In this week's blog post, contributor Vidita Gupta gives an insight into the conservation processes behind the Leighton and Sambourne House Museum's latest exhibition Out Shopping: The Dresses of Marion and Maud Sambourne (1880-1910).
The Leighton and Sambourne House Museum has unveiled the exhibition Out Shopping: The Dresses of Marion and Maud Sambourne (1880-1910). This 19th century exhibition showcases the Sambourne House collection of dresses, many of which are hardly seen and are rare examples of craftsmanship of leading dressmakers of the era.
The dresses belonged to Marion and Maud Sambourne, who were the wife and daughter of Linley Sambourne, respectively. Linley Sambourne married Marion Herapath, daughter of Mary Ann Walker and Spencer Herapath, in 1874, and they moved to 18 Stafford Terrace (Sambourne House). They lived there with their children Roy and Maud for the rest of their lives. Marion was a talented seamstress and embroiderer, adept at managing the household and handling finances. She kept diaries from 1882 until she died in 1914, in which she meticulously recorded details of her domestic life.
Maud received her education at home from her mother and governesses. She had a natural talent for drawing, which she inherited from her father. Her first published drawing was featured in Punch in May 1892, followed by four drawings in Pall Mall Gazette in April 1894. As a young woman, Maud regularly attended parties, balls, dinners, and went on sketching and shooting trips across England and Scotland. In 1898, she married Leonard Messel, a young stockbroker and collector. Maud's approach to sourcing her clothing seems to reflect her mother Marion’s discerning attitude towards shopping, and her needlework skills and frugality to some extent. It's possible that Maud or her mother made some of the simpler garments in the Messel Collection.
The survival of this collection is equally attributed to its owner and the professionals in charge of it. Marion kept many of the personal ephemera of her life such as her son's school reports and her daughter's wedding invitation. This collection also included Marion’s mother’s clothes. Maud too inherited her mother's deep attachment to the family's past and kept souvenirs. She forbade her brother Roy from selling the family home or emptying the drawers; thus, many of her mother’s clothing remained. These efforts have led to the beautiful collection, part of which is on display at the exhibition.
However, to be able to go on display these dresses required conservation. This undertaking was taken up by the team at Janie Lightfoot Textiles. Let’s take a closer look at the textile conservation completed with insights from some of the conservators at work.
"It was a treat to have a chance to work on this dress collection, not only because of the unique and objectively beautiful garments but also for the opportunity to put a face to the name, or in this case, the dress. Because historical clothing was usually made individually, it is a very personalised item that can tell a little bit more about its owner: what style they preferred, which materials they chose, or even what sort of figure they had. For example, the beaver fur coat was very challenging to fit on a mannequin because it appears to have an asymmetry in the shoulder area, which led to the conclusion that the person who was wearing it had some sort of back problem. I love that sort of little discovery, which sometimes even feels a little intrusive but helps you to look at the person from a completely different perspective."- Yana Tsikalo
The conservation of each of these dresses started with a controlled clean with a variable suction museum vacuum to remove any particulate soiling. Sometimes, a vacuum is not enough to remove the ingrained dirt or other forms of encrustations, so we gently dry clean the textiles using a smoke sponge. Keeping in mind the principle of conservation that is to stabilise and preserve what is existing, rather than adding anything new.
Another technique used across the dresses was humidification. This is most commonly done using an ultra-sonic humidifier, which uses fine water vapours, or moistened hygroscopic material placed directly in contact with the object. Though it may sound simple, it is a controlled humidification treat that reintroduces moisture into old and stiff fabrics giving them flexibility. This is very helpful as it also helps to remove creases and distortions and brings some life back into the textiles.
We need to realise that these dresses were worn by people, who would have worn each one on multiple occasions, therefore, all the dresses showed signs of wear and tear. Similar to our clothing, one of the first areas of wearing down is the underarm areas, which was evident in the dresses of Marion and Maud. For example, the black silk and net Russel and Allen dress belonging to Maud had sweat pads that were often filled with lavender, which had to be removed as the area underneath was stained and deteriorating.
The composition of these stains can vary but the most common are oils and salt, which degrade the textiles over time. Therefore, it is important to either remove or reduce these stains. However, unlike over-the-counter products, the science of textile conservation aims at treating the stain without damaging or changing the structure of the textile/fabric itself. For the dresses of Marion and Maud, primarily deionised water and a non-ionic detergent were used to push through the stains.
