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Lakeville, MN 55044
Argonne Village Center
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Volume 3, Issue 1 - January 2012

Happy New Year!!!!!

Family Heritage - Gathering and Protecting Your Family's Genealogy

Maybe you have ancestors that tie you to Shoeless Joe Jackson or Albert Einstein … and maybe you don’t. No matter who your ancestors are, each and every person within your family tree has a unique story and history that they’ve contributed. Whether you happen to be related to someone famous or you have a fun and exciting tradition you share with your family, it’s probably safe to say that you have some heirloom or keepsake that helps you remember your family’s past and makes you happy about its future. It might be a letter passed on from generations, a necklace from one grandmother to the next, or a medal commemorating what one man achieved and passed along to loved ones. No matter what the item might be, it’s always important to have a way to preserve your family’s heritage so the stories and memories can live on for generations to come.

There are many opportunities for a family’s history to be shared. Some are hardly recognizable when they first occur. A family tree keeps track of who is who, but adding a picture or portrait adds so much more. Keeping stories of people’s lives as they happen, or keepsake items that mean something very special to the hands that hold them, can provide a link more meaningful later than anyone can first imagine.

It’s important to preserve things to weather the years and maintain their charm as they are passed from generation to generation. Remember that the number of descendants grows as generations pass. So you may want to pass down a number of things. Depending on the item, there are many ways to do this. We shared a lot of ideas in our All-About-Sports Newsletter that would also work well for family heritage items, but there are still many more. If you have something special in your family, or want to start a keepsake to pass along, take a look at some of our completed projects below or head back to our last newsletter to get some ideas. If you don’t see exactly what you’re looking for, bring in your items and we’ll be glad to help with your project.

John Colter Restaurant Menus

In 1803 Meriwether Lewis personally recruited John Colter as a member of the Corps of Discovery. After leaving Kentucky and traveling with Lewis and Clark to the Pacific and back, Colter set out on his own to further explore the Rocky Mountains, establishing himself as the first American "mountain man."  Upon returning from the mountains, John later joined Nathan Boone's Rangers to fight against the British in the War of 1812.

Colter's life was filled with adventures and stories. But, outside of "The Colter Stone" at Grand Teton National Park Museum and some military pay records in the National Archives, there are no surviving possessions or artifacts that can be traced to him. A descendent salvaged a menu from a 1960 trip to the John Colter Grill in the Grand Teton Visitor Center, and another from a later trip to the same restaurant in 1996. Now appropriately framed, this set of menus commemorates the family's ancestral link to a historic American explorer.   

The Doughboy

It was supposed to be the war to end all wars. For three years the United States resisted getting drawn into the conflict “over there”, but in April of 1917, after being repeatedly provoked and threatened, the U.S. entered the raging conflict. Ships carried 10,000 “doughboys” a day across the Atlantic Ocean to fight in Europe.

Eventually 4.3 million Americans would serve their country in The Great War. One of them was a young Minnesotan named Kenneth Tyler. Almost a century later, Corporal Tyler’s family is still proud of his service.  By framing this collection of beautiful photographs and his original dog tags, they have preserved his memory to pass on to future generations. And for those who are interested, that would be a Harley Davidson 17J that Tyler is piloting.

Seashell Shadowbox

As a young girl Cindy loved going on vacations to her aunt’s house. On these visits she would always marvel at a collection of sea shells kept in a box. Her aunt knew how much the shells meant to her and when she was gone the collection was passed along to Cindy.

Cindy kept the shells in a box for many years. After a move from St. Louis to Lakeville, Cindy was decorating her new home. One day while she was at Fastframe of Lakeville having some pictures framed, she noticed how objects could be made into artwork using shadowboxes. She decided this would be a perfect way to complete her decorating, enjoy the collection, and honor her aunt. So with the help of the Fastframe staff, a set of shadowboxes was developed to preserve her treasures. Cindy picked out rich fabrics to surround the shells, complement their colors, and create a natural background. The collection is now on display in Cindy’s home for all of her visitors to see and enjoy with her. The image shown here is one of the two smaller cases.

Frame and Glass Repair

With family heirlooms that are passed down, you might need a frame repaired or glass replaced. Each piece has its own requirements, so it’s usually best to have a professional inspect it to avoid additional or incidental damage to your art. Here are some things to know about frame and glass repair before you take them in for work.

