Nowadays, brides are more likely to have their dresses professionally cleaned after the big day.
However, your gown's delicate materials are susceptible to damage from organic factors like dirt, body food and oils, and stains like icing.
In addition, the white parts of your garment that weren't treated may eventually be yellow after being stored for a while, even if you take good care of it before you put it away.
After the wedding, there are two routes you may choose to maintain the integrity of your dress: cleaning or preservation.
There are advantages to both approaches; you need to figure out which one works best for you.
The wedding dress can be cleaned to remove any dust, stains, or fingerprints that may have developed over the ceremony and reception.
It is also an effective means of restoring original colour if age-related yellowing or discolouration has set in.
Professional cleaners for wedding dresses have tools and methods specifically designed to preserve the integrity of the fabric.
Having your wedding dress preserved is a safer and more specific option for preserving it for the future.
First, your dress will be cleaned gently, and a protective coating will be applied to help prevent yellowing and fading.
Then, the dress will be preserved by being sealed in an acid-free box.
If you want to keep your wedding dress in excellent shape for generations to come, or if you don't have room for it, wedding dress preservation is a great alternative.
Is It Necessary To Preserve A Wedding Dress?
Professional cleaning of the wedding gown immediately following the ceremony is mandatory, while the decision to preserve the dress is up to the individual bride.
Whether a bride chooses to preserve her dress as an heirloom for future generations or to sell or give it to another bride is a matter of personal preference.
Unfortunately, there is no assurance that having your dress cleaned will prevent it from yellowing, staining, fraying, or being damaged by UV rays in the future.
The best method to ensure that your wedding gown maintains its original beauty and can be worn again or displayed to future generations is to put it in a wedding gown storage box.
Wedding Dress Preservation Vs. Wedding Dress Cleaning
Cleaning The Wedding Dress
Certain considerations for cleaning a wedding dress don't apply to other garments. To begin, any dirt or debris on your dress—floor dust, a splash of champagne, or even cake icing—can leave a lasting mark.
The wedding dress needs to be professionally cleaned as soon as possible, so don't wait until after the honeymoon to start making plans.
The expert cleaners at Parkers Cleaners know how to handle bridal dresses without damaging the delicate fabrics or the painstakingly hand-worked lace, embroidery, and beading that decorate them.
Wet Cleaning
To prevent your wedding dress from yellowing over time due to dirt and grime, we recommend cleaning it professionally wet.
The hemline of your wedding dress tends to get the dirtiest.
Thus special care is taken to clean it carefully using brushes and sponges to return it to you in pristine condition.
Moreover, wet cleaning is effective in removing invisible stains, such as scent molecules, perspiration oils, and other impurities.
Acid-Free Preservation
Dresses don't fare well when exposed to acids. Your dress may fade and get ruined if it comes into contact with acids found in fabrics or skin oils.
Once cleaned, your dress will be fitted on acid-free body forms, wrapped in acid-free tissue paper, and stored in acid-free preservation boxes.
Spot/Stain Cleaning
Wedding dresses require this step of the cleaning process. A faint mark from your lipstick today can evolve into a noticeable dark stain on your gown in a matter of years.
Whether the stain was caused by an organic compound or a chemical one, eco-friendly spot cleaning solvents and specially developed solutions are utilised.
Your Wedding Chest
The Wedding Chest also serves as storage for your wedding dress in its protective container.
Protect your garment from spills and stains on the Chest. It can be opened and closed again so that you may check on your dress.
The chest includes white gloves for you to wear while handling your outfit.
100-Year Warranty
A 100-year guarantee backs the preservation kits we sell against yellowing and discolouration.
Since you know your dress will be safely maintained in the preservation chest, away from the oils on your hands and environmental toxins, we are confident in making this offer.
However, since we have no idea how your dress will be maintained or handled after being cleaned, we are unable to provide this service as part of our Clean-only Kit.
Pressing
A permanent fold in a bridal gown is almost as bad as a stain. The fabric of a wedding dress might rip and deteriorate over time if folded in the bustle.
We offer two pressing methods for your dress: machine pressing with our Traditional Kit or hand pressing with our Celebrity Kit.
Formed Bust
Your wedding dress will be skilfully draped over a preservation bust to keep it in pristine condition while it is stored in the preservation chest.
It's better for the fabric of your dress if you don't hang it up in your wardrobe, as doing so can cause wrinkles.
The Limitations Of Cleaning Wedding Dress
Services for maintaining the beauty of a wedding gown are not the same as those for cleaning it.
