You will spend weeks looking for the perfect dress and when you find the right one it will be love at first sight. You will have it altered to fit you and when you look in the mirror you will feel incredibly glamorous and beautiful. It is what you will wear as you walk down the aisle and say your eternal vows, making a lifelong commitment to your partner.

With so much emotion and meaning invested in your wedding dress, you will want to take good care of it so that it lasts for many years. If you want to be able to show your grandchildren the dress that you wore on your wedding day you will have to maintain it properly so that it stays in good shape. Don’t just throw it straight in the back of your closet, as there are many steps that you need to take first.

Here are some tips for maintaining your wedding gown:

Getting it Clean

Before storing your wedding dress in a closet, you will want to make sure that it is perfectly clean. When you wear your dress on your wedding day it will get dirty and if you lock it away for many years with stains, dirt and grease on it this will eat away at the fabric and cause it to deteriorate.

When you are getting the dress cleaned look for a dry cleaner that has experience with wedding dresses and uses virgin solvent which will clean the dress without leaving an odor. Make sure that you alert the drycleaner to any stains on the dress so that they can treat them with the proper methods.

Steam Ironing

Wedding dresses are often made with very delicate fabrics and intricate details, making them very difficult to iron. This is why steam generator irons are usually recommended for wedding dresses. They work by passing heat in the form of steam through the fabric in order to relax the fibers and remove the wrinkles. The iron never makes physical contact with the wedding dress. Compared to hand pressing, steam ironing will protect the delicate fabric of the dress and leave it smoother.

If you own a steam generator iron you can do this process yourself by hanging the dress up and using a home steamer to remove the creases. However, if you are not sure how to do this you can always take it to a professional to perform this service.

Metal Buttons

Did you know that if your dress has metal buttons or clasps these can become oxidized over the years and stain the fabric or ruin the look of the dress? Before you store your wedding dress for the long term be sure to remove all of the metal buttons and store them separately away from the dress.

Where to Keep It

When your wedding dress is in storage it should be away from direct sunlight, humidity, moisture and anything else which could damage it over time. One of your best options is an air-tight storage box in a clean closet, away from any dampness or dust. Don’t use a plastic bag, as the plastic will damage the fabric over time. You can however, use high quality tissue paper in between the folds of the dress to keep it from getting wrinkled.

Storing your wedding dress takes quite a bit of work, but it is very important if you want to make sure that your dress will stay in beautiful condition for many years to come.

There are many important steps that you need to take before storing your wedding dress, such as removing wrinkles with a steam generator iron and taking off any metal buttons.

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