The Dry Cleaner

Co2 Dry Cleaning = Best Cleaning Available

Just Cavalli Jacket

Just Cavalli Jacket

Co2 dry cleaning vs. traditional dry cleaning. The difference will astound you!

Actually from a cleaning standpoint there is no comparison. Our Co2 dry cleaning process, Eco2 Cleanse does a better job no questions asked.

For the last three weeks the Jeeves’ technicians (who have over 77 years of collective experience) have been working with our new Co2 dry cleaning machine and everyone of them were “wowed” by the results.

And this crowd is not typically  “wowed” by anything.  Seeing the final result of the Eco2 cleanse process , turned these skeptics into true believers.

Garments that were impossible to clean properly, can now be cleaned beautifully.

At Jeeves we were working on a Just Cavalli outer jacket that was very soiled (and that is putting it kindly). Cleaning this garment was an issue because it has white leather trim, fur trim, down filling and a silk exterior.

Traditional dry cleaning would  ruin the fur. The use of  a wet cleaning process would distort the fabric of the outer jacket and hand cleaning would never remove all of the embedded soil.

Eco Cleanse to the rescue! My techs have figured out how to safely clean just about anything using Co2 and they benefit besides great dry cleaning…

  • Simply Green- No petrochemicals or perc. Garments are cleaned in the same substance that puts the “fizz” in soda.
  • Simply Clean- Whites stay white, dark colors stay dark and colors are vibrant.
  • Simply Better for You- Why expose your skin to harmful chemicals?

How Your Bridal Gown Can Last 200 Years

Cymbeline Bridal Gown, 2010

Cymbeline Bridal Gown, 2010

Actually this part is up to you.

The cleaning and preservation of your bridal gown after your wedding can only do so much. Yes, the first steps are proper cleaning and preservation, which includes acid-neutral materials and a porous storage vessel.

Sealed boxes and plastic should never be used. And of course the wedding dress should only be preserved if clean.

Assuring that your gown is stored properly is up to you.

Ideally an air conditioned and humidity controlled storage environment is ideal, but for many this may not be practical.

Storing your cleaned and preserved bridal gown in a basement is never good. Many basements may seem fine, but the humidity levels may be too high. This can lead to mold damage over time.

Attics are too hot. Excessive heat will break down textile fibers, so attics are a “no no”.

The best place for long term storage would be in an inside closet in a part of your home which is a part of living space. These areas are generally heated and air conditioned so you are giving your gown the very best storage conditions and the potential to last 200 years.

You should also open your gown vessel every two years to check the condition of  your dress. If you ever see anything that doesn’t look right, bring it back to the firm which took care of the cleaning and preservation for you. They should be able to advise you of any issues.

Please wash your hands or wear cotton gloves before you handle your preserved gown, you do not want the oils in your hands to transfer to your gown.

In need of bridal gown cleaning and preservation?

Jeeves of Belgravia, New York is recommended by both the Vera Wang Bridal House and the Bridal Salon at Bergdorf Goodman. Your man Jeeves will care for your gown unlike any other firm anywhere.

Your gown will be cleaned without the use of petrochemicals in our Eco2 Cleanse liquid carbon dioxide process. Eco2 Cleanse is the gentlest, greenest way to clean your bridal gown.

After cleaning your gown will be treated to Jeeves’ museum conservation method of gown preservation.

Jeeves offers complimentary pick-up in the New York City area and FEDEX shipping worldwide.

Give our bridal gown preservation department a call if you need additional information at 212-570-9130.

Bergdorf Goodman, Bridal Gowns & Jeeves New York

Oscar de la Renta gown at Jeeves

Oscar de la Renta gown at Jeeves

Your man Jeeves ran over to Bergdorf Goodman last week to meet with Nara the bridal manager. She was in need of having a few of her sample gowns cleaned to “freshen them up” for her clients.

Nara asked, if Jeeves would like to start with a simple gown or a more complex piece. Jeeves chose a most beautiful Oscar de la Renta gown with yards and yards of pleated silk trim. Jeeves always wants to impress on the first go around.

The Oscar gown was collected and transported to the Jeeves production facility where our head cleaning technician was awaiting it’s arrival.

The issues? A very soiled hem from all of “try on’s” at Bergdorf’s, a grayish cast from NYC dust and makeup around the neckline. Nothing tragic, but the gown was in need of cleaning.

A few hours later the gown was perfectly cleaned, and inspected. Off to the hand finishing area and into the hands of Roseanna.

Roseanna, who has been hand finishing gowns at Jeeves for over 15 years was hard at work. Her hand iron was a careful blur as each inch of the gown was gone over.

The result? Perfection.

Bergdorf’s had their Oscar back on Saturday before noon for a fitting. At last your man Jeeves had heard, they had made the sale.

Always a Bridesmaid

Always a BridemaidA few weeks ago I got a call at Jeeves from Xochitl at Always a Bridesmaid. Her client had just got married at the Plaza Hotel in New York City and the bridal gown needed to be picked up that day.

Not to worry, I told Xochitl and dispatched our Jeeves van to collect another stunning gown for cleaning and preservation.

