Metal leaf / Umber batch

New impressionist carve

This is a 16x20 in 22k. The molding is almost 4" wide. All hand carved, of course. 

Big batch ready for leaf

Various frames for various customers. Some will be 22k gold and others metal leaf. More pictures will come when they are finished. 

New Impressionist carve

This is the test. I'm making two frames with this now. Pictures to come. 

Red Sgraffito (for a really really old painting)

The raw wood that will become a beautiful frame.

Water gilt 2 with 22k gold and drying. 

Finished. 

I don't know the origin of this painting, but the canvas and stretcher bars are barely holding together.

Image size is 22 x 27 inches. Molding is 4" wide.

Another American Impressionist carve in 22k

 

12K big boy

About 5 inches wide, this frame is 36x60 in 12 karat gold and umber.

Faux Burl frame

22k over red clay. This is the same 4 inch molding that I use for the sgraffito. Thanks to Damon Searles for the photography.

12k carve frame finished

One of my personal favorites. The molding is 3 inches wide. This frame is fully hand carved by me. No molds, no poly, no compo, no third world labor. You can see it in wood here. Thanks to Damon Searles for the photography.

Bob Coonts

Here are two big Bob Coonts paintings, both about 3.5x3.5 feet. The frames are 5 inches thick, 22k gold, with umber panels. Thanks to Damon Searles for the photography.

When the shop gets too full . . .

Like this:

I'm glad we have a boxy car that works well as an extra table:

These had just been water-gilt and were sitting out in the high 70s Colorado springtime. They are finished now and I'll post final pictures soon.

More detailed carve coming up

This frame is 16x35 with a new carve that I designed myself (from an old theme). I carve the grooves in the higher panel by chisel (rather than doing it on a pin router) so that one cannot mistake that this frame is made by hand. It's shellacked, ready for clay, and will get a fairly distressed looking 12karat gold finish.

Big frames in the works

Three big ones with a subtle carveready for finishing. The biggest is 3x5 feet. The others are 36x36". I'll post pictures of the finished products.

New Sgraffito frame

American Impressionist Carve

This is one of my favorite profiles. 22k gold and about 5 inches deep. Since it is a fairly contemporary look designed this carve in the style of the American impressionist frames.

Christmas present revisited

I finally got around to framing the Rett Ashby painting that I got for Christmas. First I finished it with an umber panel (sorry for the bad photo) but I thought that it brought out the dark and cool areas of the paintings. So I covered the panel with gold. I let that sit a few weeks but then had to try something different--with a pale sage panel. My wife doesn't like it. I'm not sure yet.

New corner carve

This one is about 5 inches wide with 22 karat gold and an umber panel. Hand carved corners.

More metal leaf

Metal leaf over yellow, red, and black clay, topped with a dark patina. Compo corners and panel. Almost 4 inches wide.

On the contemporary side

This frame is watergilt with metal leaf instead of real gold. This lowers the cost and also adds a very different look. Since metal leaf is thicker than gold it doesn't adhere as well, causing more pronounced cracks. This frame is almost 5 inches wide.

If left to my own devices I tend to lean toward simple lines and handcarved corners, but here is a recent frame with more elaborate applied (compo) corners. It's about 5 inches wide.

Carved frames ready for clay

Voila a few new frames with carving in the corners.