The purpose of these procedures is solely to fix the dress's visible flaws on the day it was last worn. Gowns can be made to look like new by professionals who remove stains, repair tears, and steam out wrinkles.
Although having your dress cleaned professionally would make it appear new, there is no assurance that it will remain in such pristine condition.
If not properly preserved, a dress will gradually lose its lustre over time due to:
- Oxidation of both obvious and covert stains.
- Plastic bags are off-gassing gases that can be harmful to humans.
- Poor folding and storage methods result in permanent fold lines.
The Wedding Gown Preservation Packaging Process
The benefits of wedding dress preservation outweigh the costs of regular cleaning.
However, storing a dress after removing stains is typically hazardous rather than helpful due to the off-gassing of dangerous fumes from the plastic wrap used by dry cleaning services.
It is often this plastic that causes white clothing fabrics to turn yellow. In addition, as time passes, the dress will deteriorate because the chemical vapours released by the plastic are confined inside with the wearer.
Though many brides take the time to have their dresses professionally cleaned, many also make the error of never removing them from the plastic bags they store after that.
Wedding gown preservation services include the following:
- Your dress will be shipped back to you together with all the necessary packing and shipping supplies.
- Special tape for indicating stains that must be removed.
- Purely natural methods of sanitation.
- A preservation chest in white gloss or silver.
- Acid-free tissue.
- While we clean and preserve your dress, you will receive email updates on its progress.
Tips For Cleaning Wedding Dresses
You should choose a cleaner and arrange for the dress's preservation services well before the wedding.
That way, you won't be in a rush to find someone, and you won't be tempted to put it off and risk the stains setting in.
Make sure any damp stains on your wedding dress have dried before storing it in a bag and hanging it out to air out after the big day.
Home treatments for removing stains should be avoided, as they may not be effective and may even set the stain.
Instead, a dry cleaner is the best bet because they will know exactly what to use on your gown and how to clean it.
Have a wonderful wedding and honeymoon! While time is an issue for some stains, it is unnecessary to have the gown professionally cleaned the next day.
Instead, aim to have it cleaned as soon as possible, but don't worry if you don't get to it for a few weeks.
Tips For Preservation of Wedding Dresses
Your preserved item will arrive in a sealed container to maintain its pristine condition. The only significant concern is making sure it's stored properly.
Cleaning and preserving a wedding dress requires a cool, dark place to be kept away from direct sunlight.
A good example might be a closet or the space under a bed. There aren't any musty storage areas or basements.
Instead, find a place where the climate is stable, both in terms of temperature and humidity.
It is common practice for preservation businesses to provide unlimited service guarantees. Therefore, your bridal gown can retain its beauty in the right conditions for decades.
MyDressBox is are wedding dress cleaning and preservation specialists servicing all major cities in Australia and New Zealand, including Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra, Hobart, Gold Coast, Newcastle, Sunshine Coast, Wollongong, Geelong and many more.
Conclusion
Wedding Gowns are susceptible to damage from organic factors like dirt, body food and oils, and stains like icing.
Therefore, the bride is expected to have her wedding dress cleaned by a professional as soon as possible after the ceremony.
To ensure the longevity of your dress, preservation by a professional conservator is the best and most targeted preservation method.
A wedding dress's hemline is the most vulnerable area to soiling. Parkers Cleaners is experienced in caring for wedding gowns without causing any damage to the delicate textiles.
The preservation kits we offer have a 100-year guarantee against yellowing and discolouration. The Wedding Chest will keep your dress clean and free from stains.
Having your wedding dress permanently creased is almost as horrible as having a stain on it. In the long run, the constant folding in the bustle could cause damage to the bridal dress.
Experts can restore dresses to pristine condition by eliminating stains, mending tears, and steaming out wrinkles.
Pick a dry cleaner and schedule preservation services for the dress well in advance of the big day. Avoid trying to remove stains at home, as these methods may not work. Instead, professional dry cleaners have the tools and knowledge to clean your gown without damaging the fabric.
Content Summary
- After the wedding, there are two routes you may choose to maintain the integrity of your dress: cleaning or preservation.
- Professional cleaners for wedding dresses have tools and methods specifically designed to preserve the integrity of the fabric.
- Having your wedding dress preserved is a safer and more specific option for preserving it for the future.
- If you want to keep your wedding dress in excellent shape for generations to come, or if you don't have room for it, wedding dress preservation is a great alternative.
- Professional cleaning of the wedding gown immediately following the ceremony is mandatory, while the decision to preserve the dress is up to the individual bride.
- Unfortunately, there is no assurance that having your dress cleaned will prevent it from yellowing, staining, fraying, or being damaged by UV rays in the future.
