How can I get a 30 yr old wedding dress white again?
Bee from LA
I found what looked like a wad of curtain material, all brown and nasty in a collection of odds and ends from a trunk that my in-laws had. I decided to soak it in warm water and some Woolite. I left it in for about an hour or more and when I took it out it was an off white dress! I realized that it was my mother in law's wedding dress back from the late 1920's. I let it drip over a plastic strainer, and hung it up to dry on a plastic hanger. I didn't iron it, but did fold it neatly in a clean shoe box and presented it to the eldest sister in law.
I have an old antique wedding dress from my grandmother. My mother also wore it in 1989 and it has been sitting in a plastic garbage bag, it has turned yellow and spots are "rust" My grandmothers friend made it for her in the 1951 it is cotton eyelet and organza. I think the buttons on the sleeve mixed with the buttons on the sleeves have caused this rust to occur.
My daughter would like to wear my wedding dress, it is 45 yrs. old. Surprisingly, the dress is a soft creamy white but there are stains on the bottom and one spill of something down one side in front. It is very similar in style as the latest styles, but it has 3/4 sleeves, and is pleasingly plain. There are sequins, beads and embroidery around the scalloped scoop neckline, and some of the same down the middle. It is very full with a crinoline underneath, a.train, princess style waist. The fabric is taffeta, I believe and is quite durable. Unbelievably
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Any ideas for how I can clean my dress? I attached the stock photo of it.
Thanks so much!
By stephanie from Anchorage, AK
Use vinegar to clean the dress. I had under arm stains on mine, the vinegar works just put it in the sun. After you apply the vinegar, it may take a few days. Re apply every day till spots ago away, good luck.
Gorgeous dress! I'm sure you can use some type of fabric steamer to deodorize and get small specks of dirt out. If you know anyone who has a hand held shark steamer that would be perfect since it has a fabric attachment.
After my daughter's bridal portraits were made, we noticed a few blemishes on her gown; including grass stains. We took the gown to the bridal shop that it was purchased from for suggestions and the owner pulled out a container of Clorox "Bleach free" disinfectant wipes and proceeded to clean every blemish; even the grass stains. She stated it could even be used on colors. I never would have believed it if I had not witnessed it firsthand. Needless to say, I now keep these wipes in my home and office just for this purpose. If you are skeptic and I wouldn't blame you for being so, with your wedding gown, try this on another piece of clothing in your wardrobe. Congratulations on your upcoming marriage. Remember, if you try this, bleach free wipes.
Use baking soda, with a clean tooth brush. This will absorb the stains and dirt spots, then wipe with dry fluffy towel The gown is beautiful, just beautiful!
I just took my preserved gown out of the box and there's a few yellow stains on it. How can I get rid of them?
I would take it to a professional. You could try to clean it with Woolite at home. You could fill a bathtub with warm water and woolite. Remove any buttons Put the dress on a sheet to minimize handling.
Yellowing is pretty normal for stored items, especially if any plastic was involved.
I have wedding dress for my daughter to wear. It has some dusty type stains on the bottom from a barn wedding. How can we safely clean it?
Dry cleaner wanted 150 and 3 months. We need it in 2 weeks.Dry clean only is probably because of the intricate bodice.
Hope you are able to enjoy the wedding with no one the wiser.
How would I go about cleaning an old wedding dress (30+ years) at home? Could I use the Dryel and do all the metal and buttons need to come off?
By Pam C. from Appleton, WI
What is the dress made of-chiffon, silk, shantung, satin, velvet, what? Is there beading or delicate embroidery on the dress-it's not just buttons and metal that can cause a problem in cleaning as lustrous beading and embroidery likely contain metals also, to add the lustre.
How much fabric is in the dress-is it going to be extremely heavy (and thus unmanageable) when saturated with the cleaning fluid? Read the Dryel label to see if you can clean your fabric with it, and don't be surprised at any disclaimers absolving them of responsibility should the cleaning job be unsatisfactory-there may be hidden stains from spills, perspiration, etc, that cleaning will unfortunately expose for all time.
If you can afford it, a professional fabric restoration service would be the best way to clean an heirloom wedding gown.
How can I clean my wedding dress at home?
By Diana from Lincoln
How do I get a stain out of my wedding dress? It is white satin and lace. The stain is along the bottom, It's probably grass and mud stains.
If it is washable - there is great stuff called ZOUT - which was orginally made for grass stains on things like kids sports uniforms - Try it on a small are before you clean it otherwise - Most "satin" nowadays is polyester - yours probably is, too - & easier to clean than silk -
I use one scoop of Oxy Clean (or other brand thereof) to 1 cup warm water in a spray bottle I bought at the dollar store. DO NOT shake to mix as it will bubble and fizz. Once the powder is mixed, spray on the stain liberally and blot up excess with dry towel.
This has taken care of countless organic stains problems and also works GREAT for pretreating laundry, cleaning windows of "dog nose spots" (followed by standard window cleaner to get rid of streaks), and so many other pre-treat issues that we've had. It's by far more cost effective than over-the-counter treatments, and isn't just a uni-tasker!
Alicia.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mothering is my chosen profession.
Proud mother of:
one Heavenly Angel (3/14/04 - 3/15/04)
one Earthly Angel (11/10/04)
one Angel in the Making (1/17/07)
vinegar should take it out. Rose
How do you get tire marks out of a satin wedding gown?
By M.C. from Pine Bluff, AR
My sister-in-law gave me her gorgeous wedding dress to wear and I love it, the only problem is it has dark red embroidery and my future hubby and I do not want red of any sort in the wedding. Can a dry cleaner bleach out the embroidery to make it white? The fabric is 100% polyester as is the lining.
By Anna A
Do you guys know how to whiten dresses that have yellowed with age because I want to be able to wear my mother's dress for my wedding?
By Sveta from West Springfield, MA
I need help! I recently took my wedding gown to the dry cleaners and they told me my dress had too much bead work to be dry cleaned there and that the colour may run and ruin the white. They showed me what they were going to put it in and it looked like a glorified front loader washing machine. I need to wear the dress again for a parade in two weeks and am unsure how to get it clean!
By Alice
I have a satin wedding dress that has had its train walked on by the family dog. A few muddy paw prints are in place. The wedding is in a few weeks. Please help.
By Carmel
I am getting married in a couple months and I have a wedding dress that is 100% polyester and the lace is 100% rayon on 100% nylon. It is 7 years old. How can I safely clean it? It says do not wash, do not dry clean, spot clean only.
The lace is very dirty at the bottom and throughout the dress it does look dirty. How can I safely clean the dress? And the lace also has beading. I am very worried and don't want to have to buy another dress. Please help!
By Danielle
I have kept my mother's pale pink, lace wedding dress with pearl buttons. I would like to wear it to my son's wedding in a couple of weeks, but it has a large dark yellow/almost orange age stain on the front. How can this be removed without altering the original colour of the dress?
Desperate Susan from Sydney, Australia