The possibilities for what you can do with a wedding dress post-wedding are numerous! Some brides will donate or sell their gowns, while others might repurpose them into cocktail attire or lingerie! Most brides, however, want to keep the special dress forever since it represents such love and happiness.
It is of utmost importance to clean and preserve your gown if that applies to you! It's an elaborate and delicate piece of clothing, so it can't be washed like any other dress. By not preserving your dress, you may risk having the fabric turn yellow, permanent creasing, or mold and mildew growing on it. Read on to learn how to clean and preserve your wedding dress!
Regardless of what you plan to do with your wedding dress after the wedding, cleaning your dress is extremely important. Preserving your wedding gown is completely optional. Professional cleaning is recommended for all wedding dresses after they have been used. Depending on what you used for your cake frosting, champagne, your makeup, sweat, or oil, it's highly likely that there will be some stains left after your wedding. Even if they aren't visible immediately, they will show up as stains as time goes on! You should remove your dress right after the reception and arrange for it to be cleaned the next day so you can prepare to preserve your gown.
Preserving a wedding dress is much different from cleaning it, as it requires a specialist to create a customized treatment plan for each dress. It is important to take into account your dress' stitching, fabric, and any other details, such as an embroidery or stain, along the hem.
These professionals are trained to spot what you can't. No stain is too invisible for them to identify!
You should take your dress to a preservationist as soon as possible. Wedding dresses are sometimes cleaned and preserved over a month after the wedding, which is not ideal. This can lead to permanent stains.
A preserved wedding dress is usually stored in an airtight box where the oxygen has been completely expelled. This helps prevent oxidation, which causes discoloration and aging.
Here at Allure Bridal Boutique, we use Wedding Gown Preservation Company to help our brides preserve their wedding dresses. We love working with this business because they’re a family-created company whose cleaning methods have been recognized internationally as the best methods for gown preservation!
If you’re ready to find your dream wedding gown with us, book an appointment now!