How to treat a chinese paper cut

[nickhood]

Hi can we see a picture of the finished item

[Tangent]

Yes certainly.
Got a lot to get done today before my dentist appointment and then working until 9pm and it is up in one of my top cupboards at the moment as the hooks are not yet in the walls!

Will get it down and photograph it as soon as I get a chance, probably tomorrow.

[Tangent]

Reg popped out and wasn't sitting in front of the cupboard so I got it out to take a quick pic.
Very sunny today so not the best of photos!

red dragon.jpg

I also took a couple of shots of another dragon I found last week. Had it for years and had totally forgotten about it!
I collect dragons and have wood, crystal, porcelain, glass and pewter ones as well as paper ones LOL
This one is more delicate than the red one so glad to have got the practice in.
Now to plan the colours etc for this one:

lost dragon.jpg

lost dragon2.jpg

[prospero]

Great job.

Photo looks very pro too.

[nickhood]

The dragon looks great, am I right in thinking you sandwiched the paper cut between two pieces of glass, spaced away from the gold under mount then spaced the double mount and finally glazed with a third piece of glass? would love to see more photographs

[Tangent]

Hi Nick,

Reg is sitting in front of the cupboards now! LOL
And I didn't take any other photos of the construction as I went other than the one earlier in this thread:

part done.jpg

I initially made the 40mm deep box from 5mm foam core. I did this using wood glue and household pins (like dressmakers pins) and then taped the outside with brown tape which I folded over to cover the join of the base to the sides. The sides are on the outside of the base rather than glued on to it. I thought this would give more strength.
I then cut the gold mount board and stuck it with double sided tape to the bottom - This can be slightly smaller than the box for ease as the edges won't show.
I then cut the side pieces of foam core about 2cm wide I think, to fit around the edge to make the border you can see in the pic above. I used three of them so the glass sandwich sits 15mm above the gold mount board underneath. I then cut strips of mount board to finish the edges just in case they might be seen from certain angles under the raised mounts and I stuck these on with double sided tape also.

So when I placed the glass sandwich onto it's platform I was left with about 10mm before the top of the sides of my box.
I didn't cut the double mount as a double mount where you stick the boards together.
The lower Chinese Red mount is cut to fit inside the box.
I cut the aperture and then stuck 1cm strips of 5mm foam core all around the edges of the mount. I did this to both the back and front of the aperture mount. This means the mounts are spaced away from each other as well as both being spaced away from the dragon to enhance the 3D effect - My first ever attempt and I maybe got a bit carried away! LOL

I then dropped this down on top of the glass sandwich.

The top gold aperture mount went on top covering the sides of the foam core box.
I used the technique that Roboframer explained to me of the inlay mount.

I stained the cut out with this nifty little 'Chalk Ink' product I found in a Hobbycraft store that is made for those people who indulge in 'stamping' which I have no interest in whatsoever but some of the powders and inks now produced for the 'craft' I can see could be put to a myriad of decorative uses. I used the red but there are a nice selection of colours there I really liked the effect it had over the metallic finish of the mount board.
I think they would be a good option to use for colouring the bevel cut on the mount board - especially that with a finish such as the gold board I used because you can wipe it off easily with a damp cloth if you catch it right away

So once I had reassembled the mount with my "wash line for cheats", I placed it on top of the box and then laid the final sheet of glass over it and sealed it with some masking tape.

Cut the deep rebate moulding I chose, assembled the frame and then filled and primed it as suggested by Prospero and used Plastikote Gold Spray this time to finish it in gold. I don't like this product anywhere near as much as I do the Rust-oleum product but the colour was better for the gold mount board. With the Rust-oleum the frame would have been a lighter shade than the rest and I didn't think that would work so well.

One lesson I have learned is to always make sure that the rebate is a little bigger than you think you need.
I expected to have about 5mm to play with once I put the work into the frame but there wasn't even room for any Art-bak!
Here is a shot to show you what I mean:

BACK.JPG

I had cut a piece of Art-bak but when I placed it in situ it was going to make it very difficult to get my flexipoints in so I didn't use it.
Haven't added the D rings, cord and bumps yet cos I need it to happily lay flat in the cupboard until I get the room sorted and the hooks in the walls


I think that covers it all,
If you have any further questions Nick, just fire away.

Oh and thanks for the interest

[nickhood]

Thanks you much Tangent, very well explained, look forward to seeing the other dragons framed and mounted. One other thing where did you find the Dragon paper cut? I have seen a few on ebay but none as nice as your Dragon.
Nick
PS Happy Christmas

[Tangent]

It was just a happy coincidence Nick.

I was at a fair in Dulwich Park last year during the Dulwich Festival and there was a stall with lots of framed paper cuts.
I had no intention of purchasing one but just stopped to admire the beauty of the pieces and then I spied the dragon!

I clutched it and handed it to the girl behind the stall and went for my purse. I had no idea what it might cost and though very crudely framed (obviously just to protect them) I imagined I might be paying around £25 - £35 but I was asked for just £10

I really don't know anything about the people that were selling them that day. Sorry.
I would use the images page in Google and search that way being creative with the search terms
And maybe pop down to Chinatown in London and have a look around there.

I never go dragon hunting but get the dragons that I come across by chance. My collection is quite eclectic!

Happy that you like it When I like something that much I include it in my computer screen display so that I see it now and then to remind me and wait.
I wait until something clicks and I take the idea further to make it my own or I find something somewhere that I want (such as the dragon) and then return to decide just how I will handle it.

Are you just a DIY framer like me or do you do this for a living Nick?
My brother lives at Turnford and I have a close friend who lives in Rickmansworth yet I often forget how nice Herts can be when I choose to go off for a drive. Tring, Aylesbury etc. I usually end up in Kent, Sussex or even Dorset! LOL

[Roboframer]

Don't rely on double-sided tape alone for things that will show if it fails, which it can.

I use PVA for things like spacers, with just a few dabs of DS tape to hold while it dries. Pretty much the only thing I use DS tape on its own for, is making mount slips flush but if the mounts are not part of a complete frame - e.g. for sale alone or for a mounted print for sale, I use PVA on those too.

Self adhesive tapes are also pressure sensitive and the best bond (which can also fail in time) is achieved by burnishing and you can't burnish through mount board or foam board. PVA is cheaper too!

I've only got one dragon, a Welsh one called 'Dai' - from a glass sculptor in Ruthin who you could watch at work, or maybe still can, was a long time ago.

Dai the dragon.JPG

[Tangent]

Are you sure that you only want to do this as a hobby? I think that you might be getting hooked on framing and that's only one step away from starting a framing shop!

Don't encourage me too much Mark!
Cliff very kindly messaged me on here today to let me know that Axminster had their Mitre Trimmer on special offer today and I have just ordered it!
Perhaps I am slipping down the slippery slope of becoming totally HOOKED! LOL

Great job.

Thanks

Photo looks very pro too.

Hmmm.... now should I become a picture framer or a photographer? LOLOLOL

Don't rely on double-sided tape alone for things that will show if it fails, which it can.

Thanks for the advice.
I will do this in future and to the dragon once I take it apart again when I have the Futura so I can cut that gold mount with no overcuts.
Wondering if we may be able to help each other out actually - you sending me a tiny sample and me becoming one of your customers for threads and fabrics - Will PM you
p.s. Like your dragon


I am just a tiny bit sad today that my course has finished but want to say thank you to everyone here for being so welcoming and so helpful.
Very excited to get on and complete more projects in the new year