What are the opening hours?

Monday 10am - 5pm Tuesday 10am - 5pm Wednesday 10am - 5pm Thursday 10am - 5pm Friday 10am - 5pm

Zenzie Tinker Conservation Ltd., 93/93A Islingword Road, Brighton (2026)

08/06/2026

We are thrilled to have Tabby back in the studio fold again after a year of maternity leave. She’s produced a beautiful little being, Violet, who had just turned one, moved house and has just come back to our (new to her) studio premises rearing to go!

Tabby’s first project since her return has been to complete the conservation of the amazing Egyptian tunic which was paused whilst she was busy at home and we were waiting to take receipt of additional fragments from the same excavation. The fragments reached us just before Tabby and we all waited eagerly in the hope that one or more might be identified as being missing sections of this incredible garment. However after careful examination by Tabby, it seems indicates not.

Whilst this is a little disappointing it did at least mean we could confidently complete the positioning of the current tunic fragments and finish off the project knowing we had explored all options.

Previous posts on the tunic are currently pinned so that you can read them now if you missed them from a year or so ago. But basically the fragments were found as stuffing around a woman’s sarcophagus from the Third Intermediate Period making it around 2800 years old. (It was excavated in the early 1900s during the Carter/ Lord Carnarvon digs. The fragments have traditionally been mounted together as half a tunic but Tabby’s research indicates that they in fact came from two garments not one. So in conserving and mounting the fragments this time around, Tabby has left a gap in the dyed linen support to indicate they were never part of the same garment. Amazing features include a perfect pocket opening, a sleeve opening, stripey selvedges down the side seam and a beautiful fringed hemline.

The conservation has involved delicate surface cleaning and humidification, minimal stitching into a dyed tunic shaped support and some subtle overlays of dyed net to hold down particularly crisp areas of loose linen threads. Tabby has also made a padded insert to help hold the tunic’s shape in storage and when displayed.

05/06/2026

Very excited to be back in Estonia for a couple of days, consulting on this immense 10m high by 48m wide tapestry stage curtain designed by Enn Polaris that hangs in the Linnahall in Tallinn.

The extraordinary soviet era building, built for the 1980 Olympic Games has been left vacant for years now and is currently like some kind of post apocalyptic, new brutalist film set. Still hanging inside, the tapestry is in real danger of water damage and mould if left up any longer.

A large team of Estonian conservators led by the Conservation and Digitisation Centre, Kanut are working together over six weeks or so to document, take down, clean, roll and store the tapestry to keep it safe. Hopefully the incredible building will be conserved too and the tapestry curtain can return to its rightful place one day.

Today we visited the site, went up high on the scissor lift to examine the top edge and to understand the hanging mechanism. We then met back at Kanut to discuss the best options for the tapestry’s physical physical removal, thrashing out the pros and cons of each, balancing safety of the object, safety of the team and practicality. We now think we have a plan.

In the Kanut studios the team have access to a sample of the tapestry from the artist, which was really useful to see as the tapestry curtains are currently in their open position, meaning they’re sandwiched and inaccessible in between two walls.

The tapestry has 8 warps:1” so is quite chunky and is composed of a wool warp and weft with a small amount of lurex thread weft used for highlights. It also has what looks to be linen thread sewing the butted together seams (see last image).

Back again towards the end of the month to help start taking it down!

Do follow along - it’s a huge, colourful beast of a modern tapestry and I’m so pleased to have the opportunity to be involved with this great team and amazing project! Thank you so much to Janika Turu (last image) for inviting me 😊

03/06/2026

If you’re inspired by and interested in some basic conservation and/or mounting training, either individually or in a small group, do please get in touch. We have a wealth of experience to share, a study collection to practice with and can pull in other experts to help co-teach such as author of the wonderful Creating the Perfect Form.

We have simple and advanced shoe and hat mounting workshops ready to go as well as well lots of other subjects suitable for non conservators and conservators alike. And specialist techniques workshops aimed at conservation students and practicing conservators too.

Workshops in our bright airy, busy conservation studio in central Brighton so you will get to see what else we are working on and chat to the team. Or we can bring the workshop to you, wherever you are. We have been as far afield as Sydney Australia with our adhesives for textile conservators workshop.

DM or email [email protected] for more information - we love sharing our skills and promoting better understanding of conservation practice!

01/06/2026

Gerry our previous lovely administrator has launched a substack with the stories behind her beautiful range of knitting patterns inspired by museum collections.

In her most recent post Gerry writes about the beautiful Osborn baby socks from our studio study collection. I really recommend you sign up - the story of the socks and the letter in the envelope, dated 1889 in which the socks were contained is fascinating, as are the other knit stories.

Gerry was so taken with the tiny socks and the wonderful letter that she created a pattern for the socks taking it all the way up to adult size - so you too can make and wear the Osborne socks along with your babies! All Gerry’s patterns are available from and the Osborne socks can also be bought through the ZTC website.

23/05/2026

Sweet little early 19th (?) century painted and embroidered silk picture in the studio for a quick bit of TLC.

These pictures are incredibly vulnerable to splitting due to the differential tension in the fine now weak, painted silk and the heavily embroidered areas. These embroideries seem usually to have been worked with the silk tensioned into an embroidery frame via linen strips and these are then left in place and used to secure the finished piece to a wooden stretcher frame.
I imagine they were bought as kits to work at home.

It is a very unwise textile conservator who attempts to take these pieces off their stretcher frames! Any vibration or movement can be catastrophic. We usually minimally conserve or just stabilise them on the original stretcher and leave well alone. This one has had a simple slightly padded support inserted behind which will remain in place now and allow safer reframing.

