Your big day has finally arrived, you’ve been planning for your wedding for months now and everything is in place, your guests are on their way and all you need to do is slip into your dream wedding dresses that everyone is going to be wowed by!

But… Why is there always a but? What if the unthinkable happens on your and your partner’s special day and you end up spilling something on your mermaid wedding dresses and staining it? It’s a well-known fact that whenever we wear something white, stains gravitate towards us and there is no exception, not even on your wedding day!

The best piece of advice we can offer when it comes to stains on your wedding dress is to prepare for the worst, remember there is always a way to resolve a situation and most importantly, stay calm! Of course, one of the easiest ways to avoid spilling anything down your beautiful white wedding dress is to put in place a few prevention methods. We recommend the following:

When getting ready be sure to do your hair and apply all makeup BEFORE putting on your dress.

If you need to lift your dress over your head when putting it on, a silk cloth over your face will prevent any of your makeup rubbing off.

Don’t eat or drink anything whilst wearing your wedding dress

As with any clothing, different stains need different treatment and below we have outlined a selection of the most common stains you are likely to end up with on your wedding dress.

Makeup – If during a quick makeup touchup during your wedding day you end up with a drop of foundation or lipstick on your dress, grab a stain remover wipe asap and the stain will be gone before you know it. Nobody will ever know!

Ink-based stains – You’re at your wedding venue, signing the marriage license, when the pen leaks all over your dress! For this, you will need the rubbing alcohol and a couple of white cotton cloths from your emergency stain remover kit. Use one cloth to blot the stain dry and then apply the rubbing alcohol to the other cloth to lightly dab the stain.

Water-based stains – We have already mentioned red wine once but if you do end up with it on your dress, use one cotton cloth to absorb as much of the stain as possible and then soak another cloth (or a cotton bud if it’s only a spot) in warm water before dabbing the area until the stain begins to fade. Remember, red wine is notoriously difficult for getting out so if you can’t remove the entire the stain there and then, pop a bit of white chalk over it to hide the mark for the remainder of the day.

Oil-based stains – Whether it’s a drop of salad dressing or a piece of oily food that ends up in your lap during your wedding breakfast, be sure to sprinkle it with baby powder quickly to soak up the oil. If required a drop of rubbing alcohol on a cotton bud should remove any remaining residue.

Chewing gum – This one is a little more unlikely but if somehow you do end up with gum stuck to your dress, ask someone at your venue to get you some ice cubes and hold it to the gum until it hardens, making it easy to scrape off.

It is always advised to have your wedding dress professionally cleaned. However, if you are looking to clean it yourself at home, you could try spot cleaning the out layer only or soaking the individual layers in a bath of warm water and detergent for a couple of hours before hanging them out to try.

Depending on your wedding dress material, you might be able to clean it at home but we would always recommend having it professionally cleaned to avoid any irreversible damage. Also, it’s a lot less stressful if you leave it to the professionals!

Clean stains from bridal wedding dresses