How To Prepare A Wedding Dress For Self Storage

Storing your wedding dress in self storage? This article will help ensure that it stays in great condition so that when you want to view it, or sell it on, it’s as you left it.

The wedding dress is an iconic symbol of getting married, and is a central part of the experience of getting married. It’s the item so many women imagine themselves in when they think about getting married. That moment when you feel like a princess, and everyone is looking at you as you glide down the aisle to the love of your life. Even the process of choosing a wedding dress is where we make core memories, taking those most precious to us along for the experience. Once you wear the dress on your big day, it’s even more significant as it is what you have worn on an important day, a day that for many, is the best day of their lives.

A Wedding Dress Deserves Special Storage

Such an important piece of clothing deserves to be treated with care and consideration when it comes to being stored. It isn’t really the kind of item you can just thrust into the back of the wardrobe. It needs preparation, care and the ideal storage conditions if it’s going to remain in the best condition. For that reason, many people choose to keep their wedding dress in self storage. Self storage has a lot of useful benefits for storing important items like a wedding dress, including;

• Climate control
• Protection from environmental damage (flooding, fire etc)
• Protection from pests
• Enhanced security

Additionally, storing something large like a wedding dress helps to save space at home, especially when you can use local self storage to also keep seasonal clothing and other items that can be quite greedy in terms of the precious space at home that they consume. Plus it’s more affordable than you might think – just compare storage prices here to see what it would cost you.

When you store a wedding dress in self storage it is important to ensure that it is prepared properly for being stored in that way. Although it is in a great place to remain in good condition, there still has to be some preparation to ensure that it does not deteriorate or get damaged in any way.

To help you prepare your wedding dress for storage, follow these tips:

Clean Your Wedding Dress

Your wedding dress has to be cleaned before it is stored because dirt and debris can cause the material to deteriorate. Everything from a ‘cheers to the happy couple’ sticky bubbly stain, to mud on the bottom of the dress from outdoor photos, your dress needs to be as clean as possible before you store it. In most cases the dress will have to be professionally cleaned by a trusted company who knows how to do the job right.

Package The Dress With Care

Before you package the dress, make sure that it is bone dry as any moisture could cause it to grow mould and mildew, which stains and rots the fabric. The unit won’t have any windows so you don’t have to worry about sunlight causing fading, but exposure to the air or unsuitable packaging materials, and exposure to dust, can cause discolouring. For that reason, it is important to think really carefully about what you use to package your dress. Some experts recommend special boxes, some experts recommend the dress is hung and contained with a breathable garment cover. The choice is yours, but it is important to ensure that the dress is able to breathe, and that the material wrapping it is PH neutral.

Include Pest & Moisture Control With The Dress

It’s a great idea to include some pest and moisture control with the dress to help keep it protected if some sneaky moisture, moths or other pests find their way in. For most people, this would be some silica gel sachets and some moth repellent sachets.

Being extra-vigilant about the unit you choose (see below) will also help ensure you have the least possible chance of pests damaging your wedding dress.

Choose The Right Self Storage Unit

It is important you choose the right self storage unit so that you know your wedding dress is in the best place. Look for affordable self storage that is dry, in good condition, has great security and that is a great price. You can get units that are as small as a gym locker so you can get a unit that is only for your dress, or a bigger one to store other items along with your dress.

Transport With Care

Do take care when you transport your dress. If it is raining you may need to protect the box or bag as you take it to and from the car. It may sound a little bit extra, but it’s important so that the rain doesn’t undo all your efforts to ensure the dress is nice and dry.

Consider Where You Place It In Your Unit

Do think carefully about the placement of your dress in the unit. If it is in a box do not stack anything on top of the box and do not place it on top of shelving or piles of other things so that you don’t run the risk of it falling down. If you are hanging it, try not to place it on a rail where it could get crushed against other clothes or the wall. This could cause misshaping or deep creases if the dress is not moved for a long time.

Check The Dress Periodically

Do check the dress periodically to allow the unit to breathe, and to allow the dress to breathe. This will help avoid stagnant air impacting the dress, and ensure you catch any issues like mould or moth infestation nice and early, before any permanent damage has been caused.

You’re Ready To Store Your Wedding Dress

With the tips above you can ensure that your wedding dress is stored properly, so when it comes to looking at it, or selling it on, it’s in immaculate condition, just as you left it.