I always think it's difficult to buy gifts for my parents, more so than any one else. For example, there are many different things I can buy for my brother, that I know he will love -computer games, any WWF merchandise, clothes etc. But, with my parents, it's a different story. You can't keep buying the same things ever year, or it just gets boring.

This year, I decided to make a present for my parents, instead of buying one, as this would make a more original gift. We have some prints at home, and I knew that my dad wanted to have them framed, but they never were. So, I thought this was what I would do. I bought two wooden frames, which were quite large, but I bought them at a good price, as they were on sale at half price. They were very boring frames, and not very attractive. But, this was why I bought them. I wanted to redecorate them, so they look more special.

The first thing I did was to buy some wood filler from Wilkinsons. Once dried, this is like wood, in that it is flexible like wood, and won’t crack, and you can sand it down. Although it doesn’t look like wood. You can paint or stain it, but I'm not sure it would look very good stained. (The Wilkinson’s own brand of wood filler is a lot cheaper than the other brands. While it looks rather grainy, it will do for my purpose) I filled in the groove in the frame, so I had a flat surface to work with. This will take about 24 hours to dry, after which the surface can be sanded down so that it is smooth.

This is the point I have now got to, so far. Now, comes the difficult part, and I need to decide on the design. I have decided to paint the frame in black enamel paint (flat), and I will then put a pattern on the surface of the frame, with either gold outliner (available from art shops) or gold paint.

For anyone who is thinking of sending photographs as a present, it would make the present even more special if you designed the frames y
ourself. I have noticed that in the shops, frames that look very original and different, are usually quite expensive, and only available from particular shops. Even if you are not very artistic, you could do something quite simple, such as paint them. It’s amazing how a coat of paint can transform something. When buying your frames however, make sure they are well made and sturdy, and then you can do what you like to them.