Bridal Wear
Thread Carefully
Simple advice for the care of your dress
An icon of all your dreams come true. A new beginning. The dress of a lifetime that takes your breath away. The magic of finding that perfect wedding dress is held only by those ladies who know the feeling. Once you have laid your eager eyes on your beloved gown and have traded most of what you own to purchase it, it is wise to take care of and store it very delicately before you say `I do`.
Here at South East Wedding magazine we have been doing some research on how best to take care of your beloved depending on how much time you have to admire it before the biggest of days. It`s not all science-there`s just a little bit of chemical know-how to remember. The rest is just practicality and common sense! Most brides-to-be will consider it like having the crown jewels on loan from Buckingham Palace! For those of you who don`t know where to start, here`s some food for thought
If you have purchased your dress well in advance of the wedding date, say 6 months or more, and you have to store it in the meantime, then you will have some extra things to think about. Not rocket science, just care and practicality.
First things first:
First things first: it is best to avoid hanging the dress up as this can cause stress marks in areas of the fabric. This is particularly important if the fabric is heavier such as for a winter wedding dress. Secondly, plastic covers are a no-no because plastic can leak chemicals and fumes, which may discolour and damage your dress. Leave out of direct sunlight think your favourite chocolate left in the wrong place!
Remember to keep the care instructions for your dress, as you will need these for specialist cleaning later on. It is important to store these somewhere you will remember, not so well hidden that a sniffer dog couldn`t find them!
Finally, remove any pins from the fabric because these can leave rust stains and that is a whole other nightmare in itself!
The solution is to wrap your dress in a generous white cotton sheet, as this will allow it to breathe and keep it smelling beautifully fresh like yourself. Lay the sheet out in a large open space (furniture removals if necessary!) and fold the dress once, at the waist. This will limit any unnecessary creasing. The professionals recommend an acid-free box for storage and acid-free tissue paper for final storage within the box. If you need to have the occasional peak then de-box and re-tissue as above. There are so many areas to plan for your special day that having confidence that your dress is safely slumbering on the top of your wardrobe, or barricaded into the spare room with no fears of damage, will only reduce your stress, not intensify it. That can only be good for you!
For many brides-to-be, the collection of the wedding dress takes place several days before your date with destiny. In this case, your bridal boutique or dress designer has minded it selflessly. Once you have gotten it home (complete with Garda escort!), there are a few simple matters to attend to.
Transporting your dream dress:
Getting it home or to wherever it is being stored is best done by clean, spacious car as the back seats can be left down to spread the dress out carefully. White sheet time againÉplace it all across the back of the car for full protection. If you are one who has travelled abroad for the perfect purchase then bringing the dress back by plane is out of the question!
Think scary missing luggage. Enough said. Think Fed-ex or UPS instead as it will be in much safer hands and your vodka bill on the plane home will be significantly reduced! More money for the hen night
Hang your dress with a padded hanger, which usually will accompany it from your place of purchase. If in the unlikely event that one isn`t available, purchase one and bring it with you. These are widely available today in most home ware stores.
Make sure that the dress hangs freely with nothing touching it on either side. If you have a thought that it needs a quick steam iron then steady on, as this may leave watermarks on the dress. One of the tricks of the trade is to leave it hanging in a bathroom after the shower has been running for a natural steaming remedy for any unlikely wrinkles. No one will have access to that bathroom for some time so an alternative may be handy! If some stubborn creases or wrinkles have appeared then a professional dry cleaner is the solution. Don`t be a hero....
The magical day has arrived and you are getting ready to make the promise of a lifetime. The only thing to remember here is to ensure the dress goes on after makeup and perfume have been applied. Drape your face and neck with a scarf to avoid any staining to your dream dress when you are getting ready. I imagine most of you would wrap yourselves in a tent to avoid such staining so a scarf is an easy answer!
After what we hope will be an unforgettable and truly romantic day, your beloved gown will need a little more TLC. Make arrangements with your maid of honour or someone else you trust implicitly to take
it to a specialist cleaner who will ensure it remains glorious! Remember to bring those care instructions
Treasure your wedding dress, your glorious cloths of heaven and take a little look every now and then as a gentle reminder that your dreams really have come true.
