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How to make a Driftwood Picture Frame by Rex Rothing

 

Once you know about Driftwood, what it is, and how to collect it, you can go about making a picture frame with it. There are special tricks you will need to know when working with driftwood to make a picture frame that looks professional. For general information about picture frame making you might like to read: How to make a Picture Frame.

 

Picking out a driftwood board should take some considerations. You will need to decide your measurements of the frame before picking out a driftwood board. With the measurements in mind, you look for a board that will yield the four needed pieces in a way that has the least amount of defects showing. Since it is driftwood, some defects are expected but some are not normally allowed. For example, a rust stain is OK but a blob of tarr is not. A nail hole is OK but a sharp nail protruding is not. A dried out barnicle is OK but live smelly algae is not. A crack is OK but not if it affects the strength of the frame. Some artworks will require smoother and more bleached out wood while others will look better in rougher darker colored wood. Each piece should be selected specifically for the artwork it will frame according to the person who will have it on their wall and according to their taste. If a person cannot select the piece in person then it is best to give some description such as wormy grayish oak, wide greenish pine, rusty brown barnwood, or whatever you think would look nice.

 

Driftwood is usually warped, bowed, cupped, and sometimes twisted. A warped board is flat but not straight along the edge. A bowed board may be flat across the surface and straight along the edge but will not lay flat on a floor. A cupped board is not flat across the surface; it is curled up from edge to edge. A twisted board has two corners up and two opposite corners down; when layed flat on a table it will rock and roll diagonally. Many boards have compound problems being both cupped and bowed, or being warped and twisted. A woodworker needs some skills to see these defects and some tools to work them out. Using a pencil and tape measure you mark out the four pieces you plan to make your frame with from the best parts of the selected board. These pieces need not be cut parallel to either edge or the same length from either end. These four pieces can be cut anywhich way you can from the wood according to where it is best. By cutting these out roughly oversized the warping, bowing, cupping, and twisting can be relieved and minimized greatly. Then a jointer or straight cut jig, a table saw, and planer will provide the needed mouldings.

 

The mouldings are then mitered and clamped in the normal manner. When some irregularities are still present, the glueing should attempt to equalize the topside of the corners as they will be seen the most. After clamping, any irregular corners of the inside rabbet should be chiseled out flat so the glass can be laid in nearly flat as possible. Any irregular corners on the side showing can be sanded down flat and touched up to match the moulding. Sometimes a good way to cover a freshly sanded surface is to actually rub dirt into the area. This will muddy the spot and will not show so much as trying to touch up with gray washed paint.

 

Any driftwood board that will not yield a certain size picture frame will usually yield a smaller frame, and if it will not make even a small frame, then it is a sign blank, or it it firewood,or it should have never been collected.

 

At WoodShop 102, Rex Rothing has been collecting driftwoods and making frames for longer than most people realize. Custom Carpentry by Rex Rothing and ShipRex WoodCrafts were woodworking shops that Rex started and worked for years before WoodShop 102 came into existence. The total time in driftwood framing is over 30 years, so it is safe to say he is an expert at the craft.

 

You can order driftwood frames cut to order by the size or by random lengths. It is best to order the complete frame as then all final adjustments will be made. If I don't know the final size the frame will be it will be difficult to select and cut out the faults in the wood as described above.

 

At WoodShop 102 our motto is "Call Anytime!" Sorry, SOLD OUT of driftwood; an artist bought it all!

 

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Picking up a load of Driftwood by canoe

 

10 different driftwood frames

 

Driftwood Lumber

    

Samples of Driftwood Texture

 

This driftwood is suitable for picture framing.

 

It is not sold in bulk, and it is not suitable for construction projects or furniture.

 

We are currently SOLD OUT of driftwood.

 

When the day comes with a rising morning tide,

         and little or no easterly winds,

                 and I am not overloaded with work or chores,

                       and the mosquitoes are not bad

                             and it it not too cold, or broiling hot outside, or pouring down rain,

It will be the perfect day to travel by sea canoe 30 or so miles up and down the coast

     and walk in the muck and climb thru the mangrove roots and trees

           and I will fetch what driftwoods I can find,

                 and clean them of seaweed and mud 

                       and let them dry in the Sun.

When that day comes, I will have more driftwood.

      and the supply will usually meet the demand for a few months

            and the day will come again when I go fetch driftwood.