Swipe to see the fading of the dyes front to back, the lovely chenille thread that is often used which creates velvety thick areas in contrast to the flatter, shiny satin stitch used elsewhere. We also found an indecipherable signature at the lower edge and damage caused by the top edge of the glass from a nasty modern frame resting against the embroidery seen in a straight line depression (final two images).

The quicker this is reframed and hung back on the wall still again the better!

17/05/2026

Really lovely celebratory event on Friday to welcome back the gorgeous 17th century Mortlake gardener’s tapestry from our conservation studio. Patrons, donors and interested folks joined us for an afternoon of talks kicking off with and I talking about the conservation process. Then Dr Catherine Horwood gave a fascinating talk about early 17th century women gardeners and curator gave an overview of why the purchase and conservation of this tapestry is so important for the Garden Museum collection. Afterwards toasted the end of the project with a delicious glass, and then gathered around the tapestry to admire it and talked more about all things related.

We can’t thank the Garden Museum enough for this bijou little tapestry conservation commission and all the funders who made the project possible including ACE/V&A Purchase Fund, the Garden Museum Patrons, The Leche Trust and the Idlewild Trust.

The Garden Museum, tucked inbetween Lambeth Palace and Lambeth Bridge has to be one of the nicest, small museums in London - do go if you haven’t been! It always has fascinating exhibitions, has a gorgeous garden cafe and restaurant, community gardens and has one of the best museum shops ever - brimming with well chosen gardening and food related books, seeds, collections based things one actually wants to buy and a fabulous selection of cards.

Swipe to see the really great tote bag and kneeler based on the tapestry - perfect for textile conservators working on site and anyone else who appreciates a gorgeous tapesty!

14/05/2026

Exquisite, site specific exhibition by my talanted friend and textile conservator colleague at the beautiful - the perfect location for a perfect show. Sadly only on for three days so you’ve missed it now but do check out Natalia’s website, social media and other exhibitions as well as
She is also currently showing in Warsaw too.

We came fresh from the also excellent Schiaparelli exhibition which seemed a really fitting comparison somehow ❤️

08/05/2026

Condition assessing tapestries at beautiful Batemans, home of Rudyard Kipling today with Ania. The fragment seen here first was conserved by about 20 years ago - so it was nice to see all still basically looking well apart from moth nibbles on the replacement galloons and a few small areas where the condition of the silk weft has worsened slightly, exposing warps.

The larger tapestry on the stairs doesn’t appear to have had any work since it was bought by Kipling in the early 1930s for the house. It has had its borders altered to resize the tapestry - work possibly commissioned by Kipling to allow it to fit in its current position on the main stair case.

Fascinatingly the tapestry has a label identifying who did the work saying: “Cleaned, repaired & mounted by Miss M Symonds, 399 Oxford St, London WI. April 1933”

We really ought to all put labels like this on the back of tapestries we work on as it adds so much to our understanding of past interventions when reports were not undertaken or may have got lost. We always now add a label specifying all the conservator’s names and the date of the work for this reason. The tapestry has a hessian lining attached via grid pattern stitching that appears to date to this time as well as lots of stitched repair. It’s amazing the hessian has lasted more than 90 years as it’s a low quality bast fibre not known for its longevity but it really is on its last legs now and it urgently needs funding for its conservation.

It’s nice to think of Miss M Symonds stitching away in Oxford Street just before the war. I hope she survived and was able to continue with her tapestry repairs in more peaceful times times.

04/05/2026

I’m not sure how many of you are aware that the trustees recently made the entire staff redundant - they finished on Friday!

Founded in 1985 by local weaver Hilary Bourne and sister Joanna, the collection grew to hold examples of the early 20th C Ditchling artist community including Edward Johnson, Hilary Peplar, Eric Gill, David jones, Ethel Mairet, Frank Brangwyn, Amy Sawyer and Joseph Cribb. After an exceptional refurbishment with a £2.3million HLF grant + local fundraising campaign the museum was a finalist in Museum of the Year in 2013. And after many wonderful exhibitions, events and workshops, just 13 years later, Ditchling museum is now sadly closed.

Why has it been so quiet in the press with almost no outcry? Maybe it’s because in the release some months ago it was announced the museum was just closing its doors temporarily while it came up with a financial plan. I for one never dreamt that meant sacking the entire team and leaving this hugely significant collection without anyone professional to look after it. (A one day per week collections care contract is now on offer, after sacking making experienced collections care officer redundant …..)

I have nothing against the trustees but they are not expert in collections care. And their press release almost seemed to say, “look away, nothing to see here, we’ve got this covered”. So most did seem to look away.

Ditchling Museum of Craft is a small, beautifully formed, significant collection of international importance - one of our loveliest local museums and one we’ve done lots of work for over the years, getting to know the team well. This is heartbreaking stuff and we should be shouting about it in fury not quietly accepting what has happened. Whilst we all know times are very tough for museums and the heritage sector, this is a significant collection that should be saved. No answers but the staff deserved better than this, as does the collection 💔

03/05/2026

Last selection of Estonian costume details seen during last week’s fabulous trip to Tallinn - beautiful embroidered linen chemises. Such variety of designs, predominantly worked in red thread but also some multi coloured versions. Totally wearable now.

Thank you to all my new Estonian colleagues for such a memorable visit - I can’t wait to come back ❤️

Zenzie Tinker Conservation Ltd.

08/06/2026

05/06/2026

03/06/2026

01/06/2026

23/05/2026

17/05/2026

14/05/2026

08/05/2026

04/05/2026

03/05/2026

Address

Opening Hours

Telephone

Website

Alerts

Shortcuts

Share

Category

Monday	10am - 5pm
Tuesday	10am - 5pm
Wednesday	10am - 5pm
Thursday	10am - 5pm
Friday	10am - 5pm