Hope Chest Housekeeping - Physical Stress on Fabric

Physical stress. As I mentioned before, physical folding is probably the greatest cause of distress for stored fabric over time. Fibers are weakened at the point of the crease. But, as folding is also necessary, some techniques can be used to reduce this stress.

Acid-free tissue paper can be used inside the folds to prevent creases from forming. If possible, every so often, folded textiles can be removed from storage and refolded in different directions to allow for a more even wear on the piece. The fabrics will also suffer from the physical weight of stacking, increasing the likelihood of sharp creases. Rotating the stack as you examine and refold the stored items will help relieve this pressure on any one piece.

For smaller pieces, rolled storage is the best option. Wrap a discarded paper towel tube (or a wrapping paper tube) with aluminum foil, covering the cardboard completely. This prevents the fabric from making contact the acidic cardboard. Roll the textile around the tube and tie with a wide flat ribbon.

Hope Chest Housekeeping - Climate

Climate. Heat and humidity also cause deterioration to fabrics. We cannot adopt climate control as the museums do, but we can keep the hope chest within our normal household conditions, where extremes in temperature or humidity won't cause damage over time.

Find a good place within your home to store your hope chest treasures Look for space in a spare bedroom or closet where the household climate is more consistent and less extreme. Avoid the attic, garage or basement if possible.

Within the hope chest itself, textiles should never be sealed in plastic, which may promote the growth of mold or mildew. Mildew and mold will stain and weaken the fibers of the fabric. We live in a very dry climate so humidity isn't a problem for me. Silica gel crystals may help in humid climates, but these crystals should not be placed in direct contact with the textiles. Wrap them in an old handkerchief or place in a little muslin bag before placing in the hope chest. The bag should be checked over time to make sure the crystals are still effective.

Those of you who do live in a humid climate might have other suggestions. Please comment and help us all out.

Hope Chest Housekeeping - Pests

Pests. Pests are of obvious concern for our stored treasures because they cause significant damage if ignored. Good housekeeping helps prevent some damage and watching for infestations helps us keep on top of things.

Keep the storage container itself clean, as well as the surrounding environment. This is the best method for preventing trouble as pests are known to be attracted to a dirty environment. In all cases, chemical means of pest control, such as moth balls, really should be avoided. Chemicals are not only harmful to those who come in contact with them, but the chemicals themselves may cause damage to the very textiles we want to save. In a severe infestation, professional help could be contacted.

Various herbs have been used throughout history to help repel insect pests. The regrettable truth is that herbs are simply not as effective at deterring pests as poison is, but we do have a choice to protect our health above all else. So I use herbal sachets in the hope chest and try to change them out to keep them fresh. There is little scientific evidence to support their use, but plenty of historical precedent urges me to use them anyway!

Traditional moth herbs are southernwood, sweet annie, wormwood and tarragon. Cedar and lavender are also effective and smell lovely. Other herbs such as lemon verbena, french marigold, coriander, pyrethrum and pennyroyal are also useful in a moth sachet. Just combine any of these herbs in a loosely woven bag and place it among your linens.

Another tip to preventing pests is to practice good hope chest housekeeping. A regular routine is not only prudent but also a delight as you look in on all the beautiful things you have stored. Pests typically love darkness and close quarters, so airing your linens now and then is a good idea. This is another historical practice that still has relevance today. Open up the hope chest and pull out all the pretty things you have stored. Give them all a good shake and check the cracks and crevices for signs of damage. This disturbs any insect life and helps any infestation to be detected and dealt with. Refold the linens, changing the positions of the folds to relieve the tension on the fabric. Then refresh or replace your sachets. You are good to go for another period of time.

Hope Chest Housekeeping - Cleanliness

Cleanliness. It goes without saying that any fabric item going into storage should be clean. Our hands contain oils and acids in the skin and by the time we are finished with a project, it is soiled. It may not look dirty and we may have been careful, but we still need to clean it. Over time, these acids and oils can stain or weaken the fibers of the fabric. Dust particles can abrade the fabric. Don't store any items in the hope chest that aren't completely clean. If you do press an item before storage, don't use starch or any other additive to the fabric. Silverfish thrive on starch and other pests may be attracted to the fragrance of laundry additives like fabric softener and dryer sheets.

As you begin a project for the hope chest, always begin with clean hands. Keep your surroundings clean also. Don't eat while you work and be careful of spilled drinks. Keeping the project clean from the beginning will help avoid stains and trouble with washing later.

