Wedding Gown Care
Gown Care Advice from a Pro:
Hi, I've been perusing your web site after ordering my DTD PDF, and was interested in the gown storage section.
You're dead right about light, especially sunlight. Exposure to the radiation erodes the fibers, in much the same way that exposure to sunlight damages skin cells. Unlike the body, a wedding dress cannot manufacture new cells and silk fibers, so the fabric degrades. Granted, the fibers of silk or more like hair fibers than skin cells. But we've all seen sun damaged hair. I think Pottery Barn is doing it's customers a huge disservice by selling silk dupioni drapes this season. They will disintegrate. But I digress.
In my experience, plastic is a major part of the problem with storing natural fibers like silk satin and charmeuse. Silk is a natural fiber and needs consistently dry, coolish (60-70 F is ideal) air for long term storage. Silk stored in plastic bags and boxes will still react to temperature change as the gasses in the bag expands and contract with the temperature: the silk fibers will expand and contract too, but never have fresh air circulating around them. Like an Egyptian tomb of depleted air. I learned this the first time the hard way: I stored a perfectly wearable, albeit delicate, sage green silk 20's party dress in a zippered plastic bag. When I took it out of storage about 5 years later, the silk literally shattered and disintegrated in my hands. Since then, I've learned from experts about silk storage and haven't had any more first hand disasters!
A note on garment bags: I make my own by purchasing 100% cotton, white twin-size flat sheets for a few dollars on sale at Target or Ross. (these are for client bags. For my own, I get cotton sheets at the thrift store). The edges are all nicely finished for me. All I have to do is fold one in half length wise, stitch up the long side and then along "top" of the bag, skipping two inches in the middle leaving a hanger opening. I leave the bottom open, but a zipper could be added. One can turn and press the seam, or not, depending on how necessary it is to have a "finished" bag. Moths, are of course, equally nightmarish to silk. I use tulle to make little net bags for moth balls, tie a ribbon at the "neck", and hang it from the hanger, over the cotton sheet garment bag.
Finally, for all bias silk gowns, it's a *MUST* that they *NEVER* be stored long-term hanging at the shoulder, as you would hang any dress. Silk on bias, over time, hung on a hanger, will stretch so much that the dress which started off as a size 10 for a 5'6" woman will become a size 4 for a 6'5" woman. (It's not that women were so much taller and thinner in the 30's--poorly stored gowns have stretched!)
The way to avoid this is to start with plastic pants hangers, and very thickly pad the horizontal bar with terry cloth--dishtowels are great. Then drape the dress through all the of the hangers, so that there are roughly 10 vertical inches of dress draping between the hangers. Loosely secure the hanger necks together with a ribbon or some such, and then store the dress in a cotton garment bag.
I don't feel that these types of gown should be folded as the long silk fibers tend to become weak at creases over time, and it's inevitable that age will begin to show at the folds. The heavily padded hangers keeps these creases from ever forming.
Anyway, my two-cents on wedding gown storage. :-)-Kim
www.SilkPoppy.comCustom Reproduction Vintage Clothing1920's, 30's, & 40's
You're dead right about light, especially sunlight. Exposure to the radiation erodes the fibers, in much the same way that exposure to sunlight damages skin cells. Unlike the body, a wedding dress cannot manufacture new cells and silk fibers, so the fabric degrades. Granted, the fibers of silk or more like hair fibers than skin cells. But we've all seen sun damaged hair. I think Pottery Barn is doing it's customers a huge disservice by selling silk dupioni drapes this season. They will disintegrate. But I digress.
In my experience, plastic is a major part of the problem with storing natural fibers like silk satin and charmeuse. Silk is a natural fiber and needs consistently dry, coolish (60-70 F is ideal) air for long term storage. Silk stored in plastic bags and boxes will still react to temperature change as the gasses in the bag expands and contract with the temperature: the silk fibers will expand and contract too, but never have fresh air circulating around them. Like an Egyptian tomb of depleted air. I learned this the first time the hard way: I stored a perfectly wearable, albeit delicate, sage green silk 20's party dress in a zippered plastic bag. When I took it out of storage about 5 years later, the silk literally shattered and disintegrated in my hands. Since then, I've learned from experts about silk storage and haven't had any more first hand disasters!
A note on garment bags: I make my own by purchasing 100% cotton, white twin-size flat sheets for a few dollars on sale at Target or Ross. (these are for client bags. For my own, I get cotton sheets at the thrift store). The edges are all nicely finished for me. All I have to do is fold one in half length wise, stitch up the long side and then along "top" of the bag, skipping two inches in the middle leaving a hanger opening. I leave the bottom open, but a zipper could be added. One can turn and press the seam, or not, depending on how necessary it is to have a "finished" bag. Moths, are of course, equally nightmarish to silk. I use tulle to make little net bags for moth balls, tie a ribbon at the "neck", and hang it from the hanger, over the cotton sheet garment bag.
Finally, for all bias silk gowns, it's a *MUST* that they *NEVER* be stored long-term hanging at the shoulder, as you would hang any dress. Silk on bias, over time, hung on a hanger, will stretch so much that the dress which started off as a size 10 for a 5'6" woman will become a size 4 for a 6'5" woman. (It's not that women were so much taller and thinner in the 30's--poorly stored gowns have stretched!)
The way to avoid this is to start with plastic pants hangers, and very thickly pad the horizontal bar with terry cloth--dishtowels are great. Then drape the dress through all the of the hangers, so that there are roughly 10 vertical inches of dress draping between the hangers. Loosely secure the hanger necks together with a ribbon or some such, and then store the dress in a cotton garment bag.
I don't feel that these types of gown should be folded as the long silk fibers tend to become weak at creases over time, and it's inevitable that age will begin to show at the folds. The heavily padded hangers keeps these creases from ever forming.
Anyway, my two-cents on wedding gown storage. :-)-Kim
www.SilkPoppy.comCustom Reproduction Vintage Clothing1920's, 30's, & 40's
