OT sort of...acid free paper

25 years ago my sister stitched up Jean McIntosh's "Large Tea Roses"
http://www.jeanmcintosh.com/cat_items/m133.html
for my mom. I do now know where she had it framed, and since she passed
on shortly afterward, I'll never know. But this picture is backed
(outside of frame) with some sort of brown paper, and my sister wrote a
bible verse on this paper. Well after several years, the paper is now
crumbling and the ink is fading. It's heartbreaking for my mom.

Does anyone know if acid free paper would last longer than other papers?
I am working on my family tree and would like to stitch decorative
borders around each family member's photo, and write the information
that is known about each member on the back of their picture. But since
there are over 100 members now, I don't want to lose the information
that took so many years to accumulate. Since these photos will probably
be handled frequently by other family members, I'd like to know the best
way to protect the stitching and the writing. Any ideas? Maybe I could
seal them all in resin? Just kidding!

Maureen In Vancouver, B.C.

I have an essay on my site written by Sarah Lowengard (a conservation
expert) that says in part:

4. If you are interested in investigating storage materials that are
made for the library museum industry, there are many reputable suppliers
in the US. Three well-known, large firms are Light Impressions,
University Products, and Gaylord. All have a web presence, and all have
a customer service department that will answer your questions and can
make recommendations. I believe all have information sheets or pamphlets
about storage or care of materials that they distribute freely. If you
want more information about museum concerns, procedures, and standards,
as well as museum suppliers, there is a website located at Conservation
OnLine (CoOL). The URL is: http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/

I hope this information is helpful to you. Although the essay has to do
with using paper products with embroidery, the point made above is
probably pertinent to your search.
Dianne

Maureen Miller wrote:
25 years ago my sister stitched up Jean McIntosh's "Large Tea Roses"
http://www.jeanmcintosh.com/cat_items/m133.html
for my mom. I do now know where she had it framed, and since she passed
on shortly afterward, I'll never know. But this picture is backed
(outside of frame) with some sort of brown paper, and my sister wrote a
bible verse on this paper. Well after several years, the paper is now
crumbling and the ink is fading. It's heartbreaking for my mom.

Does anyone know if acid free paper would last longer than other papers?
I am working on my family tree and would like to stitch decorative
borders around each family member's photo, and write the information
that is known about each member on the back of their picture. But since
there are over 100 members now, I don't want to lose the information
that took so many years to accumulate. Since these photos will probably
be handled frequently by other family members, I'd like to know the best
way to protect the stitching and the writing. Any ideas? Maybe I could
seal them all in resin? Just kidding!

Maureen In Vancouver, B.C.





--
"The Journal of Needlework" - The E-zine for All Needleworkers
http://journal.heritageshoppe.com

Maureen Miller wrote:

25 years ago my sister stitched up Jean McIntosh's "Large Tea Roses"
http://www.jeanmcintosh.com/cat_items/m133.html
for my mom. I do now know where she had it framed, and since she passed
on shortly afterward, I'll never know. But this picture is backed
(outside of frame) with some sort of brown paper, and my sister wrote a
bible verse on this paper. Well after several years, the paper is now
crumbling and the ink is fading. It's heartbreaking for my mom.

Does anyone know if acid free paper would last longer than other papers?
I am working on my family tree and would like to stitch decorative
borders around each family member's photo, and write the information
that is known about each member on the back of their picture. But since
there are over 100 members now, I don't want to lose the information
that took so many years to accumulate. Since these photos will probably
be handled frequently by other family members, I'd like to know the best
way to protect the stitching and the writing. Any ideas? Maybe I could
seal them all in resin? Just kidding!

Acid- and lignin-free paper will help. Mostly, a good 100
percent cotton rag paper and permanent ink will hold up quite
well. Most of what destroys paper over time comes from the wood
pulp fibers, which obviously aren't present in 100 percent cotton
paper.

