How to handle beaded vintage textiles

I’ve talked about the importance of washing and completely drying my hands before handling pieces like this if white cotton gloves are not available but what next?

With this specific dress, I am aware that each time I unpack her and pull her out, she will lose beads. Each time I wear this dress she dies just a little. With this in mind, she rarely sees the daylight.

When a special occasion arises where I do unpack her I do it exactly this way each time. I only take out pieces like this when I have help taking it out, putting it on, shooting, taking it off and storing it.

1- wash and thoroughly dry my hands

2- look around to be sure all animals are out of the room

3- clean and organize area

4- completely clear off your table or surface to lay out your beaded garment

5- lay down white cotton fabric, a clean dry sheet works just fine. This sheet will catch any beads that fall off in the process

6- I wash and dry my hands again with a white towel. put on white cotton gloves if available and gently pull it out of the archival box without unfolding it. Set it down on the white sheet and unfold gently from the archival fabric and tissue it stays wrapped in and gently slowly lay it out.

7- my helper (usually Haley or Jeremy) will help me get into it gently

8- during shoot or event I use extreme caution in moving the dress. My movements stay slow and extremely intentional. If I start to sweat, I remove garment immediately until I cool down. I never shoot vintage in extreme weather conditions that make me sweat for long. Even on stage, I wear my rare vintage for as little time as possible. My routines are about 3-5 minutes then I immediately remove and pack it away. The tissue paper draws moisture away from the garment and helps stabilize the beads so the garment doesn’t move at all. These type of garments need stability in storage.

9- I have help taking her off, collecting loose beads, returning her to her tissue paper, white cotton sheet and archival box.

I do not hang her for long periods of time, definitely not for weeks or months. That would stress the thread too much. Nor do I expose her to much light. I keep her in my vintage closet which is a cute little one bedroom apartment in Illinois that is climate controlled. I keep insurance on that apartment just in case. It’s important to keep insurance as your collection grows.