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Re: tacky tee shirt



  I'm just getting around to reading the weeks mail.  I used to be a theatrical costumer and have encountered all kinds of nasty stuff on textiles.  The problem with most spot removers is that they either remove the carrier and leave the adhesive/pigment (ball point ink, for instance) or are oil-based and leave residue that will show as spots later.  Peanut butter works great on glass but is hell on fabric.
  If you can't have a conservator work on it, this is a terribly tedious but non-destructive method that might work.  Use strips of washed unbleached muslin and press one end against the stuff, then fold that under and use a fresh bit, until you've used all the strips, gotten rid of the spot, or go mad.  Theory is that a few molecules of the adhesive will stick to the clean cloth each time.  But since the adhesive will also be on the side of each fiber, it'll take time...I've done it on very small areas of fairly new adhesive, and it worked.
  If you need to store it in the meantime, put a piece of acid free board covered in muslin inside, so it doesn't migrate even more.
  If you still have the tape, you might call 3M and see if they can identify the adhesive.  Odds are pretty fair it's one of theirs.
  See, Mom, those years as Theater Trash weren't entirely wasted....

Susan Knoer
Reference Assistant
Special Collections
University of Louisville
Louisville, KY 40292
502/852-6752  
502/852-8734 FAX
susan.marie@louisville.edu

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