Factory-Framed Art

This type of art is more commonly known as pre-framed art. This would include any frame or artwork that is mass produced on a production line. These types of frames tend to be a lower cost option initially but do pose some problems if a repair is needed. This style of framing is assembled in a permanent manner that is not intended to be taken apart once put together. The way components are fastened together makes a cost effective product but one that is labor intensive for disassembling. Due to the amount of labor to take apart the frame, the cost of repairing damage or replacing components, such as mats, may exceed the original cost of the item.

Gallery Framed Art

Gallery framed art includes a variety of cut-to-size and custom frames that can be made in a number of assembly methods. This type of framing can also vary widely in quality so some of the pieces are put together in a way that makes it easy to disassemble for repairs while others are made more economically and have the same repair challenges as factory-framed art. The best way to know for sure is to bring it in and have a professional inspect how the piece was assembled.

Glass Cleaning

Cleaning previously used glass is labor intensive. Artwork not framed to museum standards emits acidic gases that, over time, leave a residue on the inside of the glass. In addition, dirt is likely to build up on the outside. If glass replacement is not needed during a framing repair it is likely that an extensive glass cleaning will be required in order to reuse the glass.

At Fastframe of Lakeville we are happy to look at any piece that may need repair or replacement, and work through the options for preserving the artwork. We ask customers to read and sign our repair and replacement policy before committing to any repair work. This policy is listed here and includes some risks that owners of the artwork should be aware of prior to beginning a repair or replacement project:

We take great care with all artwork brought into our shop and will work closely with you to understand your project. If you have any questions about our policy, or about a repair or replacement, please call or visit us.

New Offerings

We have some new offerings we’d like to share. Take a look below and see how these exciting new items can create pizazz to your next piece.

We are really happy to announce the availability of Fine Art Restoration Services to our customers. Our restoration specialist, Veronica Megits, learned her craft studying and working with fine art restoration masters for 5 years in Italy. Veronica is also an artist who has traveled and painted throughout Europe. She works with old or damaged art and handles issues from cleaning to canvas repair. For art restoration projects, please call for an appointment.

We also offer Digital Restoration for photos and printed materials. Kerry Peterson is our digital restoration specialist. He works wonders giving new life to old photographic images and documents. He can make a faded portrait look like the day it was taken. He has the ability to remove damage from an image, add color, rebuild missing sections, and create a number of special effects. Kerry can review your project with you at our shop and return the finished project within days.

Compo Corners

Ornamentation on decorative frames is created by applying a clay-like compound, known as compo, to a base of wood. A one-of-a-kind frame with a continuous compo design is truly beautiful but can be extremely expensive. Creating long sticks of frame moulding that can be cut to the proper size for a custom framing job helps control costs but there is a break in the design where the frame meets at the corners. The resulting frame is still very attractive, just not at the same level as an entirely handmade frame.

An alternative is the addition of compo corners. Compo corners achieve the end result of a hand finished, artisan created custom sized frame without the cost generally associated with this look. Fastframe of Lakeville now offers this alternative when artwork requires special presentation. Stop in and inspect our samples of this custom technique.

Mat Liners

We encourage you to stop in and see our mat liner examples because a picture just does not do it justice.

A mat will complement the colors of your art work and a liner provides depth and texture using rich fabrics. Our wrapped mat liners do both. The result is a level of elegance you won’t believe.

 

* New and Unique *
Corporate Identity Frames

For a company that wants to make an impression, we can now create frames displaying your company’s logo or artwork.

Frames are available in black on black or in full color. The black on black variation is really impressive. These frames can be used for brand building, decorating a corporate facility or employee recognition.

While we cannot create just one or two of these frames, the quantity threshold is low and the cost is really reasonable. Stop in for an up-close look at this amazing new product that you will not see anywhere else.

Examples & Ideas

We’d like to invite you to look at our newly updated Examples and Ideas section of our website. We think you’ll really enjoy reading the stories and seeing the pictures.

Final Note

We really do appreciate your continued support and look forward to a great year in 2012!

Don't forget to Follow Us on Facebook! See photos of some of our unique framing jobs and periodic updates from the store.

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