I wanted fabric crafts, such as photo frames and brooch jewelry pins, to be washable, sustainable. I started with picture frames, and also added brooch pins, ornaments, house shape kitchen pot holders, then went on to improving ways to make dog diaper wrap belly bands more durable, and added other printable crafts for people to make my products, just by using supplies from the art, fabric, or craft store, along with promoting my art "on" the products, for inkjet printable, washable, colorfast fabric & card stock paper, plus now inkjet printable vinyl.
I started http://fabricatedframes.com in 2000, when I developed / invented a new way to make fabric photo frames. I figured that what was out on the market just wouldn't do, or even last for a long period of time. So, I played around with art boards from the art store, first I used illustration board, but then that was really hard to cut on a continual basis, so I switched to mat board, and that seemed to do the trick. Mat board is acid free, so that helps with photos. I covered the mat board parts, 4 parts: frame front border, u shape piece, easel back board, and strut leg, in fabric and Ultrahold on both sides. When I discovered Therm o Web HeatnBond Ultrahold, which has become my not so secret weapon in making the fabric photo frames, as well as brooch pin jewelry, and ornaments, I realized that this acid free, interfacing, a paper backed, iron on, fabric adhesive / fusible web, would help me "finish" the frames and brooches, aesthetically, it would cover the folded over edges. I didn't realize until later how valuable the Ultrahold would be in improving my products sustainability, and washability, even durability.
The u shape piece was the "spacer" for the opening to get the photo out. I found that the openings on cheap fabric picture frames were always tight. I also realized that the turn buttons that hold the easel back & strut leg on the back of the frame would always pop off. I worked in a department store, and I saw this a lot in the frame department. When I discovered that I could make these frames better, and with supplies from the craft store, it was eye opening.
I did have an easel hinge and hanger press that would press metal hinges and hangers into my covered easel backs & strut legs, but before the press broke on me, I discovered a new way to make the fabric covered mat board photo frames. I discovered that if I take a slice out of the mat board, and ironed the fused fabric and Ultrahold on both sides of the 2 part strut leg in that spacer, together, that it would allow for the strut leg to bend, and pitch out. So basically, all I was using to make them at this point, was:
fabric
Ultrahold
mat board (you can use cardboard)
ribbon
hot glue
And I discovered that if I cut an acid free, clear, sheet protector page to the size of the photo, a 2 sided sleeve was made, a protective sleeve. The acid free sheet protectors are sold at Walmart, Walgreens, & Target for under $5 for a sheet page pack. And I could use a paper trimmer, to get the most sleeves out of a page, 1 for an 8x10" photo, up to 10 sleeves for the 2x3" photo, now being sold to print from the new instant print cameras on the market!
So with my frame design, there was a nice opening for the photo and sleeve to slide out, even shake out if you turned the frame and shook it out, a cleaner, more structural frame, with the inner picture window corners nicely sealed, no fraying corners, the strut leg was connected at its top part by staples and hot glued, covered over with a button or embellishment, and the bottom right corner of the strut leg was connected to the bottom right corner of the easel back, tucked in between the layers of fabric, Ultrahold, and board, to allow for the strut leg to pitch out just enough to stand well on a table or shelf. I hole punched holes on the easel back to hang it vertically and horizontally. They could even thread ribbon through the holes to hang it that way. This was the tabletop, easel fabric photo frame.
Then within a year, I thought, by 2006, if a photo frame / picture frame is to be covered or made of fabric, it should be made WASHABLE! So, I got a sewing machine and invented a pattern to make them. Instead of covered mat boards, I was making the patterns for the panels with Ultrahold. The Ultrahold became more important in the design of my fabric picture frame. Ultrahold is washable, durable, keeps my edges crisp, my corners 90 degrees, helps seal all the holes, keeps them from fraying, adds structure to my frames, along with removable mat board / cardboard easel back & strut legs boards that slide out of the pockets on the back, especially for the 4 largest frame sizes, as the Ultrahold and fabric can only do so much, and need a little "back up" support from the removable boards. Same connection between the strut leg & easel back bottom right corner. This time, I sewed button holes for holes to hang the frames, on the easel back, which can al