Archiving Clothes

Another item that is often in many archives are items of clothing, and Saint Stanislaus is no exception. Many of the items in the school’s possession have been donated by alum or parents of alumni; however, there are a few items that belong to the school, such as a small collection of older cheerleader sweaters, that looked as if they have never been worn.

The first step in archiving clothing or items made of some form of textile material, is to determine, if possible, what type of cloth (fabric) of which the item was made. Cellulose fibers such as cotton, flax, and linen can be stored using buffered storage units or paper. Protein-based materials include wool and silk should be stored in unbuffered papers and containers.

Most of the items fell into one of the two classifications; however, there were a few items such as letterman jackets and band uniforms which were made of assorted materials thus were stored in unbuffered storage boxes for the time until further information was provided.

Gaylord Resource/Preservation Page: http://www.gaylord.com/resources/textile-and-garment-preservation