Aja L. Bain
what are best practices for handling and storing textiles?
Handling
Textiles need careful handling, especially older ones. Remove anything you're wearing that could catch or snag fibers (i.e., jewelry), and use clean hands or gloves to move or pack items. Avoid unnecessary handling and stress on the item, including prolonged light exposure and rough cleaning. Cleaning in general can do more harm than good, and should be undertaken only with the advice of a conservator. The safest way to clean the surface of a textile is to carefully vacuum it through a screen. Labels should never be adhered to textiles, but can be sewn carefully into a seam or tied on with a tag.
Storage
To avoid damage, textiles need to be stored in a controlled environment in a specific way. Conservators recommend a temperature range of 60 - 70 degrees Farenheit and a relative humidity of 40 - 60%.
The ideal way to store textiles is flat, with clothing and three-dimensional items padded appropriately to hold their shape.
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If the textile is too large to be stored flat, it can be rolled around a cardboard tube covered with acid-free tissue paper and covered with tissue, Tyvek, or another stable material and tied loosely with twill tape.
Another option is carefully folding the item (with padding to prevent sharp creases) and packing it in tissue paper inside acid-free archival boxes.
