Proper Storage Helps Hold Value « Vintage Shopping Guide: "When you talk to a vintage collector and ask them what advise they can give on collecting valuable vintage they almost always tell you, “Buy what you love.” If you are passionate about any one designer or time period or a particular item just slowly start buying pieces that you love. After all that is the fun part. Taking care of these items you buy is the next step in building your collection and maintaining its value.
Properly storing your items will help maintain their color and quality as well as help hold its value. Whether you think you will ever want to part with your beautiful vintage items or not, taking care of them will help extend the life of your items. And that is true whether we are talking about new or used clothing. Here are some rules to live by from the professionals:
• Always clean and remove any stains before storing items as stains can set in and even underarm oils from skin can break down fibers and lead to permanent damage.
• Wrap your vintage clothing in acid-free tissue or cloth like clean muslin. The tissue absorbs any harmful acids and protects the clothes.
• Change the tissue every two or three years for long term storage items.
• Whenever possible store your items flat. Hanging garments can damage the fabric as gravity weighs them down and stretches the fabric. This is especially important on any beaded or embellished heavy garments.
• Store your items flat inside acid-free archival textile boxes. Most regular cardboard boxes have harmful acids that can damage your garments.
• Plastic boxes can be a good alternative as long as you still wrap your garments in the acid-free tissue. With plastic you do run the risk of mildew, so be sure to store in a climate controlled environment away from light.
• Cedar is good for protecting clothing from bugs. However, any wood contains acids that can harm fabrics, so it is still necessary to wrap in the acid-free tissue or cloth.
