I've been framed

I came across an old Empire Strikes Back poster that I'm always too sentimental to throw out the other day, and instead of putting it away again I decided it deserved its own frame. Thankfully I had a ton of scrap around still since I'm too busy to actually clean up the shop right now, and it came together really well.

The poster itself has really weird dimensions, which is why I've never put it in an actual frame. But something like that is a perfect chance to flex my scrap muscles. With the hard board I had left over from the desk, and plenty of 2x4 halves, I could have a pretty substantial frame put together, minus a glass or plastic cover.

I trimmed the hardboard to fit the poster, then trimmed a chunk of the halved 2x4 into quarter inch strips to fit around it.

Those got routered with a channel so they could fit around the hardboard with overlap to put everything together. Freehanding with that router is still a real adventure, but I couldn't figure out the right kind of brace. I'm kind of kicking myself for not picking up a router table yet. Oh well.

I basically freehanded the dimensions to get the channels around the hardboard, and viola, one glued up frame.

What kind of stain goes best with a yellow background? Why was this on a yellow background? Who knows. I went with the darkest stain I had around. After enough sanding and stain I thought this looked pretty good. Added a few coats of the wipe on poly and we're in good shape. Usually I wouldn't go with such a dark stain. It looks a bit rough, but it has a nice 'reclaimed' materials vibe that I like. It's more than enough to be presentable I thought.

I hadn't really taken into account how to put everything together, and for how thin I cut the frame this was a challenge. I ended up just hammering in some wood joiners. It worked, and I don't think I'll be taking this apart anyway. Added a wire across the back and snuck it on the wall.

The fam noticed it eventually, but it's still up a week later. Most b/c I've been too lazy to find a more appropriate spot, and the wife hasn't been upset to the point of taking it down herself so it stays for now. It felt good to get a small project done with classes still going on, and has me think I have a painting that could use the same approach before I take it to the office...

ETA: I just realized I posted this on the first Pulaski day I've worked on in three years. I miss my extra days off, but I also feel good about not realizing this was one of them until the end of the day. I got so much done on those days though, that part is going to be hard to deal with.