This could be such a sim- ple story. Long time Middleburg picture framer Bill Waller, has moved his business to his home in Hume, from the space he oc- cupied since the late 1990's at 9 South Madison Street. End of story. Well, not so quick.

This story is really about a man's life. One who yes, is a very well known and respected master picture framer, but is just so, so much more. Waller is encyclope- dic when it comes to not only his trade of framing, but art history itself. His volumes of knowledge carry just as deeply into garden- ing, musical instruments, [espe- cially the guitar and banjo] and the list deeply goes on. He has a passionate appetite for not only things handmade, but even the tools that made them, and pos- sesses collections of the things he loves. His home is in a sense then, his museum and he, the cu- rator of it. It's an endless archive and Waller has not just moved his business home, he has more accurately, repositioned himself where his business really has been for 16 years.

Bill Waller has been a fram- er for over 46 years. He studied painting at the Corcoran, and cut his teeth in places like The Phil- lips Collection as a docent, while framing for many frame shops in the city, before going into busi- ness for himself in 1969. Now 67 and 8 location changes later, Waller is where he really wants to be, home.

Waller's shop at 11600 Hume Road, in Hume, is earthy and full of character. It looks like a place of a million stories and Bill is more than happy to share them. His right hand man and friend, Argentinean born Coto, is hand building a client's frame in the corner, surrounded by tools and the atmospheric sound of Chris Issak speaking volumes. Bill will tell you he and Coto are a team. He also says Coto is the best framer he's ever had and backs this up by saying,"I've had 50 over the years."

Waller is a quiet, simple man. You can sense when a per- son is happy. You can also tell when a person has a sense of place, and today Waller truly has both. He gives me a tour of his three acres, of which with excep- tion to his home, shop and barn, is all garden [mostly vegetable]. He one by one, points out and names the nearly 200 trees of every imaginable variety, he has planted. I could only imagine the abundance of food netted from this miniature farm and past his personal consumption and shar- ing with friends, the rest is a charitable endeavor of feeding those without. An honorable path indeed.

Wallers father worked for Bell & Howell, writing at 55 and living to be 95. But he went to the art Institute of Chicago, was an artist himself and constantly made things, many of which are found throughout Bill's home. You can tell Bill is a chip of the old block, pun intended. His mother lived to be a centennial and was cre- ative in her own right, giving Bill both the parental foundation and genes for long life and happiness.

Back in the shop, we look at not only the tools of the trade, but at the fascinating history of the tools of the trade. "Coto and I are the same, it's all about es- thetics.", he shares, as he shows me a 1929 screwdriver he uses, "That's a beautiful thing", he says. This carries through into the work they perform by using hand milled molding instead of factory made molding and then hand painting, gilding, compo or carving each frame, thus making the shop's work unique among regional framers.

But some may think Waller Picture Framing is only a place for multi-thousand dollar, hand- made frames, for million dollar works of art. Yes, certainly they cater to this clientele, but Bill happily says, "We still do needle- point and high school diplomas, we're the people's framer, we're not exclusive…"

In the end, Bill seriously kids that he's not a modern technology guy by saying,"I live in the 10th century." This is his way of really saying he doesn't email much and still prefers to talk on the phone or even more so, face to face, and customers need only call 540-364-6100 to come by. It's a scenic drive and who knows, if you're timing is right, you maybe be leaving with some produce too!