Xochitl was so impressed with your man Jeeves, that we got together this week to chat.

Always a Bridesmaid is an absolutely wonderful bridal coaching and consulting service that helps with relieving the STRESS of planning the perfect wedding.

Xochitl and Mayra are terrific at what they do and make sure the wedding planning process is fun and that the best possible choices are made. After all they are experts committed to the success of your wedding day.

They also write Always-a-Blogs-Maid which Jeeves loves for wedding advice, ideas and tips.

Please do take a look.

If you are in need of bridal gown (or wedding dress) cleaning and preservation your man Jeeves is at your service.

Every step of our exclusive process will be attended to properly by Jeeves.

Jeeves is the exclusive provider of bridal gown cleaning for Vera Wang and has been selected as one of America’s Best Cleaners for the last two years running.

Jeeves Cleans 6 Vera Wang Bridal Gowns Overnight

Vera Wang Gowns at Jeeves NYC

Vera Wang Gowns at Jeeves NYC

Last week the Jeeves of Belgravia shop in NYC  got a call from the retail coordinator from the Madison Avenue Vera Wang store at 4PM in the afternoon.

Christine was in need of having 6 gowns cleaned as Vera Wang was coming in to the shop for an appointment, the only problem was that the gowns were needed for the next day.

We  dispatched our driver to Madison Avenue right away to get the gowns and put our production staff on hold. We were going to have to work late, very late.

The gowns were received by production and then the Jeeves staff starting the task of meticulously cleaning each gown. These were not the slim sheath gowns from the Vera Wang collection, these were gowns trimmed in lace, with lots of embellishments, and in need of hand-cleaning.

Many, many hours later into the night the gowns were cleaned and ready for the Jeeves hand finishing department who were brought in early the next day to complete the task.

Hours and hours of hand steaming and gentle hand ironing was the task at hand for the Jeeves ladies who make up this department. After a final inspection the gowns were whisked back to Madison Avenue, just in time for Vera Wang herself.

All in a days work for your man Jeeves.

Jeeves of Belgravia is the only garment care firm that is trusted to take care of the gowns from the Vera Wang Bridal House on Madison Avenue.

Jeeves is also listed as one of the best dry cleaners NYC by City Spur and has been selected as one of America’s Best Cleaners in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Bridal Gown Cleaning and Preservation, Part 3

Bridal Gown Detail

Bridal Gown Detail

So how can Jeeves of Belgravia guarantee that your bridal gown can last up to 200 years without deterioration or yellowing?

Well, the first step, which we talked about in the previous article, is proper cleaning. If stains are left on your gown they may “oxidize” or turn brown over time. Your gown should be cleaned within one month after your wedding if possible.

After cleaning your gown will be prepared for preservation. Sounds complicated? It really shouldn’t be.

Museum preservation is rather simple. Museum’s don’t use “nitrogen atmospheres” or “air tight chests”, they only allow the proper materials to come in contact with the textile.

In fact, if your gown is sealed in an “air tight chest”, you can never open it! When your daughter is 5 years old and wants to see your wedding dress, what do you do?

Jeeves of Belgravia’s preservation method is simple and involves;

  • Proper cleaning
  • Proper hand steaming and hand ironing
  • Acid-neutral storage vessel
  • Acid-neutral tissue
  • Un-bleached, un-sized organic cotton muslin

Your cleaned gown is packed into our acid neutral storage vessel which has been sized to fit your gown perfectly. As your dress is carefully placed into the vessel, any areas of your gown which need to be folded are cushioned with acid netural tissue to prevent permenant creases.

The bodice of your gown will be packed with acid nutral tissue to prevent crushing. Your gown is then wrapped in both a layer of acid neutral tissue as well a un-bleached, un-sized organic cotton.

After the cover has been placed on your gown the entire vessel is encased in organic cotton bag for extra protection.

What makes the Jeeves’ process unique is that we do not use any plastic, in fact plastic can trap moisture causing mildew. Also with the Jeeves’ process you may open your storage vessel to look at your dress at any time.

The last part of the process is up to you, this part will allow your gown to last up to 200 years.

Your gown needs to be stored in the proper place in your home. Jeeves asks that you do not store your gown in an attic (too hot) or a basement (too damp) and to open your vessel and check your gown every two years. If you are ever concerned about the condition of your gown, contact Jeeves at once.

Thanks for listening, Jerry Pozniak.

Wedding Dress Cleaning and Preservation, Part 2

Bride in bridal gown at castle

Bride in bridal gown at castle

So you have decided to have your bridal gown cleaned and preserved after your wedding. What actually happens to your bridal gown to make it last so long?

At Jeeves of Belgravia, New York City, our procedure for cleaning is as follows;

  1. Written pre-cleaning condition report.
  2. Pre-cleaning repair of any damage which may have occurred during wearing.
  3. Ultra-violet light inspection to discover “invisible stains”.
  4. Hand cleaning and treatment of all soiled areas and individual stains.
  5. Immersion cleaning with our Eco-Clean dry cleaning solution.
  6. Post cleaning “white glove” inspection. If soiling or stains remain the above steps are repeated.
  7. Hand steaming and hand ironing to preserve the original drape of your gown.
  8. Post steaming “white glove” inspection.
  9. Final inspection by bridal department supervisor.

