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Restoring the Elegance of Trapunto Whitework Quilts

4/10/2018

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Four trapunto quilts arrived at Museum Textile Services this winter for conservation. Three belong to Hammond-Harwood House of Annapolis, MD, and a fourth is being donated to the New England Quilt Museum, in Lowell, MA. These wonderful examples beautifully showcase this historic style of quilting that was popular in America in the mid-nineteenth century. The quilts varied in condition, but were all treated in a similar way and exhibit a wide spectrum of this style of whitework.
Trapunto quilting is also known historically as stuffed quilting, whitework quilting, or corded quilting. The names accurately describe the technique used to make these labor intensive quilts; trapunto in Italian means "to embroider," and in Latin it means "to prick with a needle." In this quilting technique, 2 to 3 layers of cotton or linen fabric are sandwiched and sewn together. Once sewn together, the artist would hand quilt or embroider a design over the entire quilt. Many of these designs were available as a pattern, or could be created completely by the artist.  
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Example of trapunto quilting. Photo courtesy of Glen Haven Historical Society, New York.
Similar to other textile art such as mourning pictures, images quilted in these such as urns, cornucopias and flowers hold symbolic meaning and can tell a story. Traditionally, the threads would be moved aside with a needle from the back of the quilt and tiny amounts of stuffing or cording was pushed into the voids made by the quilting pattern. This created a raised effect that was beautiful, yet subtle. Once an area was stuffed to satisfaction, the threads at the back that had been moved aside are again worked back together to make the entry area invisible. ​One of the Hammond-Harwood House trapunto quilts has a more delicate backing fabric, which allowed it to be more easily stuffed.
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Detail of trapunto quilt made by Elizabeth North, after conservation and bleaching. Image by MTS.
This style of quilting is believed to have originated in Sicicly in the the 14th century, and continued to be popular across Italy and Europe through the 18th century.  Immigrants brought the technique to America with them and it enjoyed popularity from the early 19th century, peaking mid-century. It became less common by the 20th century, as it was so time consuming and the country was being vastly changed by the industrial revolution. The trapunto quilt belonging to a private collector is a fine example of one made in America in 1823 and prominently has the name “Elizabeth North” across the top, possibly having been made for her as a wedding gift.  It also features two urns of flowers and an overflowing cornucopia of flowers.
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Damage to this trapunto quilt clearly shows the thin backing fabric through which the cotton batting was originally stuffed. Image by MTS.
​The three quilts that we conserved at MTS underwent similar treatment, a process of wetcleaning and bleaching with the reductive bleaching agent, sodium borohydride (NaBH4). Wetcleaning cotton and linen fibers with the addition of a sodium borohydride bath is beneficial both visually and chemically, resulting in healthier and brighter artifacts. Sodium borohydride cannot be used on protein fibers—such as silk and wool—because they are naturally acidic and the sodium borohydride solution is alkaline (approximately pH 10). 
As cellulosic textiles age, hydroxyl groups (-OH) are converted to carbonyl groups (=O), which contribute to a dingy brown or yellow color. The chemical process known as reduction adds electrons to the cellulose fibers, stabilizing their molecular weight and returning carbonyl groups back to colorless hydroxyl groups. The combination of dissolved soils and cellulosic degradation often turn the wash bath the color of strong tea. The reaction of the sodium borohydride with water is also produces hydrogen gas bubbles, and the bath may give off a smell reminiscent of sulfur or chlorine. It is important to agitate the sodium borohydride wash bath regularly to allow all sides of the textile to come in contact with the surface of the water where the chemical reaction is taking place. Especially dirty whitework quilts receive additional baths with a solution of the anionic surfactant Orvus, before being rinsed and air dried under a cotton wicking cloth.  ​
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Detail of Elizabeth North quilt, after conservation and bleaching. Image by MTS.
Cleaning discolored textiles is always rewarding, and restoring the legibility of these three-dimensional trapunto quilts is no exception. Viewers will enjoy seeing the results of conservation when the quilts are exhibited in their museums.
​
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Sarah Uhlendorf Stebulis is a former registrar, curator, and museum director. She was also Assistant Administrator for the Lowell Historic Board and Office Manager for Preservation Worcester. Sarah continues to provide freelance collections cataloging for private collectors, and is excited to return to her textile conservation training. 
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Bleach Season at MTS

