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We look after over 300 historic buildings and nearly one million works of art, which need constant care to maintain them. You can help protect these important buildings and collections by donating today.
Discover how we work to restore and preserve collections at the Textile Conservation Studio, the National Trust’s only specialist in-house textile conservation facility.
The National Trust Textile Conservation Studio was founded in 1976 at Blickling Estate in Norfolk. It's the Trust’s only specialist in-house textile conservation facility where treatment of textiles is undertaken, many of which are of international importance. Sometimes the objects are large scale, such as the Gideon tapestries at Hardwick Hall and the state beds from Knole, while others are very small such as the contents of the doll's houses from Nostell Priory and Uppark and the Book of Hours from Coughton Court.
The Trust’s textile collections are of international importance, numbering over 150,000 individual items. The majority of these precious and often unique objects remain on display in the houses for which they were made or acquired. These textiles boast a wide range of styles, materials and techniques. From grand furnishings such as state beds with rich hangings and trimmings to fine tapestries and costumes, they all help us connect directly with the people from our past.
The Studio has been established as a professionally staffed textile conservation facility within the National Trust for over 30 years. The amassed experience of the staff, the specialist equipment and facilities make the Studio one of only a handful of places in the UK where large, complex projects can be worked on with complete confidence. Our highly experienced staff, many of whom are accredited by our professional body, the Institute of Conservation (ICON), are guided by their professional standards and ethics.
Working alongside the conservators from the National Trust's Royal Oak Foundation Studio at Knole, in 2020 we conserved the contents from the dolls’ houses from Uppark and Nostell Priory. The work was undertaken thanks to funding from the Wolfson Foundation, the National Trust, Friends of Nostell and National Trust centres and associations.
The 18th-century dolls' house at Uppark is one of a handful that have survived from this era in such good condition. Meanwhile, Nostell’s dolls’ house is the only one you can still see in its original family home – it is a grand mansion in perfect miniature.
First, we carefully undertook initial surface cleaning of the beautiful dolls and carpets. Using conservation-grade microfibre cloths and hydrophilic foam sponges, we removed the surface layer of dirt from the detailed needlepoint carpets to allow the brighter colours underneath to be revealed.
One of the doll's gowns had unsightly darned repairs which were removed and then treated with a fine silk crepeline patch coated with a conservation-grade adhesive which was activated using a heated spatula.
Meanwhile, the team from Knole treated the decorative paper motifs of figures and flowers on the alabaster ‘porcelain’ dolls’ dishes. The dishes are small and very porous and therefore fragile to handle. While working to repair the plates, a microscope was used to aid the removal of the old glue to avoid contact with the delicate paper.
Our work to conserve the Uppark dolls’ house included cleaning the 'Best Bed', which has all the elements of a full-size bed, including valances, curtains and a headboard.
It was previously treated by Lady Meade-Fetherstonhaugh and shows her original couching. We chose not to remove this in order to preserve the story of the bed.
With your ongoing support, we're able to continue our vital conservation work. Thank you for helping to protect these special places.
We look after over 300 historic buildings and nearly one million works of art, which need constant care to maintain them. You can help protect these important buildings and collections by donating today.
Find out how you can organise a group tour of the National Trust Textile Conservation Studio and how to arrange a talk or lecture with one of the studio’s expert conservators.
After 24 years of conservation, the 13th and final Gideon tapestry has returned to Hardwick Hall, marking the end of the National Trust's longest ever conservation project.
Find out more about what it takes to care for and conserve the collection and over 400 years of history at Packwood.
Exquisite tapestries that were once cut up as part of a nineteenth-century ‘extreme makeover’ have returned home to The Vyne in Hampshire, following conservation.
Items from Uppark’s dolls’ house have undergone its biggest conservation project in decades. Discover how conservators cleaned and repaired the tiny textile pieces.
Read about our strategy 'For everyone, for ever' here at the National Trust, which will take the organisation through to 2025.
Find out about the work of our team at the Royal Oak Foundation Conservation Studio in Kent and how we help care for a large number of objects from properties all over the country.