Dresses and Garment Bags

[adatappstate]

My formal dresses are ankle length, but my garment bags are not that long. Every time I pack my dresses, they end up all wrinkled at the bottom. I pack them in dry cleaner bags, but that doesn't seem to help. I've tried folding the bottom up and pin it with a clothes pin, but by the time the luggage arrives, the pins have all come off and the dresses are wadded up again.

 

Any suggestions? Do the make extra-long garment bags?

[rngdfan]

on our last cruise, I put the long dresses in plastic bags, folded the bottom up and then used a small safety pin to hold them in place. When I got on the ship I unfolded them and there were very few wrinkles. If you do have some wrinkles just turn on the shower and hang them up in the bathroom. It worked for me.

[beancounterbeth]

I'm questioning whether or not I'm even going to take a garment bag. I might just have all my dresses and my husband's suit sent to the cleaners on the ship as soon as we arrive.

 

Does that sound like a good plan? This will be my first cruise.

[nosnobunny]

Yes they do make extra long garment bags. Mine has an extension for that very purpose. I'm sorry but I can't remember the brand but they're out there. When I open mine up, there is a section that unclips and folds out for longer pieces of clothing. After you lay the garment out, there's a strap that closes over the bottom part, then it folds up and over. It's worked very well for me. Check out some online luggage sites to get brand names. BTW, you don't have to pay top dollar for this kind of bag, mine was only around $100. One other note, make sure you get a wheeled bag as those formal outfits can be very heavy.

 

 

 

Beth

[LandLockedInAZ]

I have given up completely on garment bags. In addition to the problem with them not being long enough for lady's clothing (including dresses that are not full length!), I seem to always get my clothes back in a heap at the bottom of the bag anyway. They seem to slip off the hanger too easily unless the neckline is very tight and if I use the hanger straps in my dresses, they seem to pull off the shoulders and I end up with a big mess anyway.

I'm going to follow the advice someone here gave on my next cruise: Lay out dresses in the bottom of a large suitcase (in a dry cleaner bag) and let the top extend out of the suitcase. Stack other clothes on top, then when full, fold the top half of the dress over the stack of clothing. It is said to create very few wrinkles and sounds like it's worth a try!