How to Preserve Your Wedding Gown
Your wedding is over…you had a freaking blast… now what?
Weddings are one of the most special days of a person's life, but what do you do with your gorgeous gown after the wedding is over?
This is one of the most overlooked subjects during the excitement and emotions that come throughout the wedding planning phase. As Los Angeles Wedding Planners who value the finer things in life, we cover wedding gown preservation during the wedding planning process. Preserving your dress is essential so that you can look back fondly on this day for years to come. We provide you with all the tips, resources, and information you may need to prepare for this so you're not having to worry about it during your honeymoon or even shortly after that.
In this blog post, we'll cover 9 key tips for preserving your wedding dress – from professional cleaning to long-term storage. By adhering to these helpful tips, you can make sure that your gown is kept in pristine condition and remains a treasured item in your family for years to come.
1. PROFESSIONALLY CLEAN - When your wedding day ends, you don't want to just put your dress away and forget about it. Have your dress cleaned properly before storing it. Sometimes, there are hidden stains in the fibers that, when exposed to oxygen, react and result in yellow stains.
Pro Tip: Take off your wedding gown immediately after the reception. Arrange for either a member of your Wedding Party or family to take it to the dry cleaners the very next day, especially if you’re leaving for your honeymoon right away!
2. SUNLIGHT PROTECTION - Protect your dress from direct sunlight which over time may turn the dress yellow.
3. TO HANG OR NOT TO HANG - Long-term hanging may not be the best option for your gown. Remove it from the hanger, which may cause the heaviest dresses to become misshapen.
If you do choose to hang your dress, please use a padded hanger. This will provide the best air circulation and it will help with avoiding permanent creasing.
4. LONG-TERM STORAGE - Avoid long-term storage in a regular dress bag. These are perfectly safe for short-term storage however over time plastic, bleached fabric or tissue paper in long-term storage may also turn your dress yellow.
5. PERMANENT CREASING - Place unbleached muslin between the folds of the dress to avoid permanent creasing. Additionally, be sure to stuff the bust (and sleeves) of the dress with acid-free tissue paper to help maintain its full shape.
6. WRAP - When the wedding gown is clean and dry, wrap it in acid-free tissue paper or pre-washed unbleached muslin or cotton.
7. LINEN BAG - Ask your wedding gown designer to quote on a custom bleach-free linen or cotton dress bag for your wedding dress.
8. STORAGE - The ideal storage environment is acid-free, lignin-free, as well as free of adhesives and unidentified plastics. All of these ingredients can cause deterioration.
The best way to store your wedding dress is in an airtight preservation box. Most high-quality boxes from an archival supply company are easily identifiable by the metal corners which hold the box together without any adhesive. The metal corners also add strength to the box.
9. HUMIDITY CONTROL - You can also add silica desiccant packets inside an acid-free box for humidity control. If you don't have a box, you can also put your dress in an unbleached cotton pillowcase.
It is important to take the necessary steps to properly clean and store your wedding dress to avoid permanent damage to your beautiful wedding gown.
Most of these guidelines are typically followed and covered by some of our recommended Dry-Cleaning companies or Wedding Gown Preservation vendors. One of the companies we’ve highly recommended to our past brides is Door To Door Valet Cleaning. They have several locations all over California and in Nevada, Texas.
Following these guidelines and trusting professionals with your beloved wedding gown will help you keep your dress looking beautiful for years to come, and will ensure that your special day is preserved forever.
Are you ready to start your Wedding Planning or hand over the reigns to professionals?
