Owl Cleaners Preservation

er completely transformed my dress back to its original, pristine condition. When I came in to pick up my dress, I teared up! It looked so beautiful and made me feel all the happy feelings I felt from my wedding day, all over again. I HIGHLY encourage all Pittsburgh brides to go to Heather at Owl Cleaners. She puts so much detail and effort into making your dress absolutely gorgeous, all over again! What she did to mine was truly a miracle- haha. I cannot wait to hopefully one day share my dress (or parts of it) with my future daughter, granddaughter or nieces. Thank you Heather- you have such a gift!

dding. One way in capturing the essence of the day is the preservation and restoration of my wedding gown. Preserving and protecting the gown was just as important as purchasing the gown. An investment well spent deserves time and attention as the day “I said yes to the dress’. I located Owl Cleaners to help me with the preservation of my gown. I had the most wonderful experience with Owl Cleaners! Heather was amazing! At our first meeting, she carefully looked over my wedding gown, intricate detail, material, beads, patterns, and structure. Heather explained to me how the gown would be cleaned, package and preserved using the highest quality MuseumCare Preservations. From that point, I knew that I sealed the level of trust that my gown was going to be handled with the highest quality standards. When the gown was completed, Owl Cleaners sent me an email with the pictures of my newly preserved gown for me to review and approve. The gown was stunning and glistening!! In a few weeks, I was notified that my gown was ready for pick up. Upon my arrival, Heather presented me with my newly preserved wedding gown. It is preserved in a beautiful white box with a window that will allow me to view my beautiful wedding gown. The gown looked stunning and glistening!! It is absolutely gorgeous! The journey of my wedding gown captured the beauty and elegance of the day interwoven by the ‘echoes of love’ by my loving family and friends that helped make our wedding day so special!! My wedding gown will live for generations to come. Owl Cleaners has provided me the best dry-cleaning service I could ever ask for. The gown was given the best care possible; it was pristine and perfect in quality and appearance, just like the day I purchased my gown. Cathy and Tom 2022

n top of it all, Heather is such a wonderful and kind professional. I feel so fortunate to have found someone trustworthy, honest and knowledgeable.

, Heather was very nice and professional and made sure we were happy with the dress before she preserved it !!!, the box they put the dress in was very nice and sturdy , I had tears in my eyes just looking at her dress ,they did such a fantastic job I highly recommend them

for 5 years! I had actually intended to try to tackle it myself, then I changed my mind, but forgot about it. Needless to say it was dirty and had "sugar" stains in several places. The gown was heavily beaded and sequined lace over satin. It also had a beaded belt attached. Upon arrival at the Warrendale location, I was cheerfully greeted by staff members, Heather introduced herself, and the gown was inspected carefully, and problem areas were marked. Heather pointed out all of the issues, said they would do their best, and would carefully remove the belt, marking its position on the gown so it could be sewn back on exactly where it was. Keeping in mind this bride and groom had a really good time, as did we all, and so the dirt and grease on the hem of the gown's satin underlining was ground-in, and many of the sugar stains were almost brown after setting for five years. I didn't expect miracles...and Heather did not make any promises other than that her people would do their absolute best...but Owl Cleaners came pretty darn close to performing a miracle! About 4 weeks after I dropped it off, Heather called me to come and inspect the gown. I could hardly believe my eyes...Every sugar stain, regardless of how brown, was completely gone from the intricate lace overlay, the belt was exactly where it was originally, and although it did not need cleaning, the veil was carefully steamed and waiting to be boxed. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, some of that ground-in dirt left some subtle gray marks, but they did a great job considering how dirty that satin was, and those marks could barely be seen under the lace. Overall, I was thrilled with the result of their efforts. The gown, veil, and other items my daughter wanted in the box were then carefully wrapped in museum quality acid-free tissue and boxed in a big, white, windowed box. The box was then inserted into a muslin cover and tied with a silky braided cord, making a very pretty presentation. I wanted to use a local business for this endeavor, rather than to risk sending the gown off to New York, New Jersey, or California even though some of those places were less expensive. So during my research of cleaners in the Pittsburgh area that provide this service, Owl Cleaners had great reviews everywhere I looked. I can totally understand why! Thank you to Heather and everyone at Owl who had a hand in saving this beautiful gown and creating a lasting keepsake! So brides...don't wait...get that gown to Owl as soon as you come back from your honeymoon!

e else considering.

dress. She called the bridal salon where I bought my dress and asked her professional colleagues for opinions/ideas (all before even looking at the dress in person). Based on her discussions, we scheduled a consultation for her to get a feel for what could be done. They were able to test an area of the glitter and found no issues with losing any of it and continued the process. Even through the Coronavirus pandemic, Owl’s kept in touch on the status and answered all of my questions throughout. My dress came out PERFECT! It looks brand new. I couldn’t be happier.

