Repairing a broken parchment lampshade

[ltvpm]

We recently had the wire rims from a 1930’s Coleman kerosene lamp shade come apart from the parchment shade. Is there any way to re-attach the rims to the shade using some sort of adhesive? We’re a small museum so bringing in a conservator is not a viable option at this point. Any tips would be appreciated.

[Lynne Robertson]

How was it attached originally? Was it glued? Can you tell what kind of glue? You can buy hide glue (if that was what was used originally) in the liquid state at some hardware or woodcrafting stores or at Woodcraft.com. Experiment with it first, though — it’s a very thin liquid and can be extremely messy. When it is dry, it’s kind of golden brown and brittle. Or you can get a neutral Ph white glue, which is a thicker and drys clear and a little flexible, from either Gaylord or University Products.

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