Looking for some ideas

[kartoffelngeist]

Hi!

I'm on the lookout for any suggestions or ideas anyone might be able to offer. I mentioned in the introduction thread that I manage a picture framing workshop which provides supported work placements to people with mental health and other issues looking to get (back) in to work.

I have a group who are here on a slightly different basis as there's no expectation that they will move on to work, the purpose of them being here is more of a supported activity than a work placement.

These guys enjoy framing, but lack the finesse and attention to detail to work on customer orders, so previously they've been working on ready made frames of which we now have a huge pile and can only sell for a few pounds each.

So, a few questions :

if you make and sell RMF, do you find any style/size sells better than others?

does anyone have any ideas for framing related that we could do, preferably that would sell! for example, we've recently been working on insect houses based around a deep-rebate frame cut in to a house shape.

I've wondered about some kind of fairly simple way of hand finishing frames, are there any ways of doing it which look good and don't take too much skill?

Any ideas would be handy!

[prospero]

There are lots of things I've thought of which involve using short offcuts of moulding. Probably may others have had the same ideas....

Most of these would be pure self-indulgence and not economic for a framer, but none the less there is lots of stuff that
gets binned that can be turned into interesting objects.

I did start to build a table lamp using various short bits of plain wood stacked up. It's square cross-section, but you could also do multi-angles. I haven't got
all that far with it, but If I ever do get it done it will look spectacular.

Trinket boxes are good for using up short bits. All you need to buy is a little hinge.

[kartoffelngeist]

Love the trinket box idea! Never thought of that! Hinges are already on their way from the internets! cheers!

Blackboard paint is also pretty handy as an alternative to ready mades...

[prospero]

Trinkets boxes are nice because if you make a small frame with a small (or none at all) aperture -maybe 1"x 2", you need only fill the hole with
a bit of any old thin wood bit and you have a fancy lid. The sides could be a flat moulding mitred rebate-up or down.
Depending on the finish of the moulding offcuts you could 'distress' the boxes to look old. Given that a lot of offcuts might
contain dings and flaws, this is even better. Sand them and poke with assorted blunt/sharp implements. Give them a generous
coat of dark wax and sprinkle with rottenstone. Or empty the hoover bag over them. let the wax dry and give them a damn good
buffing with a yellow duster. The effect will be magical and they will look the bogs dollox.

Not being facetious here, buy given that the people making them have issues this sort of thing is very therapeutic. It's not
an exact discipline. A few fiddly things apart, you can't really do it 'wrong'. And the result transcends a new looking item.

I might have another go at my table lamp later when the temperature has dropped. It's too hot to do owt today.