the Cost of Alterations and Mending

I bought a dress to wear to my friend's wedding and for some strange reason the lining of the dress was longer than the dress itself! It hung out of the bottom of the dress by a few inches, and this was definitely not a design feature. I had the lining of the dress hemmed at a local tailor/alterations shop in my neighborhood.

The woman in the shop was very friendly. She wanted me to try the dress on, but I didn't want to go through the trouble. Especially because I knew it wouldn't matter, since it was only the lining that needed to be hemmed, not the dress.

In the end, I just told her how much needed to be cut off and she did that. The work was done the next day, and it was perfect. Truly, it wasn't a tough job, but she did do it well.

Whenever possible, it's a good idea to test services like this with something that is hidden or easy to do. That way, you can gauge the quality of work before you give them a really big and important job like altering a special occasion dress or gown. As always, referrals from friends are a great way to find someone trustworthy enough to cut and sew your precious clothes.