Trying to restore my mom's wedding dress to wear...any ideas??

[Fivecents]

That's special...I'm actually getting my mom to make my dress and incorporate pieces of her dress in mine....I can't wait!!

 

As for the discoloration and stains....I'll have to ask my mom if she has any ideas of any sorts for restoring you're dress, do you know what kind of material it's made out of. Depending on what kind of material, lace, silk, ect....you won't be able to use just anything on it.

[IrishgirlinNY]

The garment care location I brought it to said it was a polyester/nylon material. There are no tags on the inside at all, not even the size. I would greatly appreciate any help.

[Fivecents]

hey there.....sorry it took so long to get back to you with this....just spoke with my mom and here's what she told me. This can actually work, she did this to restore her friend's lace curtains that had stayed in the basement for years and was full of rusty spots due to water in basement.

 

Before trying it all over the dress, pick a small spot on the dress that is not noticeable......this way if it doesn't work...no damage done to the whole dress.....

 

sprinkle baking soda and then use a spray bottle, in the spray bottle put vinegar (just regular kind) clear. it will bubble, with your finger gently rub to make a paste....leave for an hour or two (she said few hours) and then hand wash......

 

She swears by it. she said that her friends lace curtains are better than new.

 

IF it does work on the small area you try...once it's all clean have it steam pressed or dry cleaned.....

 

GOOD LUCK! keep me posted if you decide to try this and if it did work.

[IrishgirlinNY]

Thank you so much for the idea. I will definitely try it this week. That would be amazing if it worked. I will definitely keep you posted after I try it. Thanks again. And thank your mom for me.

[IrishgirlinNY]

When your mom did this, did she do it the stains and the whole curtain? The dress has some stains on it but also will need an overall cleaning. Will this work for the whole dress or is this focusing in on stains? If it is on the stains, does she know of a possible way to just clean the dress or just do the whole dress with this process.

 

Thanks again for all your help (and your moms)

Shannon

[Fivecents]

Oh goodness, I'll have to get back to you on that one.

 

I know for sure it works on stains, but as for cleaning the whole dress once the stains are gone I'd say get it dry cleaned or steamed pressed.

 

But I'll ask.

[IrishgirlinNY]

So my fiance is on vacation next week and we are going to attempt this. Hopefully it all works. I will definitely let you know.

[roo66]

Oh i hope this works out,post some pictures of the dress before and after.Im sure as its a manmade fibre it will stand a delcate wash,even in the washing machine.I would try the stain removal first though cos there is the possibility you would set the stain if not.GOOD LUCK,sending you positive stain removing energy.xxxx

[alkoch]

Good luck definitely let us know & post pics!

[IrishgirlinNY]

So, I cleaned the dress. We actually used woolite in the washing machine in the gentle cycle. I was so amazed! It actually took out two of the big stains on the front of the dress. We then tried cleaning it with the baking soda and vinegar and then went really brave and tried oxyclean. The dress is actually just about as ivory as the dress was when my mother wore it 35 years ago. There is still one stain on the front, bottom of the dress. It isn't as dark as the others were, but is definitely noticable. We still have to see what we can do about that. Overall, the dress looks amazing! My mother would be so happy we took the chance to clean it ourselves. They were asking $1000 to clean it without the guarantee it would even work. Thank you so much for all the ideas. I think that one stain is just stubborn and I will have to live with it and figure something out.

Thanks again for all the ideas and advice. My mother would be so thrilled to see her dress this way!