7 Advices How to Alter Your Clothes

You need to alter your clothes. If you are not a skilled seamstress or skilled sewer, clothes alterations might be your best option. They have been an invaluable help in caring for clothes.

So, you lost some weight. As a result, a few of your clothes were not fitting the frame as well. Instead of buying new clothes in smaller sizes, which we thought was a scary idea at first, we decided to alter the clothes. It turns out that there are a few things you can do to ensure the best results when getting your clothes altered, We want to share top tips and guide you in your future clothes alteration.

1. MEASURE UP

Before you have any garment altered, measure it at your home and take note of what you need. We assumed we could have the garments measured in-store for alterations. But, as it turned out, only tailors offer this service and sometimes on newer items.

We would recommend that you measure your clothing flat and compare it to a piece of clothing that is more comfortable. Although it is possible to measure yourself using a fabric tape, it can be tricky and lead to inaccurate measurements. Instead, measure the garment flat.

2. PLAN WHEN YOUR NEXT GARMENT IS NEEDED

Let’s now talk about timings. There are many factors that can affect the time it takes to alter clothes. Alma’s Alterations is a well-known central Brighton clothes alteration service. They advised that it would take about a month for some garments to be altered. Why is this? Alma had to make a lot of important changes due to it being bridal season and many brides delaying their weddings. If time is critical, call or email ahead to confirm.

3. CONSIDER GOING TO A INDEPENDENT MAKER

Consider whether an independent seamstress might be a better choice than your local high-street alterations shop. Independent seamstresses often take on private work. There are many benefits to working with someone, rather than an over-the-counter service.

You may need a specialist in garments. This could be someone who can alter saris or who is skilled at creating stage costumes. You may also want to establish a long-term relationship to a tailor who will get to know you and your style and can make your wardrobe fit your needs.

You can contact a digitally-connected maker through a matching service such as The Seam if you are looking for an individual maker.

4. BOOK IN

Special garments need special attention. You will need to make appointments for clothing alterations for suits, tailoring, or bridal gowns. Walk-ins are fine for small repairs and mending as well as smaller, one-off alterations.

5. PAY FOR A BETTER FINISH

Although popularity doesn’t always indicate the best things in life and circumstances, for clothing alterations, we can tell you that places with many positive reviews tend to offer better services. You get what your pay (or wait for).

6. ENQUIRE ABOUT SUSTAINABLE ACTIVITIES

It might be worthwhile to ask your local clothes alteration shop how they are making their place more sustainable. According to the Fixing Fashion Report, the clothes alterations industry is a service that everyone should use. They are supporting circular fashion, but what else can they be doing? They might use natural dyed threads or fabric recycling to get the bits and pieces they have left over after completing garments. It’s all good!

If you have concerns, it is worth asking about their materials I found out later that my favorite boots were re-heeled with leather soles.

7. CONSIDER ALTERING YOUR VINTAGE CLOTHES.

As an added bonus, you might also consider altering vintage and heirloom clothes.