Proper and complete cleaning is the first step towards the preservation process. After these steps are taken your bridal gown then goes to our preservation department.

Next week I will talk about the proper steps needed to guarantee that your wedding dress can be preserved for up to 200 years.

Thanks for listening, Jerry Pozniak

Jeeves of Begravia, NYC is “THE” source for bridal gown cleaning, preservation and restoration. Established in New York in 1981, Jeeves is the only world-wide garment care company with locations in; London, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Jakarta, and soon in Dubai.

Jeeves of Belgravia is the holder of the Royal Warrant as the dry-cleaner to HRH Prince Charles and Family.

Jeeves is one of only 40 garment care firms nationwide selected as one of America’s Best Cleaners.

Jeeves offers complimentary nationwide pick-up and delivery of your bridal gown, as well as world-wide shipping.

Wedding Gown Cleaning and Preservation, Part 1

Bridal Gown and flowers

Bridal Gown and flowers

Your wedding is over, and you are just back from your honeymoon. You hang your bridal gown on the back of your bedroom door. You want to have your wedding dress cleaned, but do you trust the dry cleaner that you use for your new husband’s shirts.

Wedding dresses are very special, probably the most special dress  you may ever buy. Not all dry cleaners have the experience to clean a wedding dress.

Yards and yards of silk satin, embellished with lace and Swarovski crystals can not be taken care of like your husband’s cotton shirts.

At Jeeves of Belgravia we take care of your bridal gown correctly, right from the start. When your gown arrives at our shop on 65th Street, just steps from Madison Avenue, a complete pre-cleaning condition report is written by our bridal gown consultant.

This condition report is important because it allows our consultant to discuss with you what we at Jeeves need to attend to. It is our intention to restore your gown as closely to it’s original condition as possible.

Do you think your local dry cleaner will give you a pre-cleaning condition report? Most dry cleaners idea of a condition report is a ticket that says, bridal gown, and maybe if you are lucky, indicates a stain or two.

This is not the way your bridal gown should be treated.

Thanks for listening, Gerald Von Pozniak, Managing Director.

Jeeves of Begravia, New York is “THE” source for bridal gown cleaning, preservation and restoration. Established in New York in 1981, Jeeves is the only world-wide garment care company with locations in; London, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Jakarta, and soon in Dubai.

Jeeves is one of only 40 garment care firms nationwide selected as one of America’s Best Cleaners.

Jeeves offers complimentary nationwide pick-up and delivery of your bridal gown, as well as world-wide shipping.

Sweet 16 Gown

Sweet 16 Gown with butter-cream frosting. (Before)

Sweet 16 Gown with butter-cream frosting. (Before)

The client who owns this gown had a great time at her Sweet 16 party last month. The only issue is that her friends thought it would be great to have her wear part of the cake.

Brought to us at Jeeves of Belgravia here in New York, was a wonderful party gown covered in butter-cream frosting. And the butter-cream was in a deep shade of green and bright yellow.

The cleaning technicians at Jeeves started their work at once before the food dye in the butter-cream would soak into the fibers and become permanent.

Making matters somewhat complex is that the design of the dress makes cleaning difficult as the applied flowers are very delicate.

Careful hand cleaning first as well as immersion in our Eco-Clean solution yielded a perfect result.

Special gowns need special care, left in the wrong hands this dress could have become a “nightmare” rather than a rather “sweet” Sweet 16.

Thanks for listening, Jerry Pozniak.

Sweet 16 Gown after Jeeves removed all traces of the frosting.

Sweet 16 Gown after Jeeves removed all traces of the frosting.

Pleats

cap6

“Clothes make the man”, or so I was told some time ago by my father, and more than likely ignored by myself.

After my firm acquired Jeeves of Belgravia I went to visit Elisa Niemtzow of Taste Generation to better understand how to dress and look my best. The first thing Elisa commented on was my pleated pants. “Pleats make your profile too wide, you need to wear flat front pants”, Elisa said.

Elisa said wide, I think “fat”.

I digress, Jeeves of Belgravia is the only world-wide garment care firm, with branches in New York, London, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Jakarta and soon in Bahrain as I must “toot” my own horn.

From a fashion perspective most style mavens suggest not wear pleated pants, they are dated and make most of us look heavy. Imagine that, heavy Americans.

In my opinion there is nothing worse than pleated pants that are tight and pull across the waist area.

Please wear pants that fit.

When you have your flat front pants cleaned you should let the person at the counter know if you would like them “creased” or not. The rule-of-thumb that we use at Jeeves of Belgravia is that flat front pants are not creased (they are rolled) and pleated pants get creased, but we always do as our clients ask.

By the way Elisa was right, now almost all of my pants are flat front and I wear a suit every day to work.

Pleats for women are another subject and I’ll talk about them next time.

Thanks for listening.


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