Re: William Morris Textiles

["Mary W. Ballard" <BallardM@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

You may wish to contact Lynda Hillyer, head of textile conservation at the Victoria & Albert Museum. Also, Linda Parry who is (was?) the curator there involved with the Morris textiles has written several books on the subject. Best wishes, Mary Ballard

>>> joan_marshall@xxxxxxxxxxxx 01/28/99 11:53PM >>>
I need information from anyone who has done cleaning and/or other conservation of William Morris textiles.  I am trying to make some decisions about the cleaning and repair of a set of silk and wool Jacquard weave cotton lined curtains.  The pattern is Dove and Rose.  There are holes and abraded areas; the lining is heavy, water stained and discoloured overall; the silk is weak with areas of loss; and the curtains reek of tobacco smoke.

If anyone has treated any similar Morris textiles, I would be interested in their experience.  I want to know if any precedent has been established in their treatment.  Simply put, I would like to remove the lining in order to save the textile.  In fact, I'd like to keep the fabric lining as as far away as possible from the curtain fabric!  I have only minimal information about the curtain provenance; I know where the fabric was woven and where the curtains were hung, but not where the curtains were made.

If anyone has dealt with a similar dilemma, I would like to hear about it.

Thanks,
Joan Marshall