Making a Distressed Painted Picture Frame for your home

So, this is how the conversation went… “Darling…do you think you could make a distressed painted picture frame?” I asked. “Possibly” came his cautious reply. “Do you think you could teach me to make one?” I carried on. “No, definitely not” he replied, a little too quickly. “Oh ok, can you make me one then please?” I said. “When?” he asked suspiciously “oh there’s no rush” I said walking quickly away “this afternoon will do just fine.” Mission accomplished…

This week’s story has me feeling a little of a fraud. Today I am less the creator and more a simple matchmaker. Two entirely different yet perfectly complimentary crafts have come together to create a gem. To be fair Mr M is one half of this week’s union and since I did ask if he might teach me how to make a distressed painted picture frame and received an emphatic no, I don’t feel too naughty claiming a teeny bit of the credit for his skill. This is what he created with his wood cutting thing-a-me-jig.

Then I caught him trying to sand it down and neaten it up a little whilst moaning about his unaccomplished dovetail joints. So, I quickly whipped it away reminding him it was supposed to be a chippy and distressed painted picture frame not a perfect one.

And then I primed and painted it. This time I used this paint which was in my stash already. This gives a flat and chalky finish as the name suggests.

I smile in awe and wonder at many of the skilled crafts people I follow on my Instagram account. Often, they share their breathtakingly beautiful designs; sometimes you can be lucky enough to claim them as your own. I bought one such beauty.

After painting the frame my next job was to mount the piece of embroidery carefully. I wanted a padded feel to its look as opposed to a flat and hard fix. So, I used a piece of soft foam, the type a jeweller would display his necklaces on in a gift box which I found in my craft cupboard. I cut a snug piece to fit the hole in the frame and using this fabric glue fixed it carefully in place. There was a bit of heart racing at this stage although the glue is quite forgiving and you can lift and replace if you do make a mistake. Then Mr M cut a piece of chipboard to fit as a backing and cover my dreadfully untidy gluing of the fabric’s corners. I haven’t shown this in a photo since I hid it quickly from his sight, sensing a disapproving sigh in the making.

It had been more than a little tricky to find an inexpensive distressed painted picture frame for my delicate embroidery. Even with my creative let’s paint a charity shop find head on, none were suitable. Mr M’s more rustic creation was just perfect though. Neither one of these delightful pieces needed to compete with the others beauty. The considered charm of a painting created with silk threads, subtly surrounded by a more chippy of partners turned out to be a match made in heaven. Two entirely different skills joined together in one delightful result. What do you think?

Credit for this beautiful embroidery goes to the very talented @jacquelinerobinson8982. Jacqueline’s Instagram feed showcases her many creative talents and is definitely worth a look if you haven’t already. I could not be happier with this project. Those bits of wood were destined for the kindling box had it not been for Jacqueline’s exquisite work.

Making a distressed painted picture frame doesn’t have to involve dovetail joints. You could simply glue four pieces of wood together if you don’t have a thing-a-me-jig like Mr M’s. And maybe yours wouldn’t be painted at all. As ever, a sprinkle of your own creative imagination is all that’s needed.

Next week the lovely Belle takes centre stage as I give you an update on how she’s doing following her numerous winter leaks, so if you are new to the blog or you want a quick read of how my Shepherds Hut came to be, click here… until next week and as always, thanks for dropping by x