Repair Workshop

Spent the better part of my day today doing repairs. I patched holes, resewed seams, fixed tears and replaced a few zippers.

The invisible zippers in both of these skirts had broken and needed to be replaced. I charge $10-$15 for zipper replacement. Cost depends on if it is an invisible zipper or regular zipper and whether or not there is a lining or topstitching, or other detail work. Ashley, the owner of these skirts, loves them and it was worth it to her to have the zippers replaced. While I was at it she asked me to make a pattern of these skirts also. She is heading out on a mission and would like a few replicas made.

The tie belt on this Jenny's blouse ripped out. Can you tell where? You have to look really close to see it. It was a really obvious rip before I got to it. Most small rips and tears are just $5 to fix. Some are even cheaper.

The thread in the whole backside seam of these boardshorts had disintegrated leaving it open from waist to crotch. Yikes! A little time and three rows of stitching later they are good as new again and ready for the big waves. $5.

In addition to the repair projects I also altered a few pairs of suit slacks and altered a swimsuit. Yep, a swimsuit! This young lady loved everything about her new suit except the way it fit her bum. It was loose and provided too much coverage (an unusual problem I think we all wish we had). I took in the extra fabric through the crotch seam and then reshaped the derriere to fit her the way she liked. I didn't take a picture for obvious reasons--did you really want to see a picture of someone's bum on my blog?

Freshening Up Old Jeans

Kids grow so fast and clothes are so expensive. That's why I try to make things last as long as possible. I repair. I rework. I resize. Today I was doing a little of each with some old pairs of jeans.

These jeans still fit around the waist but had become too short. She wanted to turn them into capris. To give the new hem a little pizzaz I triple stitched the hem with three different colors of thread giving it an ombre effect.

Another set of new shorts made from last year's holey school jeans. The back pair are double stitched with two colors of thread to match the topstitching around her pockets. The front pair have a fun cross-stitch look to them.

These jeans had a small stain on the backside. For fun we decided to applique this heart over the top. Looks so much better.

Another appliqued heart on a different pair of jeans this time covering up a tear over the pocket.

Bridal Alterations for Stacey

I enjoyed working with the Beautiful Stacey to make her wedding dress perfect. We took in the side seams and darts, adjusted the sleeves, took up the hem and repaired a few small holes in the lace. While we were at it we decided to add a simple bustle to make dancing a bit easier. Congratulations Stacey and Best Wishes in your new life together!

Zipper Repairs

Kelsey's brand new Brand name expensive jeans had a defective zipper. The second time she wore them it fell apart. She wasn't happy. She called me to see if I could repair or replace the zipper. Zipper replacement can be quite intense, especially in jeans, but I've done it before and was prepared to take on the challenge. Before tearing the old zipper out though I spent some time trying to see if I could repair it. A simple repair is all it needed. I returned the jeans with a working zipper and only a $5 price tag. Kelsey is happy again.

Tear Repairs

Jenny has three active boys and a penchant for keeping things looking good. Needless to say she is one of my best customers. I stitch up holes in seams, rips in pockets and snags in the body of the garments. Here is what she brought me this week all from her son Austin's wardrobe. 

Top pair: crotch seam repair. Middle pair: tear through the bottom of a patch pocket. Bottom pair: a hole in the front of the leg.

 Finished results

Some simple darning with a stabilizer on the backside of the fabric. Did it in a slightly contrasting thread to give it that distressed look the kids like so much.

Surprisingly the original top-stitching thread was still intact through the seam. I just stitched the seam back together and threw in some reinforcing stitches across the seam to keep it from tearing out again. Unfortunately not super pretty but it is for a little boy and it is in the bottom of the crotch seam.

Like the first repair this was done in a contrasting thread to give it a distressed look. Stabilizer was stitched into the backside to make sure this well used pocket stays hole free in the future.

Simple repairs like these are just $5 each and I can usually get them repaired and back to you by the next day.