Cover after Restoration.  Gallery pictures show front cover with pieces missing, detached from spine and general wear and tear.  Cover was dry cleaned with erasure on white areas only.  Cover float washed from the inside to remove any discoloration, then carefully pressed to remove all creases and dents. Pieces filled using Japanese tissue and tears mended.  Color touch using acrylic on mends and fills, interior and exterior of cover.  Attention to detail of lettering, buildings and color matching. Restored cover re-assembled to interior and book pressed intact.

The Restoration Lab celebrates its 25^th year of restoring and more importantly, preserving, vintage American comic books.  I, Susan Cicconi, have built a solid reputation as the nation’s premier comic book restorer while maintaining the highest ethics and standards possible. I want to take this time to thank the many customers who have trusted me with their comics over these last 25 years.

Over the last 10 years, the industry has seen significant changes.  I have cherished the opportunity to work on torn and tattered Golden and Silver Age books and, in most cases literally bringing them back to life.  Today, in some cases, those same tattered, taped and torn books with rusted staples and fragile pages are worth more as unrestored books than if they were preserved and conserved.  Unfortunately without correct preservation, these books are going to cease to exist in the not too distant future. This is a sad state ofaffairs for the comic book loving community and future generations.  I can only hope that within the next 10 years, the marketplace will change and more professionally restored books will be valued at prices worthy of their historical significance and preserved state.  Fortunately for me, I still have collectors who are interested in restoring their comics so that they can continue to hold them in their hands and pass them on to their kids.

I have diligently studied the criteria for CGC pertaining to their submission qualifications and labeling.  I am aware of the various pitfalls along with significant monetary benefits to the customer for choosing this service.  It needs to be stated and understood that cleaning and pressing, like restoration, is not an exact science. Drawing on my vast years of experience, my expertise in this area is second to none.  Intricately weaving a multitude of factors such as types of books, covers, colors, textures, heat, pressure and humidification can either have a desirable or deleterious effect on a comic book.

Susan Cicconi

The Restoration Lab