To further stabilise the dresses and provide them with tensile strength to go on display, parts of the dresses had to be supported. Conservator Jenny Flasby goes into the details in the Leighton and Sambourne House documentary film that accompanies the exhibition, of supporting the bodice of the brown velvet and chiffon day dress designed by Mascotte in 1906 that has a unique embellished patch in the front belonging to Maud. A similar approach was taken to secure the bodice lining of the Russel and Allen evening dress.
Additionally, localised stabilisation took the form of colour-matched support patches to secure the holes, laid thread couching for splits, and re-stitching of any open or broken seams and details like the lace collars using the same or similar stitching as the original dress.
Another unique technique that was used to stabilise the shattered silk linings for the beaver coat, worn by Marion in 1910 for her studio portrait, and the light green wool ensemble, a walking outfit designed by Sarah Fullerton for Maud, was an adhesive support. This involves creating a colour-matched adhesive backing film on a light silk or organza that is secured to the object. Leaving the textile reinforced, this technique preserves the integrity of the deteriorating textile and enables safer handling, storage, and display without compromising the original material's appearance or structure.
In addition to helping improve the life of the dresses, the conservators prepared custom mannequins for each dress for display. The focus of displaying a costume is not just about showing the garment but it also communicates the craftsmanship, the construction, and provides a glimpse into the wearer’s personality or role in society.
For each dress, an appropriate-sized mannequin was custom-padded to the required shape and size. The customisation ensures that there is no strain or stress on the garment, underpinnings were created to support the weight of the dresses and to achieve the desired shape.
One of the noteworthy pieces on display is the crepe silk lilac tea gown belonging to Maud. Victorian tea gowns were usually worn at home, privately or informally while receiving guests. This is the only surviving maternity piece in the collection and its conservation has been funded by the Elizabeth Hammond award by The Costume Society. This award was set up in 2015, following a bequest from the estate of the late Elizabeth Hammond (1926-2011) a founder member of The Costume Society and a former trustee. The award promotes the conservation and preparation for the display of textiles held in the permanent collections of Accredited museums within the United Kingdom which do not have professional textile conservators on their workforce.
“The process of conserving the maternity dress initially seemed simple, but the preparation for carrying out the conservation proved to be challenging yet rewarding. Creating a mannequin for an unstructured dress was initially daunting. However, upon researching Victorian maternity dresses, I discovered that maternity corsets were used to provide structure, support the belly, and alleviate some of the weight and discomfort during the later stages of pregnancy. This inspired me to pad out a natural form on the mannequin, which felt like sculpting, as there were no structural layers for the dress to hide behind. This process was both fun and allowed for individual artistic freedom and creativity.” -Carole Bellon
Being the only surviving maternity dress in the collection, the piece's significance from the late Victorian era increases. Moreover, knowing that Maud wore it, brings a new insight into the fashion and social norms of the time. Therefore, the conservation and preservation of the dress becomes all the more important. Thus, keeping in line with the essence of conservation, conservator Carole Bellon first suction cleaned the dress to eliminate dust and debris. Thereafter, she used a microfiber cloth and smoke sponges for surface cleaning. Due to the inherent nature of the crepe silk and flattened storage, the textile was creased. Gentle humidification was applied to remove creases, while stains were treated using deionised water and a non-ionic detergent. However, the stubborn underarm stains were treated with solvents like IMS, acetic acid and enzyme.
Special attention was given to humidifying the details like the collar and lace. For structural support, patches were applied and conservation net was used to reinforce the collar lining and underarm areas. The most intriguing part of the entire process was the custom mannequin which was not just designed to support the garment but to also reflect how Maud would have worn it. Tailored to the dress’s specific needs, adjustments were made for a pregnancy bump and a tube skirt and netting provided support to the train.
Featuring this selection of dresses worn for special and social occasions, the major exhibition at Leighton and Sambourne House is an ode to the lives of Victorian women. The dresses on display form a part of a nationally significant collection which holds rare surviving examples by leading female designers. Moreover, clothes are reflective of their wearer’s public and personal- interests and tastes. The exhibit shares these details, the personal tale of a middle-class mother and her wealthy daughter as they navigate the late Victorian era and transition into the 20th century. This historical period had a profound impact on the current consumption of fashion and shopping.
Out Shopping: The Dresses of Marion and Maud Sambourne (1880-1910) runs until October 20th, with admission included with museum entry.
