Frames Version 3

We have about 9 miles of wooden fence at La Joya Dulce. When the fence slats warp too much, they go on the scrap pile. Wayne picks through the scrap to find wood for frames to show his photos.

Wayne has made about 40 frames, and they keep evolving as he learns how to better deal with less-than-perfect scrap wood.

Version 1 was created right off the scrap pile. The wood is weathered gray and is completely untreated:

The problem with version 1 is that it is hard to find pieces that are straight enough to join together neatly – warped wood leaves noticeable gaps in the corners. Wayne covered the gaps with leather strips from the craft scrap pile, and made about a dozen version 1 frames before running out of leather.

Lacking leather strips to hide the frames’ flaws, Wayne had to improve his technique. For version 2.0, Wayne worked the wood with hand planes to help flatten the frame pieces. The new version goes together without large gaps in the corners:

Version 2 looks great – the wood is only partially planed, so the smooth, planed portions contrast with the rough, unplaned portions. But version 2 requires fairly straight wood to start with, and the length of the available wood limits the size of the frame.

Version 3 is the current version. Wayne cuts the scrap wood into strips, then laminates the strips to make the slats for the frame:

​Version 3 frames can be made from very warped wood – the effect of warping is diminished when the slats are cut into strips then reassembled. Also, there is no size limit on version 3 frames – the short strips can be overlapped when they are laminated to make any size slat. The version 3 frame below is as wide as our king-size bed:

​If you’d like a custom-made frame to show off a special photo, please contact us.