Cleaning Vintage 1950s Wedding Gown & What is this lining fabric called?

[BGVintage]

Hi Everyone,

Happy Friday! I have a 1950s silk satin wedding gown that is in great condition -- but the underneath of the train is a bit dirty from wear. I am usually pretty experienced with hand-washing and caring for vintage wedding gowns. Except this dress has a backed fabric of a heavy 'paper' like fabric. I've seen this lining before in a vintage Suzy Perette dresses, however, I do not know the name. Has anyone had experience cleaning or handling this fabric before -- also, please put me out of my misery of endlessly googling, what is the name of this fabric?

From my understanding if was added to the back of fabrics to give structure as a 'built-in' crinoline.

Thank you in advance and I look forward to hearing from you!

xo
Brooklyn

 

[MagsRags]

it might be Pellon

 

[bycinbyhand]

That old papery stiffener (pre Pellon) might disintegrate with cleaning, I'm afraid. I had that happen with a 50s circle skirt... no bueno.

 

[dollsntrolls]

Pellon can handle hand washing, but a dry cleaner will refuse because the chemicals will cause it to break down and clog their machinery.

 

[Vintagiality]

Definitely looks like Pelon. I have had mixed results with it. A few times it worked just fine and on one dress, it fell apart. I have no idea what the difference was but I just ended up removing the lining

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Yes, pellon isn't loved by dry cleaners, so I would handwash if you can (depending on the fabric).

I usually remove the damaged hem, undo it and cut off the minimum and rehem: it freshens it up. Unless you can soak the dress, the stains are almost always there for good and it looks so much better with a fresh hem.

 

[The Vintage Vendeuse]

Oh dear, IMHO, that looks like mold, not "dirty from wear".
I, like cin, think it looks more like the papery stuff often seen before Pellon became so widely used... and it was definitely more prone to molding.

 

[BGVintage]

Definitely looks like Pelon. I have had mixed results with it. A few times it worked just fine and on one dress, it fell apart. I have no idea what the difference was but I just ended up removing the lining

Sorry for the delay! I was overwhelmed with this dress and put it aside for a while. Thank you for identifying this fabric, it was driving me nuts. It seems rather sturdy so I might attempt to handwash it.

 

[BGVintage]

Pellon can handle hand washing, but a dry cleaner will refuse because the chemicals will cause it to break down and clog their machinery.

Good to know! Thank you -- I have a great dry cleaner but she has no idea what type of fabric this was either. So glad I didn't drop it off.

 

[BGVintage]

Yes, pellon isn't loved by dry cleaners, so I would handwash if you can (depending on the fabric).

I usually remove the damaged hem, undo it and cut off the minimum and rehem: it freshens it up. Unless you can soak the dress, the stains are almost always there for good and it looks so much better with a fresh hem.

The area is on the bottom of the train on the wedding dress, so maybe removing might be easier. The dress is in a great condition otherwise.

 

[BGVintage]

Oh dear, IMHO, that looks like mold, not "dirty from wear".
I, like cin, think it looks more like the papery stuff often seen before Pellon became so widely used... and it was definitely more prone to molding.

Yikes! Good point, I'll take a closer look at the dress this evening. Thanks Donna, I'll keep that in mind when examining the dress this time around.