Help needed with dating and cleaning an organza strapless dress

zannew

zannew

Registered Guest
Hello,

I found this lovely dress yesterday at an estate sale. I didn't see the condition issues until I got it outside in the light. There are brown discolorations on the white stripes. I don't know if they are rust, dirt or something else. The stripes feel like they are "painted" on the fabric or otherwise applied, not woven in the fabric. I think this is silk but not sure. There are some moth holes so I feel it is a natural fabric. What would you suggest for cleaning? Do you think I can salvage it?

Also, what is your age estimate? I believe if you click on the thumbnails below they will enlarge.

Thank you so much!







 
I think the white stripes may have originally been flocking. They seem soft to the touch and I think I can see some remnants of it.
 
Hmm...My first thought in looking at the body of the fabric would be organdy. Could it be cotton? If not, organza makes sense. Flocking also makes sense. The adhesive used to hold the flocking can brown over time...and I don't believe that you can remove that. Is the discoloration sort of a yellowish brown?

I would agree that it is not the easiest to date, but 40s seems right to me.
 
I'll go with early '50s as I haven't seen that piping technique used on earlier designs. It looks like silk organza and it's a heart breaker: I would gently hand wash but I think the discolouration is probably there to stay and the moth holes can't be fixed easily.

It's a beautiful dress, so if I were you I'd wash it and sell as is. I agree that it originally had a matching bolero.
 
Thank you for your replies. I believe I will try to hand wash it and see what happens. I really appreciate your help!
 
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