Handy Advice Guide.
Dresses can pack away beautifully and remain as perfect as the day they were made but there are some simple essential rules to follow.
Don’ts
1) PVC plastic covers are not suitable for long term storage.
a) They do not allow for changes in humidity; in the extreme this causes condensation on the inside of the cover leading to dampening of the fabric and the growth of mold.
b) They do not protect the fabric from fading and damage from light.
c) PVC covers begin a process of disinitragtion after several years, particles from the plastic will affect your dress.
2) Normal carboard boxes contain levels of acid that will transfer to your dress causing discolouration/yellowing.
3) Wardrobes, drawers, suitcase linings and dyes form other fabrics will all affect the pure fabric of your wedding dress if they lie next to it. It is always best to separate a wedding dress from other items and to encase it in an acid free environment.
4) Never wrap your dress in black or coloured tissue paper. This paper contains dye that will transfer. If light must be eliminated it is always better to place the dress in a genuinely dark environment than to surround it with darkened materials. Tissue paper should be white and acid free.
5) Don’t store your dress long term on on clothes hangers. This places stress on the seams and the will alter the shape of the dress over long periods.
6) Don’t store your dress in the attic or cellar. Damp, humidity variations and insects can damage a dress even if you think it is well protected.
Do
1) Have your dress cleaned by Village dry Cleaners as we specialize in wedding dress cleaning. Stains that are not visible now reveal themselves over time plus the cleaning fluid acts as a deterrent to any wandering insects.
2) Follow some simple storage rules avoiding light, heat and damp especially.
3) Store the dress in a warm dry spare room.
4) Always store your dress in a PH nutral container and pack with acid free non-dye tissue. Acid free tissue becomes acidic when stored in a non acid free box.
5) Your storage box should be sturdy enough to protect from accident, light eliminating, breathable and PH neutral. Our wedding dress boxes fulfill all the above criteria and have been known to protect from fire and flood too! They are not flat-packed, contain no windows or metal staples that can rust over time.
6) Once packed away you should check on the dress every six months to ensure nothing untoward is happening and repackage once a year to prevent any creases becoming permanent.