Mary O'Neil of Hot Potatoes Fabric & Wall Stamps shows Carol Duvall, host of HGTV's The Carol Duvall Show, how to create embossed-metal frames to show off favorite small pieces of art. Emboss copper tooling foil with simple household items such as a ballpoint pen, a fork or a hammer and nail. Materials:
Copper tooling foil
Ruler
Old scissors
Mat board
Embossing tools: ballpoint pen, fork, hammer and nail
Heavy-duty tape
Sturdy paper
Self-adhesive Velcro® tabs or E6000® glue adhesive
Optional: ribbon
A piece of mat board forms the foundation for the frame. The embossed-copper tooling foil is wrapped around and secured to the back of the mat board, and artwork is added to the front of the piece. - Select the artwork you wish to display. Cut a piece of mat board to the size of the finished frame -- 1" to 2" larger all around than the artwork.
- Cut a piece of copper tooling foil 1" larger all around than the mat board.
- Lay the mat board on the tooling foil, and crease the edges of the foil around the edges of the mat board to establish where you want to emboss.
- Remove the mat board and begin embossing your designs. You can tap in the designs with a hammer and nail or use the tip of a ballpoint pen to draw patterns (figure A).
- Mount the embossed copper over the mat board (figure B), carefully folding over the corners of the metal. Use tape to cover any jagged edges.
- For a finished appearance, tape a piece of sturdy paper over the back of the piece (figure C).
- Attach the artwork to the embossed copper (figure D) with glue adhesive or Velcro tabs (Velcro will allow you to remove the art when the copper needs to be polished). If desired, run a piece of ribbon around the metal before attaching the art.
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