What warranty do you offer? We include a 30 day money back guarantee on the cleaning and preservation of your gown. If you are not satisfied, simply return the gown and we will re-clean and preserve it. If you are still not satisfied, return the preservation materials, and your purchase price will be refunded. We also offer a lifetime warranty on oxidation spots and yellowing. If your bridal gown ever develops oxidation spots, or yellows, you may return the gown to us to be re-cleaned and preserved at no charge (excluding shipping costs.) With our preservation methods, you can inspect your gown very easily.

Which preservation method is best: Museum Method or boxed? Museum Method (hanging) will keep your gown in the best overall condition and requires less maintenance than boxed preservation. Therefore we always recommend Museum Method Preservation over boxed preservation all things being equal. If closet space is a problem, boxed preservation is also very good and all of our boxes fit under standard beds.

How long will it take to have my gown cleaned and preserved? Please allow 6 - 12 weeks for cleaning and preservation. However, if you would like your gown rushed, we may be able to accomodate you. Please call to ask about rush service. Occasionally, we may go over 12 weeks, particularly during our busiest season. We may need additional time for gown restorations.

How and when do I pay for gown cleaning and preservation? How: When we receive your gown, we inspect it and verify the that the estimate is correct. We will then send you an invoice via email which will include the proposed treatment plan and any risks or concerns that we have for your gown. You can click and pay online or print the invoice and send a check or money order to us for payment. When: We clean and preserve gowns in the order that they arrive. Our normal processing time is 6 - 12 weeks. However, gowns that have not been paid for are skipped over, as we prefer to ship gowns immediately after finishing them. An unpaid invoice may result in a delay in processing.

Will a wedding gown be damaged from hanging with Museum Method preservation? The gown is not damaged from hanging for several reasons: a. Much of the weight of a bridal gown is in the train. We roll the train up in acid-free tissue and then the rolled train sits at the bottom of the bag, so that the shoulders of the gown do not bare the weight. b. We also hang the gown on a shoulder size hanger, and because the bodice is stuffed with tissue, the gown is supported all around. It is similiar to the gown being worn by a person: the body supports the gown, instead of a thin hanger. c. Lastly, when we do have a particularly heavy gown, we sew twill tape straps inside the lining of the gown at the top of the skirt as reinforcement to help bare the weight of the gown. Very few gowns are so heavy that they require this support.

What is Wet cleaning? And what are the advantages? Wet cleaning is simply cleaning with water and you may be able to safely hand wash your gown yourself. Wet cleaning has several advantages. It is the best cleaner for sugar spills and most food stains. If the dress has been well rinsed, wet-cleaning leaves no chemicals on the dress, which will help keep the dress in the best possible condition. Water washing removes the fabric sizing (a starch like substance added to fabric during manufacturing.) Removing the sizing helps protect the gown, because sizing is enticing to mice and insects.

What is sugar treatment? Do you offer it? Some preservation companies promote a special sugar treatment to remove sugar substances. Sugar treatment is simply identifying and removing sugar substances from the garment with water before dry-cleaning. Dry-cleaning solvents do not remove sugar substances. Oftentimes these substances may be overlooked because they dry clear on the garment and are not noticed. But if not removed, they will darken over time. Whenever possible, we hand clean wedding gowns using a wet process treatment. This process removes all sugar substances. For garments that we dry-clean we use a special infrared light to identify unseen sugar substances on the wedding gown and pretreat the area before the gown is dry-cleaned. So all sugar substances are removed from the wedding gowns that we clean and preserved.

How does Museum Method protect my gown? Our acid free 100% cotton cover protects the dress from dust and light, and allows the dress to breathe protecting it from mildew. Acid free tissue helps to keep acid migration from damaging the dress. The acid free environment helps keep the dress from yellowing. The shoulder size padded cotton hanger helps to keep the gowns shape. Because the gown is not folded, it is protected from permanent creasing damage.

How are strapless gowns preserved with Museum Method? Cotton twill tape is sewn into the lining of strapless gowns, making cotton straps to support the gown. We also sew these straps into dresses with spaghetti straps or any dress with little or no shoulder strength. Cotton twill tape straps are also used in other areas for exceptionally heavy dresses. These cotton straps can be easily removed with a seam ripper if the dress is to be worn again.

Does your method keep the dress looking white? Or is yellowing just inevitable as it gets older? Some fabrics do yellow a little as they get older. Silk and nylon, in particular, have a tendency to do so. However, the greatest cause of yellowing bridal gowns is leaving the dress in the plastic bag that the dress came with or a drycleaner's bag. Plastic gives off fumes that actually cause yellowing.

5. Why is it important to inspect your dress periodically? Many dresses which look clean after the wedding have stains appear on them after a few months or years. These may have been caused by spills which dry clear but turn brown over time. Dry-cleaning solvents won't remove all substances and unless they are pre-treated they can oxidize and turn brown. By inspecting your dress from time to time, you may catch some of these stains forming and have them removed before they become too difficult.

How do I ship my dress to you to have it professionally cleaned and preserved? After you receive an estimate for our services, you can order preservation and we will send you a shipping box, shipping instructions and a pre-paid UPS label. You then drop your boxed gown off to any facility that accepts UPS, such as UPS Store or Mailbox Etc. After we receive your gown at our California facility we will confirm the estimate and send an invoice to you for payment. You pay nothing until you have a firm price for our services. We then clean and preserve your gown, and ship it back to you signature delivery by UPS.

I am concerned about sending my gown across the country. How safe is my gown? We regularly receive and ship all over the country without any problem. UPS does a great job in safely transporting your treasured packages. We also offer UPS insurance for peace of mind in shipping.

Can I send a check or money order for my preservation or catalog purchase? We accept checks, money orders and credit cards for preservation sales. After we receive your garment we will send you an invoice for services ordered with payment instructions. We do not accept checks for catalog purchases, but we do accept money orders and credit cards. To purchase items from our catalog with a money order, add the items you desire into your shopping cart, click on the checkout link, fill in the form using your shipping address in the billing address area. Fill in the credit card information with any random numbers, then click on confirm order. Print out this page, which will include your shipping costs and any taxes, and send it along with the total amount in a money order to: Heritage Garment Preservation 480 McCall Dr. Benicia, CA 94510

How do you ship the dress back to me if I have it preserved with Museum Method (hanging preservation?) The bagged gown is folded over once, to fit inside our very large shipping box (36 X 24 X 12). You hang the bag as soon as it arrives, so that the time it is folded is minimal.

How difficult is it to preserve my gown myself with the Do-it-yourself kit? The Museum Method kit is not difficult to use. We include instructions with your kit that take you step by step through the process and we are more than happy to answer any questions you have as your preserve your gown by calling us at 866-268-4696. You may also send an email to us at support@heritagegown.com.

How are the veil, headpiece and purses stored with Museum Method Preservation? The veil is hung down the back of the wedding gown with cotton twill tape. This keeps it in the best condition possible. Purses are also suspended this way. The headpiece may be wrapped in acid-free tissue and suspended, or placed in the bottom of the bag depending on the size and shape of the headpiece.