The Mad Lab

Well because of the wet weather nothing out here is drying so I decided to change my entry to something that might be useful to everyone else. While working on this project I found that, at least here, picture frames were pretty overpriced. Even a simple small one coasting several dollars so here’s how to make a cheap one, free if you plan on painting it.

I had a lot of stir sticks left over from some painting we did. They are given for free when you buy paint and four of them can make a great frame.

First decide on the size you want, if the stir stick has a handle you’ll want to cut it off so the sides are smooth. Overlay the sticks and mark on them where to cut. Because they are thin you’ll have to be careful not to break them, if you use a tool to hole them while you saw put the cut mark as close as you can to the edge of the tool.

I use wood glue to hold the piece together but depending on what you want to use the frame for you can probably use something else.

While we were painting we also got some varnish and I used some of the left over to give the frame a nice finish. Again if you plan to paint it just skip the varnish.

Hope this helps with some of the other projects!

Great idea!

How simple and creative!  Great job!