If appropriate, wash your project by hand in running tepid water. You could use a small amount (pea-sized) of Dawn dish soap rubbed into the palm of your hand and then squeezed gently through the fabric. I also like a product called Eucalan, a no-rinse, delicate hand wash detergent. Gently wash the item, don't scrub or scrunch. Rinse, gently but thoroughly, swishing in tepid water until no suds are noticed. Squeeze the water out, but don't wring it. Place the item on a terry towel and roll it up. Squeeze again until most of the water is removed. Place the project flat to dry. Larger projects can be machine washed as normal, but separate from regularly soiled laundry. Don't add the usual softeners.

Conservators say not to iron textiles that go into storage, but I can't help myself. I want things to look nicely finished and ironing does that. However, use the coolest iron possible and don't iron in any creases. These creases will form naturally over time, but we certainly don't need to add them in!

Be cautious with the cleanliness of other items that might be added into the hope chest. Books and especially heirlooms that are a bit grimy can soil any items that are next to it. So take precautions to clean these items or wrap them before adding them into the collection.

Hope Chest Housekeeping - The Conservation of Stored Treasures

The most important factor in the deterioration of fabric is always the surroundings or conditions in which they are stored. The physical stress of folding a textile is possibly the greatest contributing factor, but light, humidity and temperature also play a role. Pollutants such as the chemicals which may be present in the manufacture of the fabric and other damaging airborne pollutants such as cigarette smoke are also harmful to fabrics, causing discoloration or weakness in the fibers. Pests, such as moths, silverfish, carpet beetles and rodents, are another obvious threat. If we practice a little hope chest housekeeping, we can reduce the possible deterioration of our stored items.

This week I am sharing a series of posts discussing several conditions that affect the storage of linens and other items we might have in a hope chest. The first of these elements is the container itself.

A Box. In the first place, a large, strong box or container offers physical protection to all the lovely items one might collect for the hope chest. It doesn't need to be the traditional cedar chest to be useful or effective. A trunk or crate, a wooden chest of drawers, even a large opaque plastic tub would serve to physically protect the contents from the outside environment. My own hope chest was a cardboard apple box that my ingenious mother crafted to hold my things. Some further details apply for effective and safe storage of your treasured items.

Light. The fibers in fabric suffer under prolonged exposure to ultraviolet light, especially sunlight. So storing your textiles in darkness will help preserve the integrity of the fibers as well as the pretty colors. The container of your choice should be opaque to prevent fading.

Strength.  Hope chest items are heavy and, when stored together, are massively heavy. One instinctively feels that fabric is light in weight, but a stack of folded fabric is actually quite heavy. Whatever physical container you choose must be strong and able to stand up under the weight of the items you collect. Dishes, books, tools and other heavy items should be stored separately in a smaller, strong container. 

Acid. Wood, cardboard and most paper is acidic and acid is especially damaging to textiles. While a cedar chest could be helpful in deterring some pests, the wood itself is toxic especially to cotton and linen. So for maximum preservation in a long-term storage situation, textiles should not come into direct contact with wood or with regular paper such as cardboard. Our pretty textiles can be wrapped in a clean white cloth, such as an old sheet or pillowcase, or in a common muslin bag to help protect them from the staining that can occur if they lay next to an acidic surface. I have made pretty wrappings for Miss Abigail's textiles to help organize them in sets and to protect them from acid within her wooden hope chest.

Miss Abigail has a traditional hope chest in the form of a wooden box. However, it is nontraditional in that is is not made of cedar wood. When I asked our son to build Abby's chest I specifically asked him not to use cedar. Cedar does work to repel bugs in wool fiber, but it also yellows and actually deteriorates fabric over time and it can be truly lethal to photographs. Pine is a wood with resins that repel bugs also, it is just not as strong as cedar. So Cameron made Abby's box with pine.

Abigail also has an "auxilary" hope chest. This is a sturdy, antique wooden chest of drawers that I purchased at the estate sale of a dear friend. It can serve Abby as a nice piece of practical furniture in her future home. Two other large plastic tubs hold additional items and various cardboard boxes are in closets around the house.

So, a cardboard box is not ideal because it is not as strong and is acidic. A plastic tote is not ideal because it out-gases and traps humidity. Even a cedar chest, or other wooden chest is not ideal because it also is acidic and, over time, stains and damages the very fabric it is designed to protect. But much in our life is not ideal right? We simply recognize that we are not a museum and are limited to what we can do within a household. We can also remember that the items we create will serve an everyday purpose within a limited number of years, in spite of stains and damage. But there are ways that we can lessen the effects of time through good housekeeping and smart storage.

So stay tuned for more in this series discussing smart storage. Cleanliness. Climate. Pests. Physical Stress.