5/31/2016

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​We have been bleaching and wet cleaning a variety of textiles this spring at Museum Textile Services, including christening gowns, wedding gowns, coverlets, lace, and embroideries. Our favorite method employs the reductive bleaching agent sodium borohydride (NaBH4). Wetcleaning cotton and linen fibers with the addition of a sodium borohydride bath is beneficial both visually and chemically, resulting in healthier and brighter artifacts. Sodium borohydride cannot be used on protein fibers—such as silk and wool—because they are naturally acidic and the sodium borohydride solution is alkaline (approximately pH 10).
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Christening gown, before bleaching.
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Christening gown, after bleaching and blocking.
​As cellulosic textiles age, hydroxyl groups (-OH) are converted to carbonyl groups (=O), which contribute to a dingy brown or yellow color. The chemical process known as reduction adds electrons to the cellulose fibers, stabilizing their molecular weight and returning carbonyl groups back to colorless hydroxyl groups. The combination of dissolved soils and cellulosic degradation often turn the wash bath the color of strong tea. The reaction of the sodium borohydride with water is also produces hydrogen gas bubbles, and the bath may give off a smell reminiscent of sulfur or chlorine. It is important to agitate the wash bath regularly to allow all sides of the textile to come in contact with the surface of the water where the chemical reaction is taking place.
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Coverlet before bleaching (left) and after bleaching (right). Courtesy of Adams National Historical Park.
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Paragon embroidery after bleaching.
Remarkably, sodium borohydride is a color safe way to bleach cellulosic textiles. Along with many white coverlets and quilts, we have bleached embroideries and samplers that have a linen or cotton ground and multi colored cotton thread. First, we test the color fastness of the colored threads. If there is dye bleed, the object is not a good candidate for full immersion wet cleaning. We have also had success bleaching a white rayon wedding dress from 1947. Rayon is a synthetically produced cellulosic fiber with a naturally high pH just like cotton, linen, and other plant fibers.
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Coverlet, before bleaching. Courtesy Adams National Historical Park.
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Coverlet, after bleaching. Courtesy Adams National Historical Park.
If you are a textile conservator with experience in wet cleaning and bleaching historic artifacts, you may be interested in our MTS Handout, Bleaching Textiles with Sodium Borohydride, available on the MTS website.
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Morgan Carbone has a BA in Art History from Grinnell College. She recently finished her Master of Arts degree in Fashion and Textile Studies at the Fashion Institute of Technology.
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Conservation Bleaching with NaBH4

6/27/2013

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By Jen Nason and Camille Myers Breeze

One of the procedures regularly practiced at Museum Textile Services is the science of wetcleaning.  We use the term “science” because it truly is just that.
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Knit bedspread before sodium borohydride treatment.
Many textile conservation labs like Museum Textile Services use a deionized water system.  Although water alone is a strong cleaning agent, we may also employ a mild surfactant (similar to soap) to encourage additional soil removal. Occasionally we will also use bleach to improve the appearance of discolored textiles.
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Knit bedspread after sodium borohydride treatment.
The favorite method of bleaching at MTS employs the reductive bleaching agent sodium borohydride (NaBH4). Other methods, such as chlorine bleaching, are oxidative processes. Sodium borohydride can only be used on cellulosic fibers, such as cotton and linen, because it is very alkaline and can damage naturally acidic fibers like wool and silk.  
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Christening dress before sodium borodydride treatment.
As cellulose ages, hydroxyl groups (-OH) are converted to carbonyl groups (=O), which contribute to a dingy brown or yellow color. Reduction adds electrons to the cellulose, which stabilizes its molecular weight and returns carbonyl groups back to colorless hydroxyl groups. Stains are not generally removed with the addition of sodium borohydride but the overall results are better than wetcleaning with surfactant alone. Remarkably, sodium borohydride is color safe when used at its proper strength, and MTS has safely bleached many embroideries, patchwork quilts, and other colored cellulose textiles

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Christening dress after sodium borohydride treatment.
Whether or not you appreciate the science behind conservation, the results of our recent sodium borohydride treatments are quite impressive. The textiles seen here are noticeably brighter without looking over-cleaned. Most importantly, their preservation levels have been improved with a minimum of risk.
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Museum Textile Services, LLC

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978.474.9200
  • About MTS
    • Our Team
    • Contact
    • Client List
    • Press Room
  • Textile Conservation
    • Architectural Interiors
    • Asian Art
    • Ethnographic Textiles
    • Flags & Banners
    • Historic Clothing
    • Quilts and Coverlets
    • Samplers & Embroideries
    • Sports Memorabilia
    • Tapestries
  • Collections Care
    • Vac & Pack
    • Surveys
    • Disaster Response
  • Education
    • LL
    • Porto
    • C3 >
      • C3 readings
    • HPRH
    • Becoming a Textile Conservator
  • Resources
    • MTS Magazine
    • Textile Conservation Basics
    • Textile Stabilization
    • Textile Storage
    • Displaying Historic Costume
    • Displaying Flat Textiles
    • Museum Pests
    • Disaster Response
    • Advanced Topics
    • Class Readings
    • Staff Publications
    • Resources in Spanish
    • MTS Videos and Slide Shows
  • Blog
  • Andover Figures™
    • Our Mission
    • The Andover Figures System
    • Choosing a Form
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