Getting Framed
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Fans from Fiji and the Cook Islands; a basket from Niue and a Panama Hat… all adorn our walls
During our years aboard Nine of Cups as well as our more recent hiking and road trips, we’ve accumulated lots of unique mementos and souvenirs… molas and masks from Panama, hats from Ecuador, basketwork from native tribes and South Sea islands, fans from Tonga and Fiji, ornate fishing hooks from Pacific nations, artwork and carvings from Africa and Alaska, posters, pottery, prints and photos… oh, my! We’ve displayed some of them, but many have simply been stored away in bins. Thousands of our photos reside on old external hard drives, just waiting for some attention.
Recently, I started digging some of them out and sorting through some of the thousands of digital photos we might consider getting enlarged. What so many pieces required, however, before they can be displayed is framing. David to the rescue!
The photos and many pieces of printed artwork require mats as well as frames. We checked out the local art and hobby stores, and matboard cutters were a bit pricey… ~$100+/-. After scouring Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace for a week or so, our patience and frugality paid off. We found a never-used matte cutter for $10. Worth the wait! Someone had plans which never materialized, but David put the matboard cutter to use immediately. Although a couple of blades came with the mat cutter, David purchased a package of 100 replacement blades for $13.99 on Amazon.
Now what about frames? We could buy new, of course, but that’s not as much fun as a scavenger hunt. We checked out Savers and Good Will and the local Salvos (Salvation Army to non-thrifters). But it was a local thrift shop, Castaways in nearby Henderson, that won the day. When we popped in to check out their stock of frames, they were having a ‘flash sale’… all frames and artwork 50% off. We picked out five new frames, all wooden with glass and matting intact for $11. When we got to the register, the clerk asked if we had any other discounts… Veterans, perhaps? Why, yes, we do… another 5% off. We left Castaways with five new frames feeling particularly satisfied with our purchases and our good luck in timing. Subsequently, we’ve picked up lots more as you can see.
Lotsa frames!
Now the fun part was over, and the real work began. We started with a ñandutí, a fine piece of traditional lacework from Paraguay, which we’ve been toting around for nearly two decades. We chose a coordinating matte, and David got to work. The results were wonderful.
He continued on with molas and posters, photos, prints, and other artwork. Finding a place to hang everything has been fun and sometimes frustrating as new pieces become available and we find other homes for older pieces.
Once again DIY, frugality and patience rule!