Need Help with dress !!!! Beautiful 30's Art Deco ? Attached Necklace.

[suedward54]

Hi everyone ! I feel very privileged to have so much knowledge in one spot and I know will get steered in the right direction.
Long story short - bought a "Gorgeous" dress at an estate sale last week. Got it home and noticed water marks on it !!! Yikes! I believe it is 30's crepe with beautiful cutouts above bust and shoulders. Cotton shoulder pads, short zipper at neck in back and zipper at side. The dress has an attached beautiful copper necklace with glass dark blue stones. There is no designer label in the dress. Looks like lining was taken out probably due to being in bad shape. my problem is the water marks. The material is almost a two-tone, like a purple and navy blue, or may be it is a purple that is fading, because in some spots it it looks red and blue, hence purple. Any info would be helpful. The necklace is fantastic as is the cutouts. Original belt leather on backside, material on front.
Pictures included. Thank you,
suedward54

 

[cmpollack]

How lovely! I'm wondering if the beautiful necklace is original, though? It doesn't really follow the shape of the neckline (though again, it's really striking in its own right!)

With that combination of lace and crepe, I wouldn't think you have any choice but to take it to a good dry cleaner... It does look as though there's some color fade (it shows toward the hem in the full length photo). Also, where are those spots located? Any chance it's color bleed, from an improper cleaning/washing of the dress?

 

[Pinkcoke]

Hi Sue, it looks like your dress may be rayon crepe, which does not like to get wet, and it appears the colour ran when someone either tried to wash the garment or it got wet by accident. I think it was originally the same blue as the lace originally and the purple is fade. If dry cleaning does not remove the marks enough to wear as is, the best I can think of is attaching a fine overlayer of blue chiffon that matches the lace and would hopefully hide the marks. If they are only on the bottom, it may work just overlaying the skirt portion.

 

[Jonathan]

I recognize the problem - its because the crepe colour has migrated. It would have been the same colour blue as the lace inserts, but blue is a notoriously unstable from this period and it has shifted to the purplish colour (Wallis Simpson's blue wedding dress is now flesh tone beige). The uneven fade, with the spots may be due to water at some point. You won't be able to redye it, as Melanie said this is a material that doesn't like to get wet. It will shrink and misshapen, so you can just enjoy the dress the way it is.

 

[suedward54]

Thank you all for your input. It is a larger size dress with the bust measured at 41" waist 33" and hips 44". What a shame, I know better to buy the way I did. I usually take the item outside to view it in the proper light as the conductor of the sale had this placed in lighting so the spots did not show, i was so taken with the dress. Shame on me.