While it's true that I have ruined some nice vintage dresses in my life, I am happy to say that I have saved many more. This dress just may be my best save to date. When I first saw it I saw right through it's flaws - it was a wrinkled mess, it was crunchy, yes, crunchy, and it suffered completely from all over foxing (when mold or tiny rusty particles speckle the fabric). I thought that foxing was the kiss of death really, but since the dress was this warm yellow color I felt that the stains weren't as noticable as if the dresses were other colors. So I bought the dress, for $30. Oh did I mention that I tried it on and it fit like a total dream? So I took it home and since I really only had $30 wrapped up in it, I figured I would try and remedy her flaws. I laid her down trepidaciously in a shallow bathtub of water and the tiniest amount of bleach (!). I was pretty worried since the dress has this dressmaker-paper lining, but that stuff didn't budge and held up like a champ. Then I rinsed the dress with water and some vinegar. The dress felt like 50lbs wet I swear and I was also scared that the pretty folds would fall out so I laid it flat on a blanket in the sun to dry. And she dried...with NO STAINS! Success! She's alive! And I'll wear this beautiful thing to a wedding in Maine, this October. ♥
22 comments:
Wow! Such an amazing dress! You're making me think I should have bought this sweet baby blue lace 50s wiggle dress that needed some work....
Fantastic! Some vintage dresses just feel awful washing in the bathtub. It can be stressful. Thank goodness you pushed through it because this dress is gorgeous.
Oh my, what a beautiful save!
I know that certain things can really wreck some fabrics, but generally I think that good old fashioned washing/soaking without anything frilly will solve almost any stain. It's a matter of will!
You win some, you lose some. This is a win! Thanks for sharing this.
Wow, that dress is a dream....I can't believe you saved it! With my luck, I would have ended up ruining it.
well done! i wouldnt have dared trying to rescue! very interesting, gave me courage to try rescue some beautiful garments myself.
love kerry
http://alittlefashionromance.blogspot.com
Oh my lands, this dress has stolen my heart! That is so beautiful! Nice work :D
Can't wait to see it on. That dress is certainly a stunner.
Oh! What a lovely dress! Not too long ago I bought a "project" (a gorgeous blush pink 1950s cocktail dress) that is in a very similar state...including the dreaded dressmakers paper lining. I've been trying to muster the courage to attempt some sort of cleaning, but it's scary! I'm glad your attempt was successful. It gives me hope that sometimes these things can work! :)
Oh my goodness, it's so beautiful! You have the magic touch! :) xx
http://pretty-odds-and-ends.blogspot.com/
Wow! That was a miracle! It looks great! Once a dress is past a certain point-of-no-return I don't feel too bad about trying to fix it... Worst case, it's just as unwearable as before, and best case, it turns out like this!
you are truly an artist!!
Sarah
theantiquepearl.blogspot.com
so amazing. you are way more adventurous with bleach than i am. i need to learn.
amazing. i love it. can you be a little more specific what was "a little" bleach. a cap full? thanks.
wow what a gorgeous dress and color!!! I love the silhouette!
Wow, it's gorgeous. It's a lovely feeling to bring something vintage 'back to life'.
I'd love to know a bit more about how you clean and care for your vintage garments. I've just bought a dress which has a dark stain on it and would be interested to learn some tips on how I might improve it!
I was just looking searching the web on silk cleaning tips and all. And they mention to vinegar! so it is true. I have some stubborn stains to fight myself. I'm still learning.
Your dress looks marvelous and you will look like a star!
0.0 it's beautiful!!
Amazing! Such an incredible save, it's beautiful.
SO gorgeous, I cannot believe the skirt. show stopper!
What an amazing restoration job. The dress looks just beautiful :)
The draping on that dress rivals couture! Absolutely stunning. Do you happen to know when and by whom it was made?
Take lots of photos when you wear it!
- Catherine at Littlehouse of Style
http://littlehouseofstyle.blogspot.com/
Post a Comment