I wrote recently about building a Greene & Greene style Fireplace Mirror. I wanted to create a smaller 5×7 picture frame that had some parts of the G&G style. In this case, I used cloud lifts and ebony accents for a smaller frame that could hold a regular picture.
To build, I wanted to use the standard Greene & Greene material, Mahogany.
Steps
- Cut material to size, and create “templates” to use on the router table. I made enough material for four frames, and then used the bandsaw to rough out the cloud lifts. Once that was done, I used the router and the templates to get the top and bottom pieces cloud lifts close to size
- I laid out the dados on the pieces to fit them together, and then used the tablesaw to make the cuts in the top and bottom rails to hold the vertical stiles. The dados were ½” deep, so the stiles would fit right into them
- With that done, I put a 5/16” wide rabbet bit into the router table, and used that on the back to cut out the rabbet which will hold the glass front, picture and back piece. I used a chisel and small router plane to clean up the corners on the rabbets
- I sanded all the pieces to 220 grit, and then I glued up the frames and confirmed they were square. After that, it was on to the Cut ¼” hole for plugs in the Top and bottom rails, 3/8” deep. I used the mortising bit to mark out, drilled a hole 3/16” in to get rid of most of the material, and then cleaned it out with a 1/8” chisel. The plugs are ebony, cut a little larger than ¼”, and then glued in with small taps of the mallet.
- To “ease the edges” I routed a 1/8” roundover around all four sides, and then installed 5×7 plexiglass and picture frame backing, with picture holders.
Looks good
Kevin