Shadowbox frames are versatile display casesfor a wide variety of 3-dimensional items. You may want to display memorabiliarelated to special occasions such as your wedding, birthday, childbirth orgraduation. These can also hold souvenirs and collections – that baseball youcaught at the game (that you then had autographed by the team), that medal youwon during a contest, the shells and pebbles you collected during yourunforgettable family vacation at the beach. Indeed, there is so much more thatyou can showcase for all your loved ones and friends to see.
Shadowbox frames also make for custom display casessince it is available in a variety of depths – ranging from half an inch to oneand 3 quarters of an inch. The Victorian Frame Company can also custom makeshadowbox frames according to the unique shape and depth you required. Theseframes can be placed on top of a coffee table or it can be hung on the wall.
When mounting objects in the shadowbox frame, you need todetermine the depth of the frame, to ensure that the items fit without beingcrammed inside the box. You also need to decide whether to add glazing, toensure that the items are safe from dust and grime, as well as moisture andmildew. More importantly, you need to determine the type of mounting you cando. You need to decide whether you want to mount it using a reversible methodor not. Mementos that are more sentimental than valuable can be mounted with anirreversible method such as gluing them onto the mounting board. Precious itemsthat increase in value over time that you may consider selling in the futurewill need to be mounted using a reversible method to ensure that the quality ofthe items is preserved, even when you need to take them out of the shadow box frame.
Here are mounting options to secure items in a shadow boxframe.
- Glue. Youcan glue the back of the item directly onto the mounting board or the backingof the shadowbox frame. Since this is an irreversible method, it means that theitem may be torn or may have bits of backing stuck to it when you remove it.Thus, you need to decide with finality on the placement of the items in theframe. You can use craft glue or superglue. Mark the spot where you want theitem to be then place some glue on this spot. Hold the item onto the backingfor at least 10 seconds to make sure that it is firmly attached to the backing.
- Posterputty. For light items, poster putty can work. You just need to get theright amount of poster putty and stick these onto the mounting board, at thedesired spot. Then, you can press the item to be framed to the putty, applyingpressure so that the item is attached to the mounting board.
- Shelves. Ifyou have an item that is not easily broken when the shadow box frame is droppedor jostled, you can consider using a shelf. This is a more dynamic way ofmounting your items, since you can easily move them around. Get a flat piece ofwood or a metal where the width is less than the depth of the frame. If you areattaching shelving from one end of the frame to the other, you can place nailsor screws underneath to support the shelving. If the shelving you are attachingjust goes midway of the frame, you can glue the sides to the backing and theinner edge of the frame.
- Invisiblethread and decorative cloth. The cloth can serve as a background for theitem. It also provides a base that holds the thread and subsequently, the itemto be framed. To attach the cloth, you can stretch it across the mounting boardand glue the edges at the back. You can also try spray-on adhesive so that thecloth sticks to the surface of the mounting board. Then you use invisiblethread to anchor key areas of the item onto the cloth.
- Pegboardand twist ties. Instead of cloth and thread, you can also use a pegboard (asturdy board that has holes in them). You can anchor the items using the twistties, which are then fasted through the holes of the pegboard.
20th Dec 2014 Eric Morgan
