Found Objects Keep Memory of Old House Alive

Your childhood home is usually one of the most treasured places of our youth; It’s the place where you grew up, played with friends, and learned about the world. Some of us are lucky enough to be able to visit our old homes through a relative or friends, but most of us grow up to move somewhere else, leaving that magical place in the hands of another family to enjoy.

One of our clients, Nancy, grew up on an old farmhouse in Valparaiso and has since moved to a separate location on the other side of town. She noticed that the person who bought her new home hasn’t been taking the best care of her beloved childhood home and fears that it will be demolished as time goes on. All she has left of her memories are a handful of leaves and flowers she pressed and saved years ago before she moved from the yard. Nancy stopped in at the beginning of 2018 to frame these fragile pieces as a homage to her home.

We frame things that are important to us, and make us feel happy.

As a framer, it is an honor to be trusted with such a nostalgic and fragile memory of someone’s life. Nancy and I played with a few designs on how she wanted the leaves to be added to the frame, and she specifically wanted the design to simple and clean. While we were finding the most pleasing layout, I showed her some archival white mat samples and a simple white cap from Larson Juhl’s Gallery One Collection to see how she felt about using a white-on-white approach to the leaves. Nancy loved the idea and even decided to go with Museum Glass to give the final art the most clarity so that she would be able to see the leaves with the least amount of glare. To avoid the glass from touching the leaves, we built up the frame like a shadowbox to give the piece depth and interest. We had to do some research to make sure we could mount the leaves in the most archival way possible, and luckily I was able to ask some plant nerds from a native-plant group on Facebook in the best method of mounting them without damage. The leaves are adhered to the board strategically with pH neutral glue from Lineco. Here’s how they came out:

Luckily, she loved them so much that she decided to use the rest of the leaves from her stash to create 8 more as Christmas gifts for her family. We took a similar approach to these but on a smaller scale:

The white-on-white design is a great way to give the piece a modern look with the least amount of distraction from the “artwork.” White has the tendency to get a little bland quickly so use layers to create depth and interest with the whites shadows.

Framing is a great way to preserve something that you’ve kept but are not sure what to do with. Now, this memory is on display and serves it’s purpose of bringing joy to the people who see it everyday. Isn’t that why we frame things? Whether it be art, family photos, or even leaves? We frame things that are important to us, and make us feel happy. Next time you come across something that makes you happy, frame it! We all could use a little reminder of that in our daily lives.

-Your friendly neighborhood framer, Kristina at SFC Gallery