Return of the Bear Claw Mat

The piece I wrote about last time is one of those things that I enjoy about creativity and craft. When it is completed, I can sit back and marvel at the attractive thing I have created. When things are fun to design and create, they sometimes have a tendency to look like they were fun to do. It’s a sensation that carry’s on to those who view it, and in this case it did so with the customers who now own the piece.

They returned almost immediately for more, they were so pleased with the initial results. The “Tomahawk Prayer” seemed to immediately suggest to our customer a pair of possible companion pieces. They would be smaller, satellite pieces. They would be completed in the same style, and each hang on either side of the main piece.

Our customers returned with an actual tomahawk, a pair of obsidian arrowheads, and a poem, the Tomahawk Prayer itself. For these objects, we would create a pair of shadowboxes. We chose a similar, rustic looking frame that was just a bit smaller in its profile than the original piece. We used the same mat colors, to further tie the pieces together. In addition, I would be using the same exact bear-claw border design as I used on the main piece. The design itself required only a little alteration to fit the new size of the frames, but the result is a nicely matched set that can lay out the theme of any room it hangs in.

I altered the mat cut design and cut the new mats in short time. Since we were assembling a shadow box, we chose to mount the objects directly on top of the mat. There would only be need to cut an opening for the poem, to be mounted normally under an arrowhead in one of the pieces.

The frame profile was standard, not deep like we needed for a shadowbox to fit the objects inside. I can however easily convert any frame profile into a shadowbox with the addition of an extender on the back. It’s simply a box that we can add to the back of any frame, and we can make it as deep as needed to accommodate most anything you need to have framed. I then build up the walls on the inside out of some of the mat board we are using. This gives the inside of the piece a finished look, covering the raw wood of the extender box.

The objects themselves I mounted by sewing them directly to the mat they were to be mounted on. All I do is loop some strong monofilament wire around the piece, and secure it through holes in the mat. The wire and the holes I try to strategically place to be as secure, yet as inconspicuous as possible. I like mounting objects in this way. It secures the piece nicely in place while avoiding messy adhesives that might damage or alter an object in its use. I can sew down most anything, from arrowheads, to baby gowns, to sports jerseys.

Almost finished with the piece, I give it one final look-over to ensure we have something worthy of display along side the main picture we had framed previously. I determine that I don’t like the look of the boxers at this point. The rustic wood of the frame moulding has a bluish-grey tone that suggests old, weathered wood. The bright new natural tones of the wood box extender clashes with it, and distracts the eye away from where we want the viewer’s attention: on the art. So I break out my paints. I keep a set around the shop. You’ll never know when you’ll need to paint something when you’re a creative person like me.

I am quickly able to mix up a batch of acrylic into an exact match of the weathered moulding, and apply it in light washes to the box. The light washes of the paint seep into the unprimed wood, letting the natural knots and grain show through. This gives the extender box the same weathered look of the moulding, and now the entire piece blends together unassumingly. This allows the objects we framed to take center stage in a rustic, yet coordinated look.

It’s little details like this that I enjoy custom adding to the pieces I do. It gives my work a unique appearance that you simply can not get at any other frame shop. There are many components that can be bought pre-fabricated and assembled into a custom frame. You can’t buy pre-fab creativity, however. Though at my shop, I can produce it for you on the spot if needed.