Wedding Dress Dry Cleaning & Preservation

What is the difference between wedding dress cleaning and wedding dress preservation?

Wedding dress cleaning renews the wedding dress and prepares it for preservation. Wedding dress preservation is the packaging of the wedding dress in a 100% acid-free preservation chest and wrapped in 100% acid-free tissue paper to prevent yellowing and deterioration of the fabric over time.

Does my wedding gown need to be cleaned or preserved?

If you choose to donate your wedding gown after your wedding, please ask us to perform a cleaning before passing it on. However, if you choose to reuse your wedding dress for your fifth, tenth, fifteenth wedding anniversary, or to pass it down to your future daughter or daughter-in-law, then ask us for a wedding dress preservation to also be done.

When should I get my wedding gown cleaned?

It’s very important that you clean your wedding dress as soon as possible so as to prevent stains from setting in. The longer you wait, the more difficult they become to remove.

Who is qualified to perform wedding gown cleaning?

Wedding dress cleaning should only be performed by a professional wedding gown specialist like us. We have received training and certification from a renowned and respected organization. Many dry cleaners will say they’re specialists when they have never been trained. Often times they will accept wedding gowns and then send them away to be cleaned at another location.  We know what we are doing, we pay attention to detail and we are well versed in wedding gown fabric and construction.

Lesa Diehl, manager of My Tuesday Wedding, has received her training from two institutions. The first is the Association of Wedding Dress Specialists in Boston and the second is A.L. Wilson & Company in Chicago, who do seminars on cleaning and restoration of wedding gowns.

How do you perform wedding gown cleaning?

We first inspect the wedding dress so as to identify areas that need special attention. All beads, sequins, or crystals are inspected making sure none are missing or broken. The bodice and body of the wedding dress are also checked from back to front to identify any stains.


The hemline is inspected so as to determine type and degree of soiling as well as signs of tears and signs of wear. Lastly, each layer is checked for length, soiling and condition.

The second step in wedding gown cleaning is to perform pre-treatment. At this stage, all visible stains are treated with a special solution formulated for wedding dresses. Each spot or stain is individually treated and the hem is hand-treated for soiling.

Afterwards, it’s time for the actual wedding dress cleaning. A wedding dress that is lightly-sequinned or has no sequins is cleaned by itself in the dry cleaning machine with no other garments included. This machine uses fresh distilled cleaning solution to preserve the integrity of the wedding dress. Fully-sequined or heavily beaded wedding dresses are hand cleaned to protect the decoration.

Then the wedding dress is steamed to make it easier to identify stains or yellow marks that were not visible before the cleaning. The wedding gown is also inspected for any open seams or missing buttons which are then repaired or replaced. Wedding dress cleaning also requires a finishing process. The wedding dress is re-steamed and renewed to appear as close to “like new” as possible.

I live outside British Columbia. How do I find a wedding dress specialist in my area?

Check the Association of Wedding Dress Specialists’ website for professional preservationists in your hometown. Also, try asking bridal stores or expert wedding planners in your community. Lastly, check google reviews and ask recently married couples for recommendations.

Is the process of wedding dress cleaning environmentally safe?

My Tuesday Wedding strives to be eco-conscious at all times by ensuring our practices are compliant with all environmental regulations.  With regards to wedding dress cleaning, we employ the use of the K4 Cleaning System and its solutions. The solution itself is an organic, corn-based substance that is both water soluble, non-hazardous and halogen-free. More importantly, it has been awarded the USDA Bio-Preferred product label.