You could buy a longer frame (like this one from Ikea http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/20243540/) and have a mat cut to fit the frame/fabric at your local craft store wich will run you $5-$15. All and all not bad for a "customized" frame.

No need for a custom frame. Just hie yourself to your local frame superstore, find a frame you like, mount your fabric to a piece of mat board, and cut a mat for it.

If you make the mat several thicknesses the fabric won't be pressed against the glass. Make sure your frame is deep enough to accommodate the thickness of the mats.

You could stitch it to a neutral background fabric, like raw linen or undyed cotton, and stretch that over a board that fits into the frame you want to use.

framesbymail.com is who I use for custom stuff. Check out the economy and value frames if you want something cheaper. I've always found them very affordable.

All good ideas. I too have used framesbymail - good option. I like the idea of exposing the fabric on a canvas best though.

I am a cheapskate when it comes to framing. My father-in-law was an eccentric hippie who wore lots of beaded necklaces. He recently passed away and we wanted to frame his favorite necklace. This is what I did to display the necklace. I can imagine it working well for your fabric pieces too:

1. Purchase an inexpensive frame that is quite a bit larger than your piece. (You want room for your sample piece to standout, for it to float on a nice background with a generous border between the work and the frame.)

2. Remove the glass from the frame and recycle it or save for something else.

3. Place on the backboard cotton batting; lay over the batting a nice piece of solid color background fabric.

4. Push the background board into the frame - the frame sandwiches the fabric and batting in place.

5. Pull the fabric as tight as you like to make a nice smooth though ever so slightly pillowing surface and trim off the extra fabric so it doesn't pop out from behind the frame.

6. Either use tiny sewing pins pushed all the way down to tack your fabric samples to the stuffed background, or tack them in place with a tiny stitch.

The nice thing about not having glass is that you can really see the 3-D nature of your adorned fabric. To dust you can either carefully use a lint roller or the lowest setting on a vacuum if you have a hose attachment tiny enough so it won't suck up the work.

Buy an inexpensive frame and use either a piece of fabric or thick wrapping paper as your 'background' or mat.
I've done this with surprisinly great results.
Experiment with what others have suggested until you get the look you like. You don't need to custom frame this...
Best of luck and show us your wall of 'fabric' once you're done.

these are great ideas! my grandmother was a ladies maid and her employers would give her bits of lace and beading that I still have.

i have 2 molas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mola_%28art_form%29) that i stitched onto fabric and put in cheap ready made frames. i sewed a very thin striped grosgrain ribbon along edges of the molas to give them a more finished look.

frame a piece of black velvet in a frame a good amt bigger than the piece, don't use the glass. pin the strip to the velvet with attractive pins

my sister swears by wire skirt hangers, but I prefer to let the fabric speak for itself. Several discretely placed safety pins (on the horizontal) with some small clear 3M wall hooks. No frame/finishing required.