The discovery
When out looking for stuff with a friend he found this poster of a Japanese woodblock print, sort of rolled up and definitely abandoned but otherwise in good condition.In the night, and amongst some other stuff the woodblock poster looked like this....
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| Poster and other freebies |
But when laid on the floor in daylight it looked like this!
It sat in his apartment on a shelf for a while because there was no suitable frame for it......... until I remembered the large black poster frame sitting under my desk!
(forehead slap sound)
I got out my tool and started the reframing process.
Step 1. Assemble tools: staple puller (pliers), screwdrivers, staple gun, and new staples
Step 2. Unscrew the hanging wire across the back if you are going to change the orientation of the frame. In this case I was switching from a landscape orientation to a portrait orientation, so I also had to adjust the wire (shorter) and re-clamp the little lead-based wrapping pieces.
Step 4. Clean glazing (clear front layer) if needed, then lay new poster down behind glazing, and backing material behind that.
Step 5. Use a staple gun, held slightly away from the edge of the frame, and staple a few times on each side.
Step 6. Secure the hanging wire in the proper orientation, this might mean unscrewing the screws and moving them.
Step 7. Stand back and enjoy your work!
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| Woodblock poster print laying on floor |
It sat in his apartment on a shelf for a while because there was no suitable frame for it......... until I remembered the large black poster frame sitting under my desk!
(forehead slap sound)
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| Frame with original poster |
I had taken this frame because it was intact and lightweight. The topic seems more suitable to a college dorm room, and it had probably had been in one in the recent past, but that's the good thing about frames - they are so easy to repurpose. This frame isn't particularly high quality, the frame is some sort of dense pressboard or paper-based material, and the glazing (front clear piece) is flexible acrylic, but it looks just fine.
The reframing
After examining the frame a little closer, it turned out the that the woodblock poster was an exact size match for the frame. Ridiculous that it took me more than an instant to put these things together.I got out my tool and started the reframing process.
Step 1. Assemble tools: staple puller (pliers), screwdrivers, staple gun, and new staples
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| Pliers, screwdrivers, staple gun |
Step 2. Unscrew the hanging wire across the back if you are going to change the orientation of the frame. In this case I was switching from a landscape orientation to a portrait orientation, so I also had to adjust the wire (shorter) and re-clamp the little lead-based wrapping pieces.
Step 3. Pull out staples. You will probably have to discard these unless you have a clever way to repurpose used and deformed staples.
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| Spent staples pulled from the frame |
Step 4. Clean glazing (clear front layer) if needed, then lay new poster down behind glazing, and backing material behind that.
Step 5. Use a staple gun, held slightly away from the edge of the frame, and staple a few times on each side.
Step 6. Secure the hanging wire in the proper orientation, this might mean unscrewing the screws and moving them.
Step 7. Stand back and enjoy your work!
Conclusion
I loved loved loved making this freestyle connection, and the poster owner loved the final product. Now he has a cool new and totally free piece of artwork to decorate a sleek bachelor pad. I took the frame not knowing what I would use it for, and I'm so glad I did!
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| The repurposed frame with its new poster |
Happy freestyling!