Ahoy there, Mateys!–Part 2 of Let’s Hear it for the Boys!

The second of Julia’s two three-part* series dedicated to the gentleman.

If you missed my first post on ‘man-centric’ textiles – you can read it here. Here are a few more of my favorites:

*NOTE from Julia: I found so many great guys in our collection, I’m planning a third installment of this blog…stay tuned!

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Sailors’ Woolies (Woolwork)

This intricate needlework from the 19^th century was made by a sailor, perhaps as a family gift or to commemorate his time at sea. The entire picture is made of thread – even the fine rigging and the sea birds hanging in the wind. These pieces are very sought after, and I have worked on two large collections.[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”23″ gal_title=”Sailors Woolies”]

Japanese WWII Souvenir Flag

Signed by family and comrades for good luck going to battle, this silk souvenir flag featuring the Circle of the Sun took more than 200 hours to conserve.

Battle of Mobile Bay Naval Pennant, circa 1864

Eleven cotton applique stars feature on this wool bunting pennant belonging to Admiral Franklin Buchanan – the only full admiral in the Confederate Navy. After testing and wet cleaning, a full support of lightweight, sheer dark blue silk was added, being the least intrusive and reversible method to stabilize this amazing piece of history. The Battle of Mobile is commemorated in a US Postal stamp in 2015.

Just Hello

This beautiful WWI ‘returning home’ memento features a printed poem on silk showing Lady Liberty and the Doughboy, with an American flag below, all hand-stitched into a little love pillow. This keepsake was in very poor condition, with much of the silk poem and flag pieces frayed and hanging like spaghetti. The conservation process involved many steps – taking apart the pieces, re-aligning the torn splits and silks, applying the pieces to a new silk support using a reversible adhesive, surface cleaning the pillow mount, encapsulating it in protective sheer netting, fabricating a rigid archival mount, and re-assembling it.

Civil War Doctor’s Kepi

This Civil War cap has a thick shiny patent leather brim and very tattered interior. We used sheer polyester to encapsulate and stabilize the existing lining.

Never ‘Ad It So Good

A WWII painted leather A-2 bomber jacket, 8th Army Airforce, commemorates its owner’s 35 bombing missions. We cleaned the leather and corrosion on metal components, humidified, repaired tears with adhesive supports, and fabricated a custom half-torso, for a shadow box display. Jane, looking very retro ‘40s herself, holds the jacket aloft like a lollipop.

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I hope you enjoyed our visit to the boys’ club so far…and stay tuned for part 3! Tell us about your favorite man-centric textile by commenting below.