When remodeling my house I found perfectly preserved newspapers from 1920s under the flooring.
I want to wallpaper a wall with these papers but am concerned the backside will bleed through to the front when I paste them on the wall or when I apply a protective coating over the top.
Any suggestions?
James
Hi James,I'm amazed that they’re perfectly preserved. What a find! Are they still supple? Have they yellowed or cracked at all?
Normally I recommend having copies made when you use valuable photos or papers in decoupage or collage. That would avoid the issue of ink from the back bleeding through, as well as preserve the originals.
Having copies made with a large format laser copier onto archival quality (non-acidic) paper would be costly in your case due to the large number of pages. It would, however, eliminate the issue of ink from the backside showing through.
Now that you've uncovered the newspapers and removed them from their dark airless "tomb", time is of the essence. Newsprint, manila paper, and construction papers are highly acidic.
Light causes the acidic lignin to react with the cellulose fibers to decompose them. The paper yellows and becomes brittle. The acid reaction in the paper will also spread to objects the paper touches.
If the papers have yellowed only slightly and you can't complete your wallpaper project soon, spray them with Archival Mist, Bookkeeper, or other brand of deacidifying spray. These sprays contain an alkaline (look for methoxyl magnesium methyl carbonate) to neutralize existing acid and inhibit oxidation.
Since I haven't worked much with old book pages or newsprint for collage or decoupage, I consulted with two mixed media experts who frequently do: Cyndi Lavin at Mixed Media Artist and June Crawford at A Creative Dream.
June and Cyndi agreed that show-through of ink from the reverse side usually occurs with newsprint. It creates a nice effect in many of their mixed media works. Both mentioned thicker media work better to prevent ink show-through. June uses Aileen's Tacky Glue and gel media. Cyndi and I are partial to Golden or Liquitex Gel.
Cyndi has an excellent tutorial on how to Encase Delicate Papers for Collage but added that "even coated newspaper will break down eventually".
That said, the combination of deacidifying Archival Mist and encasing in PVA medium would likely preserve your wallpaper for 70 to 100 years. Good enough?
[The image used in the mixed media Polyurethane Transfer Collage above is a public domain copyright-free photo of famous singer and socialite, Lily Langtree, taken in 1885. Learn more about sources of copyright-free images.]
6 comments:
What a wonderful find for your reader Eileen, and what great questions to ask on your part too...I'm curious about their condition too. Another thing James might want to consider, check to see if his local print shop can print on news print paper. (If they don't have it, check with the closest newspaper company, they often have end rolls of newsprint they will give or sell for VERY reasonable cost) You'd get a lovely, newspaper-ish copy, with printing only on one side and thus eliminate the problem with the bleed through from the back. As for adhesive... good old wallpaper past would probably be an even better way to adhere them to the wall, and far less expensive than glue or gel medium!
I hope you'll send Eileen a photo to share when you get finished with the wall James, it sounds like a great project!
I feel so educated right now...absolutely adore your blog for precisely this reason!
Thanks for your reply.
For the record, all the newspapers were the Spokane Review of Spokane WA. All the papers were from 1927 and many featured front page coverage of Charles Lindburghs famous NY to Paris flight. One paper was an "all color" edition for the Spokane Autoshow that year.
Though many were pristine, some were damaged from the linoleum rubbing whenever floor boards sagged under loads. Some had minor water damage.
You're correct on one main account, I uncovered them about 5 years ago and put them away for "future use", since that time they have degraded quite a bit and are yellowing. Since these newspapers are part of the house's history, I wanted to preserve them in a way that they would always be part of the house in a more permanent way.
Reproducing them in my opinion just doesn't accomplish that. If it were somehow possible to treat the paper on both sides and apply a coat of Varathane over the top without the bleed through issues I think they would survive longer than the house will.
Wow! I wish you'd written sooner.
You can put Varathane on top after the gel medium cures (a couple of weeks to be safe).
Rather than Archival Mist, you might want to treat the more damaged pages in an alkaline bath, which will penetrate all the fibers.
Mix 2 T. milk of magnesia with one quart club soda. Refrigerate overnight.
Pour mixture into a non-aluminum shallow pan or sink. Lay one page at a time in the liquid. Let soak 1 hour.
Remove the page to a smooth absorbent surface (layers of paper towel, chamois cloth, or Sham-Wow).
Pat with another absorbent cloth to remove as much moisture as possible.
Carefully hang to dry or lay flat on a nonstick surface.
You "adore" my blog, Tina? Thank you so much. I think I'm blushing.
Just another idea... what about creating a "fake wall", just something James (or someone) could build to go in front of the real one, put the papers on it, and at some point, donate them to a museum... fake wall and all. It's an incredible piece of history, would be such a lovely thing to share!
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