Choosing a Wedding Dress

Wedding consultants agree that you should begin shopping for your dress at least six months before your wedding date. This provides ample time to find the style, fabric, and accessories that suit you. It also allows time for the manufacturing and shipping of a dress that is special-ordered. Today's bridal gowns are made from satin, taffeta, chiffon, organza, brocade, and lace and are accented with delicate trims, such as beads, seed pearls, sequins, embroidery, lace and applique.

When shopping for your dress, ask the salesperson how the dress should be cleaned and if the trim should be cleaned the same way. If possible, get the information in writing. Trim that is glued on rather than sewn on sometimes does not stand up to the dry cleaning process. Other trims, such as beads and pearls, dissolve when cleaned with solvent. You want to make sure that your entire dress is cleanable so that you can preserve your investment for many years

If you are wearing an heirloom grown, allow plenty of time for professional cleaning as well as any alterations that may be necessary. Because many fabrics naturally yellow with age, you should check the gown carefully for any discoloration. Often, yellowing can be removed if the gown can be wet cleaned. If you find any color changes, take your gown to a cleaner who understands restoration of delicate and antique materials.

After the Wedding

Most brides want to preserve their dress as a keepsake, perhaps for their own daughter to wear on her wedding day. Cleaning industry experts recommend that you have the dress cleaned before storage.

The dress may have invisible stains from food, beverages, and body oil. If these stains are not properly cleaned, they may become permanent. Therefore, it is important to point out any stains or spills to your cleaner before cleaning.

Most wedding gowns have a decorative trim. Again, it is important to inspect these trims with your cleaner prior to cleaning.

Many trims are not made to withstand the dry cleaning process. For example, many beads, glitter, sequins, and laces are attached to gowns with adhesives that dissolve during dry cleaning. Some beads and glitter are made of plastics or covered with surface coatings that are not solvent resistant. In many of these cases, the trim becomes separated from the dress or altered in some way.

Some decorative trims yellow as their finishes oxidize. An ivory or ecru trim may lose its color and no longer match the gown if a dye component is lost in cleaning. Color failures of this type are due to poor colorfastness of the dye, not because of improper cleaning.

• Have your cleaner pack the gown in a special storage box that will help prevent contamination
• Store your gown in a cool, dry place. Do not store it in a basement or attic. Basement dampness can cause mildew; attic heat could promote yellowing of the fabric.
• If you are storing a long gown on a hanger, sew straps to eh waistline of the dress to relieve pressure on the shoulders from the weight of the skirt. Wrap the dress in a protective white sheet or muslin covering.
• Whether the gown is hung or boxed, the bodice should be stuffed with white acid-free tissue paper to prevent wrinkles. Fabric-covered buttons, pins, and foam padding should be removed and stored separately to avoid damage to the fabric.
• Never store headpieces, veils, shoes or other accessories with your gown.
• Inspect your gown from time to time during storage. Stains not initially apparent could appear later, and should be tended to immediately.

Source: International Fabricare Institute