Hickory and Exotics
Several years ago, I started making picture frames for the cabin with a ½” inlay in the 1 ½” wide hickory frame. I created the inlay with maple, padauk, and wenge. Padauk is the orange color, wenge is the black, and maple is white. It created a classy look for a simple frame, and it was actually pretty easy to make. I have another article on creating the inlay, so I won’t repeat myself here. After the inlay is created, build the frame to the size you need — while that sounds easy, it’s sometimes difficult to cut a perfect 90-degree miter, so take your time with that so you can build a perfectly square picture frame. Install a ½” dado blade in your table saw and set it for a fraction less than the depth of your inlay and ½” from your fence. Using a push pad, cut the dado in all four sides of your frame. Then cut perfect angles on your inlay for the corners and glue it in. I used some calls and several small clamps to hold it in place until it was dry. I then used a random orbital sander and brought the inlay flush to the frame. Put in a backer board and DONE!