Cleaning Gowns
Care instructions for cleaning your gown depend on the type of gown, the fabric, and the accessories on your gown. Below is a general guideline chart covering how to clean your gown.
The first time you clean any gown, it should be dry cleaned to make sure all colors are set.
In general, any item that has velvet, cordage, ribbon, lining, or silk should be dry cleaned only, and all caps and tams should be hand cleaned.
100% polyester gowns with no accessories may be machine washed per the label instructions (see below), after getting them dry cleaned the first time to make sure all colors set.
Should you have any question about how to clean your gown, please do not hesitate to call us and ask.
| Gown Type |
Dry Clean Only |
Machine Wash OK* |
Choir Robes: |
|
|
| Gown with Cordage |
X |
|
| Gown with Ribbon |
X |
|
| Gown with Lining |
X |
|
| Stole |
X |
|
| All Others |
|
X |
Academic Regalia: |
|
|
| Doctoral Gown (Velvet) |
X |
|
| Hood (Velvet) |
X |
|
| All Other Gowns |
|
X |
Judicial Gowns: |
|
|
| All |
X |
|
Keeper Graduation Gowns |
|
|
| All |
|
X |
*Machine Wash Instructions: Should your gown be machine washable, in general please follow these directions: Use mild soap at a warm setting. Tumble dry at a low heat or hang dry after a complete spin cycle.
Pressing Gowns, Hoods, and Stoles
Care should be taken in pressing gowns, hoods, and stoles. Generally we ship your items pre-pressed, and it is usally best to hang our robes on a hanger to prevent excessive wrinkling. If you need to press your gowns, hoods, or stoles, it is best to use steam on a mild setting rather than an iron. If you only have access to an iron, start by turning the item inside out. Then, carefully iron on a warm setting (not a hot setting). Try to iron around any exposed velvet, cordage, or ribbon. Because many of our gowns are made from polyester, it is very important to not apply too much heat to them or you can damage the gown.
Warranty (Choir Robes)
Academic provides the highest quality choir robes all over America since 1946.
We ask that you inspect your new robes upon arrival. We will repair or replace, at no charge, any garment with sewing defects or defects in material or workmanship, provided you notify us within the first couple of weeks after you receive the gown.
Costs for shipping any robes that need repair under that defect policy are paid by Academic. However, you must call first for instructions on how to make returns, and obtain a return authorization before shipping it back to us. Generally, we will send a UPS call tage to pick up the gown(s).
Our limited lifetime warranty for choir robes includes: Damaged zipper replacement, and damaged hooks and eyes. This limited lifetime warranty includes the labor costs for such repairs, but does not include shipping.
All fabric wears with time. While we will not repair gowns for free after they have seen some use, we will work with you to make repairs at a reasonable cost.
We believe our warranty is the strongest in the industry, and many competitors offer no lifetime warranty at all (limited or otherwise).
For warranties on other products such as Academic Regalia and Graduation caps and gowns, please see the relevant product pages, and our general policies page.
Need to contact us? You can call us toll free at (800) 626-5000 in the US, or locally (or internationally with the appropriate country code) at (818) 886-8697. We cannot accept orders on the phone. You can fax us your order at (818) 886-8743, or mail your orders to 8944 Mason Ave., Chatsworth, CA 91311, USA. In-person visits can also be arranged by appointment. You can email questions to us at the link listed on the menu to the left.
We have many different pages of information on putting together a choir robe order. Please explore the topics to the left for details.
