{"id":10290,"date":"2014-06-09T10:11:34","date_gmt":"2014-06-09T15:11:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.conservators-converse.org\/?p=10290"},"modified":"2014-06-09T10:11:34","modified_gmt":"2014-06-09T15:11:34","slug":"42nd-annual-meeting-bpg-tips-session-may-30-moderated-by-emily-rainwater","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/resources.culturalheritage.org\/conservators-converse\/2014\/06\/09\/42nd-annual-meeting-bpg-tips-session-may-30-moderated-by-emily-rainwater\/","title":{"rendered":"42nd Annual Meeting: BPG Tips Session, May 30, moderated by Emily Rainwater"},"content":{"rendered":"

There were sixteen\u00a0tips presented\u00a0by twelve speakers\u00a0in this session, with a very lively question and comment period\u00a0at the end.
\n <\/p>\n

\u00a0Tip 1:\u00a0\u00a0‘Beading: A Japanese technique used to relax laminated paper’ presented by Betsy Palmer Eldridge.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\nWhen two sheets of paper have been pasted together overall, the result is a sheet that is much thicker and stiffer than the two individuals. Ms. Eldridge described her technique of using a string of beads known as ura-suri<\/a> to soften, relax, and remove cockling from the laminated paper. She forms the beads into a coil, then makes a repeated circular motion with a flat hand. During the Q&A, Rachel Freeman mentioned that marbles or\u00a0a Japanese printmaking baren<\/a> work well too.
\n <\/p>\n

\u00a0Tip 2:\u00a0\u00a0‘Quick and Easy Plexi Paste’ presented by Cher Schneider.<\/em><\/p>\n

Ms. Schneider developed this method for adhering two pieces of Plexiglas together to make mounts. Step 1: Collect Plexi shavings into a glass container. Step 2: Dissolve first in drops of acetone until it gets milky white, then add drops of toluene until it becomes transparent. Do not stir too much. Step 3: Apply to one side of the joint with a glass stir rod, then attach the other piece. Clear excess with a piece of matboard, then with a swab dampened with toluene. Step 4: Cure for 15-20 hours. Step 5: Clean glass tools by popping the dried Plexi paste right off.\u00a0She does not recommend trying to re-use dried Plexi paste. During the Q&A, John Baty suggested a bake-out to cure the paste.<\/p>\n

Tip 3:\u00a0‘Alt Training’ by Beth Doyle.<\/em><\/p>\n

After struggling with the difficulties of providing care and handling training to temporary and permanent staff and students, Beth\u00a0Doyle of Duke University Libraries figured out that using social media to make short training videos on specific topics is\u00a0a great way to reach everyone in a timely manner. The instagram<\/a> videos are 15 seconds and the youtube videos, such as this one<\/a>, are 2 minutes. If you want to make your own, she recommends using multiple paths to reach the largest audience, exploiting what each platform has to offer, reusing\u00a0and recycling clips\u00a0where possible, accepting that what you have is good enough, and keeping it short.\n<\/div>\n

\u00a0Tip\u00a04:\u00a0 ‘Studio-Lab Weight Sources’ by Stephanie Watkins.<\/em><\/p>\n

Ms. Watkins reviewed the types of weights that\u00a0conservators use, with suggestions for how to find or make your own. Because they are by nature heavy, she suggests above all that looking locally or making your own is the most cost-effective, and in the spirit of the meeting, ecologically sound. If you do have to have some weights shipped, she recommends USPS flat weight priority<\/a>. Items that have been used as weights include magnets, sewing weights, scuba, exercise and fishing weights, car tire balancing weights, glass scraps, paperweights, flat irons, shoe anvils, weights manufactured by conservation suppliers, hand-crafted weights, scrap metal, and heavy items from freecycle<\/a>. Home-made weight fillings include\u00a0ball bearings, BB\u00a0shot, coins, stones, sand, glass, beads\u00a0and\u00a0beans. Modifications can include polishing, covering, and adding smooth boards, felts, handles, and fabric. Form follows function, so determine the size and shape needed, then look around to see what is available.
\nI\u00a0commented on this tip to add that a friend who sometimes has to travel out of the lab to\u00a0do conservation work on-site brings empty containers and fills them with water for\u00a0make-shift weights.
\n <\/p>\n

Tip 5: \u00a0‘Cling and Release: Silicone Mylar+Japanese Paper+Wheat Starch Paste= A One-Step Hinge for Float Framing’ by Terry Marsh, read by Anisha Gupta.<\/em><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\"steps<\/a><\/div>\n
This PDF (\u00a0TerryMarsh-OneStepHinge<\/a>\u00a0) explains the process.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/pre>\n
<\/div>\n
Tip 6: \u00a0‘Aquazol as a heat-set adhesive’ by Adam Novak.<\/em><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/pre>\n
<\/div>\n
Mr. Novak presented two quick tips. First, he shared his recipe for heat-set tissue, based on\u00a0research by Katherine Lechuga,\u00a0summarized here<\/a>. He makes a 6% solution of Aquazol 500<\/a> in deionized water and brushes it on very thin (2 gram) tengujo paper. After cutting the repair strip, it can be set in place temporarily using the heat of his\u00a0finger. Then, he places silicone release paper over the repair and sets it with a tacking iron. (When questioned later by Sarah Reidell, he indicated that he did not know the exact temperature used with the tacking iron, but supposed that it is in the range of 150 degrees F.) The repair may look shiny in comparison with surrounding paper. If this is the case, shine can be reduced by brushing on a bit of ethanol.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/pre>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Tip 7:\u00a0‘Using pH strips with filtered water’ by Adam Novak.<\/em><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/pre>\n
The second tip addressed the issue of very different readings with a pH strip and\u00a0a pH meter when measuring deionized water solutions buffered with calcium\u00a0hydroxide. This is something that\u00a0I had noticed in my lab\u00a0at NYPL, and was glad to hear an explanation. Mr. Novak has discovered that the conductivity is very low in the calcium solutions and that there is not enough ionization to get an accurate reading with the strips. This is only the case with calcium- other buffers have higher conductivity and the strips read more accurately.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/pre>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Tip 8: \u00a0‘Cellulose Powder’ by Becca Pollak.<\/em><\/div>\n
\"IMG_3638\"<\/a><\/div>\n
(photo of slide taken by Valerie Faivre)<\/div>\n
Ms. Pollack described her technique of spraying\u00a0cellulose powder\u00a0with an airbrush\u00a0to minimize local discoloration on paper, cover foxing, or prepare for inpainting. She sprays the powder directly through stencils and adds pigments for toning if necessary. The basic recipe is below as a starting point, but adjustments may need to be made depending on its moisture sensitivity of an object or the desired effect.\u00a0She also sprays\u00a0films on Mylar and allows them to dry for future use. In that case, she sprays a layer of plain methylcellulose first to improve cohesion of the sheet. Ms. Pollak is preparing a tip sheet to be posted soon.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Basic recipe:<\/div>\n
\n