Best wishes,
Ericka

Thanks for the help! I'll check out both references and see what I can
come up with! I might even be further ahead stitching the information
on a piece set in back of the picture.

Maureen In Vancouver, B.C.

Ericka Kammerer wrote:

Maureen Miller wrote:

25 years ago my sister stitched up Jean McIntosh's "Large Tea Roses"
http://www.jeanmcintosh.com/cat_items/m133.html
for my mom. I do now know where she had it framed, and since she
passed on shortly afterward, I'll never know. But this picture is
backed (outside of frame) with some sort of brown paper, and my sister
wrote a bible verse on this paper. Well after several years, the
paper is now crumbling and the ink is fading. It's heartbreaking for
my mom.

Does anyone know if acid free paper would last longer than other
papers? I am working on my family tree and would like to stitch
decorative borders around each family member's photo, and write the
information that is known about each member on the back of their
picture. But since there are over 100 members now, I don't want to
lose the information that took so many years to accumulate. Since
these photos will probably be handled frequently by other family
members, I'd like to know the best way to protect the stitching and
the writing. Any ideas? Maybe I could seal them all in resin? Just
kidding!


Acid- and lignin-free paper will help. Mostly, a good 100
percent cotton rag paper and permanent ink will hold up quite
well. Most of what destroys paper over time comes from the wood
pulp fibers, which obviously aren't present in 100 percent cotton
paper.

Best wishes,
Ericka

Acid- and lignin-free paper will help. Mostly, a good 100
percent cotton rag paper and permanent ink will hold up quite
well. Most of what destroys paper over time comes from the wood
pulp fibers, which obviously aren't present in 100 percent cotton
paper.

Best wishes,
Ericka

A thought: if you want to preserve your sister's handwriting, not just
the verse itself, you could try scanning the old paper and handwriting
on the computer, (you should be able to adjust the contrast to enhance
the fading ink so that it's clearly seen), then print it onto cotton
paper as Ericka mentionned.

There is a spray you can purchase that is supposed to remove acids from
papers for items already made/printed (i.e., the notes on the paper
backing your frame). It's expensive but is supposed to work well and not
make ink run, etc. It's available from Light Impressions. This may
help preserve this bit for your mom. If the backing is crumbling, if
possible I'd remove it from the frame, reback the frame, and then use
clear archival plastic to encapsulate the buffered verse and tape it
onto the new backing paper.

For your family tree, I think I'd scan the photos into the computer and
print them on acid free paper. For a big project like this it might be
worth looking into archival ink-jet inks that are available for some
printers. You could encapsulate each photo with the notes on the back
in acid free plastic and then insert them into your sampler. The
sources Dianne sent are the best. Or you could scan in the photos and
print them onto fabric and applique it onto your border fabric. You
could also type in and print your notes onto fabric, too. I've done
some of that and then used "wonder under" to iron it onto my base
fabric. There's a lot of info on this at quilting sites. Sounds like a
wonderful project. Marjorie

Maureen Miller wrote:

25 years ago my sister stitched up Jean McIntosh's "Large Tea Roses"
http://www.jeanmcintosh.com/cat_items/m133.html
for my mom. I do now know where she had it framed, and since she passed
on shortly afterward, I'll never know. But this picture is backed
(outside of frame) with some sort of brown paper, and my sister wrote a
bible verse on this paper. Well after several years, the paper is now
crumbling and the ink is fading. It's heartbreaking for my mom.

Does anyone know if acid free paper would last longer than other papers?
I am working on my family tree and would like to stitch decorative
borders around each family member's photo, and write the information
that is known about each member on the back of their picture. But since
there are over 100 members now, I don't want to lose the information
that took so many years to accumulate. Since these photos will probably
be handled frequently by other family members, I'd like to know the best
way to protect the stitching and the writing. Any ideas? Maybe I could
seal them all in resin? Just kidding!

Maureen In Vancouver, B.C.