Your wedding day is one that you will remember for the rest of your life, and through pictures and other mementos from that day you will be able to share those memories with others.
The process of wedding gown preservation requires a delicate touch, but when done correctly your gown will look as good thirty years from now as it did on your wedding day. In doing so, you will have a gown that you can display, and even pass down from generation to generation.
General Questions
1. What does wedding gown preservation do? Over time, the delicate materials in a wedding gown will either turn yellow, because of the acids on your skin, or brown, because of sugars that got on the dress during the reception. Preservation ensures that the gown has been thoroughly cleaned, removing all foreign materials. The gown is then stored with acid-free papers in an archival box to further slow the aging process.
2. What does it cost? Wedding gown preservation costs approximately between $160 and $800. Our Traditional Line preservation costs $159.00. Compare our prices against other wedding gown cleaning services here.
3. What is the best way to find a preserver? You don’t want to leave your wedding gown preservation to your everyday brick and mortar dry cleaner. Make sure to hire a company that specializes in preservation, like those that follow the International Fabric Institute’s guidelines for delicate fabrics, and has a long history of positive customer reviews and awards and recognition.
4. How does the company get the gown? Most online preservers will send you a packaging kit for shipping. It does not take long to prepare the kit, and you can have the gown shipped the same day that you receive your materials. Watch this video to learn more about wedding gown preservation process here.
Preparing the Gown
5. When should the gown be sent? The quicker you get the gown to the preserver, the more complete the process will be. We suggest ordering your gown preservation kit prior to the wedding and then giving your wedding dress to a trusted friend or family member who can send in your gown for you. If that’s not possible, try to send it in as soon as you get back from your honeymoon.
6. What needs to be done after the wedding? If you aren’t sending your dress in immediately after the wedding, wrap it in a white sheet and put it in a dry place, away from sunlight. Don’t put the gown back on a hanger, because the gown make get stretched. Also, don’t store it in a garment bag, as the oils can turn the fabric yellow.
7. What needs to be shipped? Generally speaking, only the gown needs to be shipped. However, we provide preservation for your gown and up to 3 accessories, such as your veil, detachable train, gloves, handkerchief, ring pillow, etc…
When The Gown Gets Home
8. How should the box be stored? Before your gown gets home, find a place where you can keep it flat. You do not want the gown shifting around the interior of the preservation box, and lying flat, with the display window on top, is recommended.
9. Where should the box be kept? A big mistake that people make is putting their preserved gown in the attic or basement. The extremes in temperature and humidity in those parts of the home will damage the gown, so you need a place in one of the primary closets where you can store the gown long-term.
10. Can the box be opened? You can open the box if needed – however, it is not recommended that you remove the gown completely, as it has been specially secured to keep it from shifting in the chest to protect the dress. Try to use white cotton gloves if you are going to handle the materials, just to keep the oil from your hands off of the gown.
If you find a company to do your wedding gown preservation the right way, your gown will look like new for decades. Be sure to take your time, shop around and preserve this precious memory from your wedding day.
Photo credit: Veronique Debord / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)