- The best method to ensure that your wedding gown maintains its original beauty and can be worn again or displayed to future generations is to put it in a wedding gown storage box.
- Certain considerations for cleaning a wedding dress don't apply to other garments.
- Wet cleaning To prevent your wedding dress from yellowing over time due to dirt and grime, we recommend cleaning it professionally wet.
- The hemline of your wedding dress tends to get the dirtiest.
- Once cleaned, your dress will be fitted on acid-free body forms, wrapped in acid-free tissue paper, and stored in acid-free preservation boxes.
- Spot/Stain Cleaning Wedding dresses require this step of the cleaning process.
- Whether the stain was caused by an organic compound or a chemical one, eco-friendly spot cleaning solvents and specially developed solutions are utilised.
- The Wedding Chest also serves as storage for your wedding dress in its protective container.
- Protect your garment from spills and stains on the Chest.
- Since you know your dress will be safely maintained in the preservation chest, away from the oils on your hands and environmental toxins, we are confident in making this offer.
- However, since we have no idea how your dress will be maintained or handled after being cleaned, we are unable to provide this service as part of our Clean-only Kit.
- Pressing A permanent fold in a bridal gown is almost as bad as a stain.
- We offer two pressing methods for your dress: machine pressing with our Traditional Kit or hand pressing with our Celebrity Kit.
- Formed Bust Your wedding dress will be skilfully draped over a preservation bust to keep it in pristine condition while it is stored in the Preservation Chest.
- It's better for the fabric of your dress if you don't hang it up in your wardrobe, as doing so can cause wrinkles.
- The Limitations Of Cleaning Wedding Dress Services for maintaining the beauty of a wedding gown are not the same as those for cleaning it.
- The Wedding Gown Preservation Packaging Process, The benefits of wedding dress preservation outweigh the costs of regular cleaning.
- However, storing a dress after removing stains is typically hazardous rather than helpful due to the off-gassing of dangerous fumes from the plastic wrap used by dry cleaning services.
- Though many brides take the time to have their dresses professionally cleaned, many also make the error of never removing them from the plastic bags they store after that.
- Wedding gown preservation services include the following: Your dress will be shipped back to you with all the necessary packing and shipping supplies.
- While we clean and preserve your dress, you will receive email updates on its progress.
- You should choose a cleaner and arrange for the dress's preservation services well before the wedding.
- Make sure any damp stains on your wedding dress have dried before storing it in a bag and hanging it out to air out after the big day.
- Instead, a dry cleaner is the best bet because they will know exactly what to use on your gown and how to clean it.
- While time is an issue for some stains, having the gown professionally cleaned the next day is unnecessary.
- Instead, aim to have it cleaned as soon as possible, but don't worry if you don't get to it for a few weeks.
- Your preserved item will arrive in a sealed container to maintain its pristine condition.
- The only significant concern is making sure it's stored properly.
- Cleaning and preserving a wedding dress requires a cool, dark place to be kept away from direct sunlight.
- Instead, find a place where the climate is stable, both in terms of temperature and humidity.
- Therefore, your bridal gown can retain its beauty in the right conditions for decades.
FAQs About Dress Cleaning And Preservation
What Does It Mean To Get Your Wedding Dress Preserved?
Wedding dress preservation, in a nutshell, entails having your dress cleaned and maintained by a professional using methods and materials appropriate for a museum. This process ensures that your dress will not be yellow or become stained with time.
Can You Wear A Wedding Dress That Has Been Preserved?
Yes. Having a future family member honour her by wearing her wedding dress at their wedding is a common motivation for brides to have their gowns professionally cleaned and preserved.
How Long Does A Wedding Dress Stay Preserved?
The goal of wedding dress preservation is to ensure that your dress remains pristine for the decades after your big day. The majority of businesses that specialise in wedding dress preservation provide a lifetime guarantee for their services, with some even going as far as to guarantee their work for the next 75 or 100 years.
Can I Dry Clean My Wedding Dress?
Never, ever, ever take your wedding dress to just any dry cleaner in the world. Ever. Some dry cleaners do not specialise in wedding dresses and may use harsh chemicals and poisons on the garments they clean. They could even wind up causing more harm to your dress, particularly if it is made of a delicate fabric like lace, organza, chiffon, or silk. This is a possibility.
Can I Machine Wash My Wedding Dress?
It is possible to launder wedding dresses at home if the material and decorations on the dress are acceptable to be washed in a machine or by hand and if you have a large wash bag. However, doing so requires careful attention to detail (preferably, a large wash bag).