When planning for your wedding, it’s likely that one of the most important and exciting decisions you made was what you would be wearing on your big day. After the wedding day is over, the question becomes what to do with the dress that you fell in love with.
Throughout time, many brides before you have asked the same question. Wedding gown preservation is the answer to keeping your dress intact for years to come.
A Service Fit for a Queen
Wedding gown preservation began in the 1700s when royal weddings became huge, elaborate events. With brides donning intricately designed gowns made with beading, lace, and jewels, preserving the wedding day wardrobe became increasingly important for the families. These fragile fabrics weren’t preserved in a way that allowed them to last over a long period of time, but the idea of wedding gown preservation continued to evolve.
One of the oldest preserved gowns belonged to Princess Charlotte, from her wedding to Prince Leopold. The silver gown featured heavy embroidery and intricate beading woven with silver and gold thread. The dress, a part of the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection, is thought to include most of the original gown as well as some pieces added over time to keep the dress intact.
Wedding Attire Over Time
The idea of wearing the finest clothing available for a wedding day continued over time. As time went on, brides would choose dresses that embraced the trends of the time. In the 1800s, this meant wearing bright, bold colors. Queen Victoria introduced the white wedding gown in 1840. While the pure white color became the norm, styles of wedding gowns continued to evolve and include elements of fashion trends of the time.
While royal weddings have certainly involved plenty of glitz and glamour over time, weddings for the average couple weren’t always such elaborate celebrations. For a period of time, due to economic restrictions, many couples chose clothing they already owned to wear when getting married. Wedding gowns, in general, became less common. Wedding gown preservation then also became a rare practice. As soldiers began returning home, wedding gowns, and gown preservation came back into fashion.
Modern Wedding Gown Preservation
Preserving wedding gowns continued to gain popularity after the 1960s when it became more common for dresses to feature full skirts and what we now consider to be a traditional design. Many brides chose to preserve their gowns in hopes of giving them to their daughters in the future. While intentions were good, preservation techniques took some time to perfect before the preservation process could be successful.
Why Preserve Your Gown Today?
Today, brides may have many different reasons for choosing to preserve their wedding gown. Some will want to pass the dress down to their daughter. Others may want to save the dress for a friend or family member to use at their own wedding. Still others may simply want to keep the gown as a memory of the day.
Preserving a gown means having a clean dress that can safely be kept, without fear of damage or discoloration. Whatever your reasons for choosing to preserve your gown, choosing a reliable and affordable preserving service can give you peace of mind as you store your gown.
Photo credit: vanaddie / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-ND 2.0)
