The Ultimate Guide to Preserving Your Wedding Dress After the Big Day

Hoping to keep your wedding dress for a lifetime? We totally get it, she’s stunning! And full of priceless memories. That’s why we’re here to walk you through how you should preserve your bridal gown after your celebration to keep it as sparkling white as the day you wore it! Welcome to your ultimate guide to wedding dress preservation! Keep reading for all the details you simply can’t miss! Love content like this? Follow us on Instagram to see even more tips and tricks!

How Do You Store Your Wedding Dress After The Wedding?

Good question! In our opinion, the best way to clean and store your wedding dress is to have it preserved by a wedding dress professional and kept in an acid-free archive box. From there, keeping your wedding dress at home just comes down to a few storage basics! Here are some of our fav tips and tricks:

• Store your wedding gown box in a cool, dark place away from humidity; your closet or under your bed are good options.
• If you haven’t had your gown treated for preservation but want to keep it safe at home, do not store your gown in a plastic bag; this can lead to further damage from moisture, bugs, and oxidation long-term. 
• Don’t store your wedding dress or preservation box in your attic or cellar; these areas are prone to temperature fluctuation, air and water leaks, and vermin damage. 
• Keep your wedding dress out of contact with other clothing items to avoid acid transfer, friction, and staining.

Now that you’ve got the storage basics, keep reading for everything you need to know about professionally preserving your wedding dress!

What Is Wedding Dress Preservation?

PC: Brey Fuentes

Wedding dress preservation is a specialized cleaning and treatment plan to ensure your gown looks as pristine as possible for years to come. Bridal gowns are delicate and intricate garments, and over time they’re prone to yellowing, oxidation, and other forms of damage—especially if not treated and stored properly right after the wedding. (Yikes!) Wedding dress preservation helps to prevent that damage and preserve your keepsake for future generations.

Why Should I Preserve My Wedding Dress?

Why not?! Whether you’re the sentimental type or not, there are plenty of reasons to preserve your wedding dress! A pristine gown makes a beautiful heirloom, upcycles easily into other gowns or accessories, and is better for resale or donation down the line. And besides, you spent a lot of time and money on your wedding dress! You might as well get a full lifetime of enjoyment out of it!

Can I Preserve My Wedding Dress At Home?

PC: Destiny Jasett

There are a few tips for how to preserve your wedding dress at home, but none are as effective as getting a professional preservation treatment. To DIY your preservation efforts, we recommend you:

• Have the dress cleaned at a professional dry cleaner as soon as possible. (This is the least necessary for any preservation efforts!)
• If you’re spot-cleaning, follow our tips for cleaning different fabrications below. (You’re welcome!)
• Never use a harsh detergent, bleach, or a hot iron on your wedding dress!
• Purchase an acid-free paper to wrap your wedding dress in.
• Seal the gown in a bridal box in an archival storage box. (You can purchase these online!) Replace the storage box and paper every three years or so.
• Do not hang your wedding gown! This may lead to stretching or warping.
• Do not store your wedding dress in a cedar chest or plastic bag! Cedar chests can produce damaging acidic gases, and plastic bags can trap moisture, bugs, and mildew. (Yuck!)

How To Clean Different Types Of Wedding Dress Fabrics At Home

IMPORTANT: These at-home steps apply to spot cleaning only. We recommend only professional dry-cleaning services for the allover care of your Maggie Sottero wedding dress!

• Satin: Dry-clean or hand wash in cold water with mild detergent. Air dry.
• Charmeuse: Dry-clean or handwash using a silk wash product in cool water. Air dry.
• Chiffon and Organza: Dry-clean only.
• Tulle: Handwash using only soap flakes or gentle soap. Use warm water and do not wring. Dry out of direct sunlight.
• Lace: Handwash with cold water with high-quality gentle soap. Massage soapy water evenly and soak for 30 mins. Rinse and lay flat to dry.

How Long Can You Wait To Preserve Your Wedding Dress?

PC: Lindsey Morgan Photography

Technically, you can wait for months or even years to preserve your wedding dress. However, it’s important to professionally clean and preserve your wedding dress as soon as possible (if not immediately) after your wedding day. Even if your wedding gown seems to be in good condition, there may be invisible stains that will set in, oxidize, and darken in the months to come. (Add in exposure to heat, humidity, or acid, and things get much worse, much faster.) 

