Friday, May 10, 2013

A Wrinkle in Time


Our two steampunk costumes have been waiting patiently for their exhibit debut. In case you missed it, I previously showed a sneak peek of the dresses and Deb's repair work. By putting them on dress forms a few weeks ahead of time, the dresses can begin to relax their wrinkles.
Today we are giving them a little extra help.



Deb, following the advice of the textile conservator at Midwest Arts Conservation Center in Minneapolis,  brought a new Ultrasonic cool humidifier. Using a long tube we can direct the "steam" to parts of the dress that need attention. The silk dress has not lost its wrinkles from being stored in acid-free box storage, even though acid-free tissue used to soften the folds.




"Steam" reaches the tube's end and not only gently de-wrinkles the fabric without harming it, but also adds some needed moister back into the delicate fabric.  The process takes a while, but the results are worth it.

Deb and I are both excited to display these fantastic dresses.

No comments:

Post a Comment