be a pressure mount. It's small enough that this would avoid plexi bowing problems which can be overcome, but make these projects more problematic.

1)Rigid archival quality backboard (there are several options), with

2)4 or 8 ply window mat according to depth needed,

3)needlepunched polyester padding set into well using good quality double-sided tape (encapsulation tape) at perimeter,

4)cover with washed show fabric taped or Beva'ed to reverse

5) flag set in well and covered with acrylic glazing.

Acrylic touching flag must be cleaned with ethanol and water, not Plexi cleaner.

The acrylic should hold all in place with light contact pressure, no heavy squashing.

Held in frame with wooden strainer screwed to back of frame.

Easily reversible (using anti static agents on front of acrylic), no stress, no stitching.

Rebecca
 
I'll vouch for Rebecca's technique. Not, of course, that she really needs it. But I've used it a few times and have found it to be quite easy and pretty much perfect as far as preservation goes. Of course, you HAVE to use acrylic, not glass.

The first time I ever saw this technique used was in a museum exhibit of historica Texas flags, most very fragile and in tatters. The fact that they were up against the glazing really freaked me out until Rebecca told me more about how it was done. Cool stuff.
 
Wow, thanks all for the ideas.

Rebecca, in all the years I've been in framing every conservator I've talked to has warned about direct contact with the glass/plexi. I have seen some flags which were press fitted at historical sites that look like brains due to the humidity and contact with the glass. But your polysheet technique sounds like it would take most of the dangers away. Good one. Now if I can just convince them not to hang it in the bathroom. ;)

Unfortunately I have a condition that is somewhat embarrassing if not treated properly; Customercheapskatitis. ;) I'll tell you, I could be handling a damaged Picasso, and if the word "conservator" even crosses my lips, the answer is "oh just do the best you can". (Sometimes they will balk at the cost of UV plexi.) If the preservation techniques cost more than a night out at a restaurant, they will walk out and take it to Michaels. (mostly I just let them go)

Pamela, I wouldn't feel too guilty. They can always say no. Actually for me, friends are easier to say no to. Wild laughter and a few remarks about their crazy sense of humor generally works for me. :D Sounds like a great gift though.
 
DATELINE:East Longmeadow, Maine

Police in this city today arrested a frame shop owner for assaulting a former collegue with a baseball bat. The victim was heard to mumble "I should have known better" as she was wheeled into the waiting ambulance.

Kit
 
Originally posted by Rebecca:
Another option for Jacob's flag would be a pressure mount... Rebecca
That sounds like a very gentle & effective mount, Rebecca.

Is there some provision for dealing with condensation?

In some situations it would be a non-issue. Acrylic is less prone to condensation than glass, and in a carefully-controlled environment such as a museum, the terrible temperature changes would be non-existent. But out here in the consumer world, couldn't condensation cause trouble?
 
Hi Jim,

I’ve never heard of any condensation problems when acrylic is used even in uncontrolled environments. In fact, my first introduction to pressure mounts was at the Cooper Hewitt Museum in NY, where they were used for textiles going on traveling exhibits to venues with no environmental controls. There were not, to my knowledge, ever any problems with condensation.

I’ve had some in my house for the last 17 yrs or so, no controls, and again all is well.

It would be interesting to put one in a very humid environment like Florida and see how it fared.

I think the fact that there is very little air inside of the package, that there are moisture absorbing/desorbing materials like matboard and fabric in the package, and that acrylic is not a complete vapor barrier, all protect against condensation.

Various forms of pressure mounts have been in use for the past 20+ years in controlled and uncontrolled environments and there have not, to my knowledge, been any problems with condensation.

That doesn’t mean it’s impossible, and if anyone has seen problems I’d be very interested to hear about it.

Rebecca
 
Kit, very funny!

(Ma. is Massachusetts, Me. is Maine.) They get confused all the time.
 
Back
Top