(http://drycleaningtips NULL.com/2012/01/19/wedding-dress-plastic-bag-beware-of-mold/img-20111109-00028-2/)Two wedding dresses, that were once beautiful and vibrant, were recently shipped to Jeeves with mold issues.
Both dresses were sent from a different, devastated bride in a quandary. Initially, they both thought that restoration of their dress was impossible, given the amount of mold that had infected each one.
For each dress, the mold issue could have been avoided, had it not been placed in a plastic bag whilst damp for transportation after the wedding.
The first dress, took a dip in the Caribbean, along with the bride and groom, as the photographer choreographed a sunset portrait. When the dress emerged from the sea, only the hem was wet. The dress was then zipped up inside the plastic garment bag, sealing the moisture in, where it sat in St. Maarten for a week. When the bride arrived home, to New York, the hem of the dress was covered in black mold.
The problem with the second dress, started innocently enough. A smudge of cake frosting on the front was washed away, with bottled water, after the reception. The bodice was more than damp, and the dress was placed in the plastic garment bag for shipping back to New York. Once the dress arrived, a greenish, black mold had infected the top of the dress.
Both dresses could be restored, but the results were mixed. About 90% of the mold was removed from the dress that swimming in the sea, where as, a full 100% of the mold was removed from the other dress. A tremendous amount of additional time and labor was needed for both restoration projects, which added hundreds of dollars to the original fee.
Here is a guide for all brides. Four things are necessary for mold to grow.
1. Moisture.
2. Heat.
3. A closed environment.
4. Time (Mold starts growing in 72 hours).
Jeeves does not recommend that you store ANY garment in plastic, especially your wedding dress. If your bridal gown has gotten wet or damp on your wedding day, please let it air dry before placing into any garment bag. A short time after your wedding, you should consider having your dress cleaned, as stains and soil will be more difficult to remove the longer you wait.
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