A picture or a painting looks incomplete without a mount or a suitable frame. Making these mounts is as much an art as is photography or painting. Take a look at some tips on how to make picture frames.
If you feel like giving someone a personalized gift, you can always go for a framed picture of your moments together. Being a great gift for any occasion, if it is handmade, it adds to the warmth of the gift.
Picture framing is very easy and also doesn't take too much time. You can take this up as a hobby if you like crafts and have the ability to create something beautiful. Not only as a gift, but you can also make one for yourself to put up some favorite pictures on your table.
Making Picture Frames
It's a fun activity to do either with friends, or even on your own. It doesn't take time, as it includes only a few steps which are mentioned here.
Cardboard Frames
These are very easy to make and can be made by kids as well.
Step 1: If you want to mount a particular photograph, measure and then add 2½ to 3 inches to each of the dimensions. These measurements are for the width of the edges of the frame.
Step 2: Cut out two pieces of a cardboard by calculating the total dimensions measured in the aforementioned step. Use a pencil and a ruler to measure these dimensions, and mark out a square or rectangle in the center of one of these rectangles. The dimensions of this marked area should be equal to those of the selected photograph.
Step 3: Once you've measured it, cut it out carefully with a craft knife so that it is evenly cut along the pencil marks. Keep this piece of cardboard flat on the ground, and decorate the edges with crayons, paint, glitter, or any other way.
Step 4: After you dry this piece well, determine the top and bottom of the frame and then place it face down on the floor. With a ruler and pencil, mark 3 lines around the cut window, one on each side and one along the bottom. They should be ¼ inch from the window.
Step 5: Now, draw a thin line of glue just outside the pencil line along the sides and at the bottom edge of the frame. Place the remaining piece of the cardboard on top of this, and join the edges evenly. Press them together and wipe off the extra glue. Let the pieces dry.
Step 6: You can either affix a loop of ribbon with tape or glue to serve like a beautiful wall hanging, or stick magnet strips at the back to turn it into a refrigerator magnet. Insert the picture into the frame from the top, and keep it wherever you desire.
The same procedure is followed in order to make wooden frames. The only difference is that you will need a handsaw to cut the wood in the measured dimensions and wood glue to stick the two pieces of wood together.
You can decorate the face of the frame in your own creative way to make it colorful and pretty. It is not necessary to hang this type of a mount; you can cut an extra triangular piece of wood and stick it to the edges on the backside.
This can require effort and time, but is quite easy to make, and it also lends an enhanced display to pictures. Black picture frames are the most preferred by people as they go with any kind of interiors. So, if you want to make someone feel special, making a customized picture mount would be an excellent idea.