They were very responsive through out the whole process. They were very friendly and respectful with my gown. I was kept informed through the entire process. It was unfortunate timing that I dropped my dress off and the same week the government shut down non essential businesses which made it difficult for Owl cleaners to get my dress done. Despite the difficulties they got it done in a timely manner and kept me informed the whole time. Heather, one of the owners, kept in close contact with me and sent me pictures of the dress through out the process. The finished product was absolutely exceptional. In addition to the excellent quality of service I received, the price was great as well! They were very reasonable for the quality of the product that I got in return. I could have gotten it done cheaper through David’s bridal or some other big box location, but I would not have gotten the quality with them as I did here. I would recommend any bride in the Pittsburgh area if you are looking for a reasonably priced place to get your dress beautifully preserved to go to with Heather at Owl Cleaners!

t out of the store result!! The color was back to the original and there was not one stain in sight - anywhere. Most amazing was the feel of the organza fabric - it had been stiff from age, and now it is as soft as if it was just taken from the cloth bolt to be made into a dress for the first time. It truly was as if it was brand new - but better! HIGHLY recommend!!!

ting your gown preserved because I feel you would be missing out not taking advantage of their work! My gown is perfect

out the dress to ensure that all repairs and dirty marks were gone. Then, using white gloves, she carefully put the dress in an acid free box, packed in acid free paper, to ensure the gown does not yellow with the passing of time. Very professionally done.

only problem? The lace that covered the bodice and part of the skirt and flowed down to the train had become significantly discolored. I researched options for restoration and eventually came across Owl Cleaners. I met with Sandy on two separate occasions before actually dropping off the dress to be cleaned and was nervous that it might not hold up. However, when I picked it up weeks later, it was perfect. In particular, the color of the lace, which prior to cleaning had stood out from the rest of the dress, was much more consistent. A few months later, Bonnie spent five hours tacking—by hand—parts of the lace that had come loose, even fixing holes where the lace had worn away. I had the dress and my veil pressed, and my reception dress hemmed, by Owl Cleaners as well and couldn't be happier with how everything turned out. I would highly recommend them!

it. Watching her box the gown up was such a neat experience, took every care and caution. Sandy was kind, considerate and we could tell she loved what she does! Overjoyed that my dress will be properly preserved. The box has a window that you can see in, and every detail was thought of. It was on the expensive side, but well worth it considering that cheaper options do not take nearly the care that Sandy did. Would do it again and highly recommend!

estimated, we had the opportunity to do a complete inspection and the dress was packaged and sealed in front of us. I highly recommend Owl cleaners for this as well as alterations.

g. This dress is 69 years old and a bit spotted and dingy so I wanted it cleaned along with my daughter's dress. Her dress and veil were quite long and therefore dirty. Sandy, lovingly and with white gloves, inspected each layer and every inch of both dresses looking for tears and spots. She was upfront about the time and cost to repair and clean both dresses so there was no surprises. Owl Cleaners is a 40 minute drive for me but it was recommended to me by our wedding planner and I am so glad I made the drive! The gowns are gorgeous, clean and lovingly preserved. Later I returned to have my mother-of-the-bride dress and mother-of-the-groom dress cleaned(yep--two kids married in the same year). If you live anywhere in the Pittsburgh area I would recommend you use Owl Cleaners for your gown cleaning.

waited 5 months after our wedding to get cleaned and preserved. Mary at Owl Cleaners knew my wedding dress & I had a great time. 6 weeks later, it was time to see my Wedding dress. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw my dress— it was beautiful & CLEAN! I didn’t recognize my dress. It looked as though I never wore it. Perfectly clean- the beading was still perfect. i was unbelievably shocked in the best way ever.!! I can’t say enough of positive things about Mary, the box that is used to store the wedding dress, and Owl cleaners. Thank you so Owl Cleaners!

st and she did an amazing job on my gown. She takes the time to look at each gown individually and make sure it looks as good as new. She then schedules a follow up appointment which you can inspect the gown and watch her put it in the box to take home. I know it is an expensive process, but I would definitely recommend Owl Cleaners. I am glad that I will be able to show my dress to my future children.

er been cleaned or properly stored. I debated on taking it to a cleaner to have it preserved versus just getting rid of it. I thought it was worth at least a quote and opinion. To my delight I was told, yes it could be cleaned and preserved. The gown was badly faded and the silk organza extremely crumpled. It looked like a dress that little girls might play dress up in. I decided to proceed. When I picked the dress up and saw it for the first time in its former glory I got tears in my eyes. I could just imagine my Mom on her wedding day. (She had passed away three years prior) The gown glowed in its former and true color. The wrinkles were completely gone, the material just flowed. You could now appreciate the beautiful embroidery in the bodice. I am so glad that I decided to have the gown preserved. This is a piece of my family's history and we can now pass it down for years to come. I imagine younger women in my family having the same thrill for years to come when they open the box and see great grandmother's or great , great Aunt's wedding gown from 1960. I would trust any delicate, special garment to Owl cleaner.

tion and personally communicated the potential risks with the cleaning process. But she did it and had the veil ready well in advance of my requested deadline. I was amazed when I retrieved it--an outstanding job! Besides the sentimentality of using her Mom’s wedding veil, my daughter received many compliments on the veil’s beauty. Thank you to Sandy and her team at Owl’s for their exceptional work. A pleasure to deal with your staff!

t did when I wore it. Sandy lovingly cleaned and restored my dress. It is organza fabric with many layers and she restored it to its original beauty. Sandy is one in a million--thank you for taking such loving care of my dress! You are the best!!

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