Wedding Gown Preservation

I received a phone call the other day from one of my past brides.  I could tell from her voice that she was distraught.  She told me that she had a flood in her house and her gown had been ruined.  When she discovered the water she set the boxed gown up but didn't check it as she assumed that since she had had it preserved in a box it was safe.  After she attended to the other things she went back to the box that held the most important outfit she had ever worn.  Her shoes, bra and veil were also in the box.  When she opened it all she found was a mildewed mess.  Black fungus had begun to grow in the fibers.  I can picture her now and she probably looked a lot like the girl in this picture.  I was heart sick for her. I had not handled her gown preservation.  I wish she had let us do that for her.

Not all preservation is created equal.  I hear stories of dry cleaners requiring a release prior to cleaning a wedding gown.  They don't want to be held responsible in the event that your gown is damaged or ruined in the cleaning process.  Some cleaners will dry clean your gown and put it in a box.  Sometimes it will be in a bag, usually not sealed.  Some so called authorities say that a gown should not be sealed.  That fabric needs to breathe.  Fabrics don't have lungs, why would they need to breathe?  When you preserve peaches you seal them in a jar in a process that removes oxygen and bacteria and the peaches stay beautifully orange.  There are 4 things that will deteriorate your gown.  Air, moisture, sunlight and insects.  If any of these come into contact with your gown you will have a problem.

Several years ago I was chatting with my preservation company rep. and she said that there had been  flooding in Florida so severe that coffins were erupting from the grave yards and even some of their boxed wedding gowns had been recovered and returned to her for re boxing.  As long as the inner clear packaging had not  been punctured the gown was totally protected and preserved.

At The Gallery by Lynette we do not recommend any preservation method except first, cleaning by the best method for your particular gown, if it is silk it must use a low moisture cleaning process.  Many gowns can be wet cleaned but must be dried thoroughly.  The air within the preservation chest must be totally moisture and oxygen free and the sealed very heavy clear covering must be administrated by an expert.  Sure, you might pay slightly more (usually not more than $20) but isn't it worth it to know that if your gown were found floating it would be protected.  Our process is totally guaranteed and is only $199 for most gowns which includes both cleaning and archived.  Drop your gown by and we will handle the rest.  You can also include two accessories at no extra charge.