Tag Archives: conservation

Del Rey Dining Set: 2, Paint

Note:  Some of the changes in color are due to using two cameras and different lighting! I bought a lovely Del Rey set owned by one family, and am getting it ready to sell it. Unlike most Monterey styles, this … Continue reading

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Yves Telemak Beaded Voudo Textile: Ezilí Dantor

This beaded sequined textile by Yves Telemak was one of the most delightful projects I have worked on! Intricate folk art, with thousands of sequins and pearls each with a tiny seed bead! And the colors!  Modern art and folk … Continue reading

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Textile Conservation: Victorian Tea Cosy, 5, Beading

Continuing from our earlier post on searching for beads… This post, harder repairs. Side “A” had many more difficult repairs. Below is an example of what I shared with our client regarding the worst of her issues on the tea … Continue reading

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Textile Conservation: Victorian Tea Cosy, 4, Beading

I started on the easier side, “B” from the previous post, but now I move to the side that is far more damaged, side “A”. Note: These images are not in chronological order in this post. We will cover some … Continue reading

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Textile Conservation: Victorian Tea Cosy, 3, Beading

Continuing from our earlier post on searching for beads… The cosy has two sides, arbitrarily labeled “A” and “B” for reporting and discussion sake in the report. Some of the areas of the tea cosy have disintegrating linen warp and … Continue reading

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Textile Conservation: Victorian Tea Cosy, 2, Beads

Continuing from our earlier post… The difficulty in finding beads to match vintage beads is astounding! Clients and those creating new works are unaware that every day our commerce is trying to save cash by only stocking what is popular. … Continue reading

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Textile Conservation: Victorian Tea Cosy

We have several interesting textile projects in the studio this year, and one of the most challenging is this Victorian Tea Cosy for a private client who has generously allowed the process to be shared. There are five posts to … Continue reading

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A Folding Journal of an MPFC Project

Guest post from Kate’s Art Blog, dkatiepowellart. I don’t enter many competitions, but the Sketching Work competition for the Centre for Transformative Work Design out of Perth AU was easy for me as I sketch our lives and work quite … Continue reading

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Fu Dogs Treatment

Our client brought his small carved wooden guardian dogs to us for treatment. Pairs of Chinese guardian lion statues are decorative, symbolic elements at the entrances to structures in many Asian countries.  Each is different, and should come in. pairs, … Continue reading

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Chinese Statue Conservation Treatment

Two polychrome statues, one whose hand was previously repaired incorrectly. Both were quite dirty. Our job was to remove the poor repair, repair it correctly, and clean and stabilize the finish on both statues.   The treatment was a mixture of … Continue reading

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Sketching to Communicate with Clients

Does anyone create lovely sketches for their clients anymore? We often create amazing decorative pillows to accompany a conserved item. Kate created design sketches from images and samples, so that we could better talk with our client about ideas for … Continue reading

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Textile Conservation: Victorian Beaded Angel Needlepoint

One of the sweetest pieces we ever treated. A widow had several items conserved for the children in the family. This lovely beaded needlepoint had many condition issues: dozens of moth-eaten areas, ripped or broken canvas, a good deal of … Continue reading

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Frances Normandin’s Bell Hanger

Frances Normandin, great-grandmother to our clients, designed and created the needlework bell hanger (ca 1930-1940) as a gift for her 15-year-old son,  Fred Louis Normandin, Jr., or “Bub.”  Fred was named after his father, the first grocer in the Mount … Continue reading

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Del Rey Dining Set: 1, Cleaning

Note:  Some of the changes in color are due to using two cameras and different lighting! I bought a lovely Del Rey set owned by one family, and am getting it ready to sell it. (I forgot to photograph the … Continue reading

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Planter’s Chair: 4, Reparation and Finish Work

We are properly conserving a French-made Planter’s Chair, circa 1860. (You can begin here, if you like.) We’ll follow the chair through excavation to the new show-cover. We left off in the last posting with the excavation of the seat. … Continue reading

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Planter’s Chair: 2, Excavation, Seat, Continued

We are properly conserving a French-made Planter’s Chair, circa 1860. (You can begin here, if you like.) We’ll follow the chair through excavation to the new show-cover. We left off in the last posting with the seat partially excavated. Removing … Continue reading

Posted in antiques, conservation techniques, decorative motifs, French Furniture, Interim Report, preservation, process, restoration techniques, upholstery | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Conservation of Mason Monterey Tinoco Bedside Stand

We conserved and restored a Mason Monterey side table with the charming, humorous and valuable Juan Tinoco horses on the drawer front. Our client’s budget determined our scope of work. The table top was warped, lifting on both sides from … Continue reading

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