Timings

Ideally, your first alteration fitting would normally be 6 to 8 weeks before your wedding.
It is useful to take the following with you:

• The actual shoes you will be wearing on the day
• The bra you will be wearing (If you are not having one, may we suggest pop ins?)
• Any body shape garment you may wear
• Your hoop/ petticoat (if using one)

You would then expect to have a final fit appointment within 2 weeks of your wedding date.

Alterations

On purchasing a gown from our designer outlet, your stylist will advise on any alterations that may be required, i.e. length, petticoat style required, bodice alter, change from zip to corset back and so on. Bradgate brides utilise an excellent husband and wife alterations team who rent our fitting room on Fridays and Saturdays. any work carried out is strictly between yourself and them including the booking of appointments. you can also contact them and visit their own shop which is based in Aylestone, Leicester. for further information or contact details please email us info@bradgatebrides.com or call for details 01162363388

Cleaning Your Gown

We advise our brides to have their dress cleaned as soon as possible after use. Cleaning removes stains that may not be visible now but may show later on, and also the cleaning fluid can be an insect deterrent. We can give you a quotation without any obligation. Just drop off your gown to us when you are ready. We will then obtain a quote, but will only go ahead once we have confirmed it with you. Costs are around £95 for gowns up to £1,200.

Store your gown away from light, heat and damp. Store it in a warm, dry spare room that has no history of damp or insects – we don’t advise you keep your dress in the attic!

Always store in a pH neutral medium and pack with acid-free paper in an acid-free box (acid-free tissue will become acidic if not kept in an acid-free box.) For adequate protection, a storage box should be sturdy enough to protect from accident, eliminate light, and should be breathable (i.e. not plastic) and pH neutral (i.e. contain no acid or alkaline). Avoid storage boxes that are flat-packed (which do not provide sufficient protection), boxes with a ‘window’ that lets light in, and boxes with metal staples that may rust. Our storage boxes are approximately £70. We highly recommend  you get your gown cleaned and boxed for long-term storage.

Once packed away, check the dress every 6 months to ensure nothing untoward has happened to it, and re-pack it once a year to prevent any creases becoming too permanent.