First Steps

From Research Process Part 1 - 1910's Franklin Simon gown

How can we work with this dress without causing it further damage?

To begin our work with the dress today, first I needed to think about conservation and create a safe space to work with it:

-measured the overall length and width of the dress as it lays in the box /on the table
-cut a piece of washed muslin almost 3X the length of the dress, and finish the raw edges of it (this will serve as a cover/sling to protect the dress as we work on it)
-with the muslin laid out on the table, I brought the dress over from the storage area and laid it out carefully on top of the center of the muslin (when the dress is not being studied, it can be covered up by overlapping the long sides of the muslin over top of it)