The attic, basement, and the back of the closet are probably the only three places you could possibly think of for storing your wedding gown. In fact, these are the most widely used places by brides for wedding gown storage – perhaps hoping to prevent the gown from damage. However, if you have opted for professional wedding dress cleaning, we’d advise you not to store the gown in areas where it would experience warm and damp conditions.
What do popular conservationists have to say?
What happens when you store the wedding gown inappropriately? Well, chances are, the gown would disintegrate over time – a faded remnant of its past glory. According to a notable conservator, garments should be stored in and around where people are. Therefore, an attic or a basement is clearly not the best choice for gown preservation. Much like people, garments too need an ideal temperature and weather condition. Therefore, places like your attic or basement should be avoided at all costs.
What’s the right pricing for wedding dress cleaning and preservation?
Most wedding dress cleaning and preservation companies do not have a fixed rate for offering their services. Much depends on the type of the wedding gown, its fabric, the embellishments on it, and the type of damage that it has sustained. However, there’s more to it. Some believe that the money spent on bringing a gown back to its former glory depends on what it means to the bride. The original price of the gown should also be a factor worth considering.
What do you plan on doing with the gown after the wedding celebrations? Would you like to store it for a while – perhaps even preserving it for future generations or are you seriously considering selling it off or donating it to a charity organization? No matter what, you can’t do any of these if the gown is a mess. This is where professional and reliable wedding gown cleaning and preservation comes in handy.
Should you try wedding gown cleaning and preservation yourself?
Wedding dress cleaning is a delicate process – one that’s best left to the professionals. However, if you have made up your mind, you can go about it, although we’d never recommend doing so. There are a few fiber types such as gowns made from synthetic fibers that you can try cleaning yourself, though you should consult a wedding gown cleaner before blindly trusting the DIY cleaning hacks you found online.
As for gown preservation, you can try buying gown preservation kits – that usually come with museum-quality conservation supplies. When you are trying to store the gown yourself, try keeping it away from direct sunlight, and never put the expensive gown in a box that comes with a plastic see-through window. Plastic is known to trap moisture inside and is generally blamed for gowns turning yellow. This is the type of packaging that usually local dry cleaners offer, and isn’t the way forward. This is the reason why we never recommend local dry cleaners for vintage and wedding gown cleaning.
What kind of boxes should be used for gown preservation?
Whether you are preserving an expensive gown or a simple one, always use archival boxes. These are the same type of boxes that are generally used for archival needs in museums. Use acid-free tissue to wrap the gown. This prevents it from the weather elements and helps prolong its life. In fact, you can even use acid-free archival boxes.
When you approach a professional and reliable gown cleaning and preservation expert, they follow a thorough gown cleaning method, one where they even check the gown for stains under UV light. The cleaning process is followed by an equally impressive preservation process. However, the preservation guarantee is only applicable when you store the gown as has been told and can manage to resist the urge to take out the gown from the box.
