belated thanks, and new question

First, belated thanks for the group's help with my two
recent questions. I found the suggestion for how to deal
with Facets by tying a thread to it and pulling it through
the canvas to be most helpful -- my idea about using a needle
with a large eye was way off base. On attaching an
embellishment, I had to give up but luckily found a bat button
with a shank to pull through my canvas, so that ended well, too.

Now for the new question. The Episcopal Cathedral here in Omaha
is working on a project of needlepoint kneelers. They're about
half way through and it will be over a year before they finish
the rest of the stitching and send them off to be made into
the kneelers. They are attached to scroll frames now. Their
question is -- what's the best way to store the finished
canvases for the next year? Should they stay rolled up on the
scroll frames or be flat? Enclosed in air tight plastic bags or
allowed to "breathe"? All advice appreciated. TIA.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Katherine Becker "As god is my witness
I thought turkeys could fly"
NEVER SEND A FERRET TO DO A WEASEL's JOB --WKRP

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I'm not familiar with kneelers. How large are they? If you have extra
canvas around the edges, try hanging them from skirt hangers. Make sure
no moths will get to them. Drape the lot with plain muslin (hang the
muslin over the closet rod so its weight isn't directly supported by the
hangers and safety pin it shut) to keep them as dust-free as possible
until you are ready to send them off. If they are very heavy, you might
need to find stronger hangers and rotate them end-for-end periodically
so gravity doesn't pull them out of shape.

wrote:
Now for the new question. The Episcopal Cathedral here in Omaha
is working on a project of needlepoint kneelers. They're about
half way through and it will be over a year before they finish
the rest of the stitching and send them off to be made into
the kneelers. They are attached to scroll frames now. Their
question is -- what's the best way to store the finished
canvases for the next year? Should they stay rolled up on the
scroll frames or be flat? Enclosed in air tight plastic bags or
allowed to "breathe"? All advice appreciated. TIA.

--
Brenda
"Nothing...I got nothing for sale."

The Episcopal Cathedral here in Omaha is working on a project of needlepoint
kneelers.

what's the best way to store the finished canvases for the next year?

Our cathedral is partway through a humongous project like this, and whenever
they have a batch of canvases done, they are sent off to be mounted and
finished, then put into use.

P.S. Never, never NEVER store things like this in plastic.

Olwyn Mary in New Orleans.

On Mon, 30 Aug 2004 19:48:35 -0500, wrote:

The Episcopal Cathedral here in Omaha
is working on a project of needlepoint kneelers. They're about
half way through and it will be over a year before they finish
the rest of the stitching and send them off to be made into
the kneelers. They are attached to scroll frames now. Their
question is -- what's the best way to store the finished
canvases for the next year? Should they stay rolled up on the
scroll frames or be flat? Enclosed in air tight plastic bags or
allowed to "breathe"?
Get 'em off the scroll frames; those are wood and contain acid. Clean
and block, then store in acid-free containers, with acid-free tissue
between each one.

I haven't figured out how things without lungs "breathe," and how it
is that people believe that fabrics and fibers should be allowed to
"breathe" when fragile textiles are kept in airtight cases filled with
inert gasses. Color me baffled by that one.
Darla
Sacred cows make great hamburgers.

The original questioner might find the following advice from a
conservator helpful:
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/herita...servation.html
Dianne

Darla wrote:
On Mon, 30 Aug 2004 19:48:35 -0500, wrote:


The Episcopal Cathedral here in Omaha
is working on a project of needlepoint kneelers. They're about
half way through and it will be over a year before they finish
the rest of the stitching and send them off to be made into
the kneelers. They are attached to scroll frames now. Their
question is -- what's the best way to store the finished
canvases for the next year? Should they stay rolled up on the
scroll frames or be flat? Enclosed in air tight plastic bags or
allowed to "breathe"?

Get 'em off the scroll frames; those are wood and contain acid. Clean
and block, then store in acid-free containers, with acid-free tissue
between each one.

I haven't figured out how things without lungs "breathe," and how it
is that people believe that fabrics and fibers should be allowed to
"breathe" when fragile textiles are kept in airtight cases filled with
inert gasses. Color me baffled by that one.
Darla
Sacred cows make great hamburgers.

Darla wrote:


I haven't figured out how things without lungs "breathe," and how it
is that people believe that fabrics and fibers should be allowed to
"breathe" when fragile textiles are kept in airtight cases filled with
inert gasses. Color me baffled by that one.

The main concern with sealing textiles is that they
can harbor small amounts of moisture which, when sealed so
that it cannot dissipate, can grow encourage mold and
mildew. The inert gasses and the care prior to sealing
the textiles are important to prevent this from happening,
and not something one is likely to be able to do at home.

Best wishes,
Ericka

*claps* hurrah! Good work, Dianne!

I was pretty much raised to work with museum pieces, and sometimes the way
people treat their things is shocking! I ended up working a great deal with
the textiles, because the guys deemed it "woman's work"...which was fine
with me...because I enjoyed it.

I agree that the canvas pieces should be taken off the scroll frames and be
gently cleaned with _very_ mild detergent and rinsed extremely well. I'm
not too sure about blocking them, though. Since it's a work in progres,
they might well end up being blocked more then once, which might distort and
damage the piece. But then again, it might not. I'm not very sure about
it. Let air dry and store flat on museum-grade tissue paper.

Yes, they do need to breathe. Sealing them up might trap any remaining
moisture...plus any volatile chemicals still left in the fabric. Plus,
normal plastic containers release their fair share of volatiles over time as
well. Archival cardboard boxes would be the best way to go. They come in
all sizes.

Oh...and since you're going to want these pieces to last as long as
possible, I might recommend handling them with white cotton gloves after
they've been cleaned and let dry. I was on altar guild at my old church,
and the difference between things handled with gloves and without gloves was
striking after a few months had elapsed.

Wish those stichers good luck for me! Sounds like a really nice project!
Becky A.


"Dianne Lewandowski" skrev i melding
...
The original questioner might find the following advice from a
conservator helpful:
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/herita...servation.html
Dianne

Darla wrote:
On Mon, 30 Aug 2004 19:48:35 -0500, wrote:


The Episcopal Cathedral here in Omaha
is working on a project of needlepoint kneelers. They're about
half way through and it will be over a year before they finish
the rest of the stitching and send them off to be made into
the kneelers. They are attached to scroll frames now. Their
question is -- what's the best way to store the finished
canvases for the next year? Should they stay rolled up on the
scroll frames or be flat? Enclosed in air tight plastic bags or
allowed to "breathe"?

Get 'em off the scroll frames; those are wood and contain acid. Clean
and block, then store in acid-free containers, with acid-free tissue
between each one.

I haven't figured out how things without lungs "breathe," and how it
is that people believe that fabrics and fibers should be allowed to
"breathe" when fragile textiles are kept in airtight cases filled with
inert gasses. Color me baffled by that one.
Darla
Sacred cows make great hamburgers.

Becky Andresen wrote:
*claps* hurrah! Good work, Dianne!

Well . . . I just provided the "space" in cyberspace to post it - with
the blessings of the conservator who wrote it for me. Other than that,
I have nothing to do with it. :-) I just hope it helps people to make
better decisions about their needlework, and to understand that not all
products are created equally, nor should you believe everything you
read/hear, and we shouldn't think our stuff should last forever.
There's things we can do to help prolong their life, but if you stop and
think about it: kneelers aren't going to last a very long time in spite
of all the care you will give them and in spite of all the work that
went into them.

Dianne