Long story short, get your wedding dress cleaned and sent to a preservation specialist within the week. Trust us, you’ll be doing yourself a huge favor down the line! But, if months or even years have passed since your wedding day, don’t stress! It’s never too late to preserve your wedding dress!

What Causes A Wedding Dress To Yellow?

Wedding dress yellowing is most often due to chemical breakdowns of fabric, such as:

• Fiber degradation due to light radiation, high humidity, or excessive heat.
• Transfer of contaminants from plastic, cardboard, and inadequate packing materials.
• Decomposition of chemicals added during the manufacturing process.
• Contact with pollutants and contaminants in the air.
• Stains and contaminants from your wedding day, such as spills, sweat, grass stains, and perfume.

Can A Yellowed Wedding Dress Be Whitened?

PC: H&N Photographer

As a general rule, yes! Yellowed wedding dresses can be whitened again by professionals. There are some options for wedding dress cleaning and restoring older styles, but as always, prevention is the best prescription! After all, it only takes six months for your pristine white wedding dress to start dulling in color. It’s best to act as fast as possible to avoid cleaning and preservation headaches in the years to come.

If you are dealing with a discolored wedding dress, old or new, research wedding dress preservationists who have proven, reliable experience with yellowing. Look for testimonials with before-and-after photos on a company’s website. It’s the best way to ensure you’re getting the best service for your specific needs!

How Much Does It Cost To Clean And Preserve A Wedding Dress?

Professional wedding dress cleaning and preservation costs anywhere from $250 to $800 depending on the material, embellishment, and soil level of your gown. Preservation is an investment, but if you love your wedding gown, its long-term beauty and condition are definitely worth it!

How Long Does Wedding Dress Preservation Take?

PC: Amy Gailmore | Peter Cafaro

Depending on the time of year and your location, the wedding dress preservation process takes anywhere from 4 to 10 weeks. Once you’ve chosen your specialist and treatment, the steps and timeline generally go something like this:

• First, you order your kit online or in person. Your initial packaging is typically mailed to you in a few days.
• Next, you pack your wedding gown at home to be delivered to the facility.
• Once your dress arrives for preservation, it will be professionally cleaned and treated for stains. Your preservationist may also offer repair services for stitching and beading.
• After your wedding gown is cleaned and treated, it’s placed in its specialized packaging to be shipped back to you.
• Store your preserved wedding gown according to the company’s instructions—typically away from sunlight in a climate-controlled area.

How Long Will A Wedding Dress Stay Cleaned And Preserved?

Wedding dress preservation is intended to keep your wedding gown in excellent condition for decades! Most wedding dress preservation companies offer a lifetime guarantee of at least, and often up to a 75- or 100-year guarantee for their services. Perfect, right?!

The important thing to understand about a “guarantee” is that it does not necessarily insure against stains or damage. It is simply the length of time that a company will allow for a retreatment. This generally means that if you notice new stains or yellowing appear on your preserved wedding gown during the guaranteed time, you can send it in for a new service, free of charge.

Of course, these particulars are not consistent for every wedding dress preservation company, so be sure to read the fine print on your agreement! It’s important you know exactly what to expect and what steps to take to make the most of your big investment!

Can You Wear A Wedding Dress After Having It Preserved?

PC: Timeless Tree Weddings | Doncel and Alcoba

Your wedding dress isn’t going to instantly evaporate the moment you take it out of its specialized packaging (that would defeat the purpose of making it an heirloom), but it may nullify the preservation guarantee. Before you unpack your wedding dress, be sure to clarify your preservationist’s terms to understand what is expected long-term. 

Many wedding dress preservation companies choose not to seal their specialized boxes, as it may risk trapping moisture and contaminants in with the fabric. In this case, you can typically open the box and handle the dress—albeit very carefully. If you choose to take out the gown, wash your hands or put on cotton gloves to keep it as unblemished as possible.

If you opt for a preservation company that seals your gown in a box, this typically means you can’t unseal it without breaking the guarantee along with it. In this scenario, if your daughter or someone close to you decides to wear or upcycle your dress for her wedding, she’ll need to repeat the process to preserve and guarantee it again.

So, now that you’re an expert on all things wedding dress preservation, it’s time to sit back, relax, and keep pinning more wedding content to your favorite boards! You don’t have a wedding board yet?! We can fix that. Follow us on Pinterest today for all things bridal inspo!

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