More picture frames

Its been a month since my last post and you know what that mean, winter is in full effect. Thus as you can guess, I haven’t spent much time in the shop, but when I have braved the cold, I’ve been working on more picture frames for the house. I just finished the two below, and I have a few more in the works, so check back soon, because I’m considering posting a video on the techniques I use.

 

The Christmas gift that almost made mom cry

I wanted to make my parents something special for Christmas this year, but I wasn’t sure what until I visited them over Thanksgiving. While walking through the living-room I noticed that the only photo they had of me was several years old, and was just an impromptu shot taken at a park. After returning home I talked with a friend who is professional photographer, and set up a time to get some quality photos taken.

With the actual photos taken care of, I set to work on a custom frame. I Wanted the frame to be special, so I decided to use Wenge as the main wood & Gaboon Ebony for the keys. I’d read that Wenge was difficult to work with, and it didn’t disappoint. It planed well, but routing the edge profiles was nerve racking. Unlike other woods, you must route Wenge with the grain, or you will get horrible blow out. The Ebony on the other hand was a dream to work with, It planed exceptionally well despite its density. For the finish I went with two coats of my go to Danish Oil.

picture frames

I don’t have much to say in this post, but I do have a lot to show. Last time I showed the jigs I use to make picture frames, This times I have some frames to show. Over the last couple of weeks, I have made the two frames pictured below, They where both made using simple router bits, and wood left over from other projects. The first one is made from Honduran Mahogany, with miters reinforced with Mahogany keys. The second frame is made of Jatoba, one of my favorite woods. It’s miters are reinforced with Jatoba keys.