Fashion · 2 min read
What a Tailor Can Fix — and What You Should Never Buy Hoping To Alter
Tailoring turns a good buy into a great one, but some alterations are impossible or ruinously expensive. Know the line before you pay.
Cheap, fast and always worth it
Hemming trousers and skirts, taking in a waistband, shortening sleeves on an unlined jacket, moving a button, tapering a trouser leg. All of these cost less than a dinner out and change how a garment reads entirely.
Possible but pricey
Reshaping shoulders, relining a coat, resizing a lined jacket by more than one size, altering a bias-cut dress. Ask for a quote before agreeing — these can exceed half the price of the garment.
Do not buy hoping to fix
Shoulders that are visibly too wide, an armhole that is too low, a knit that is too small, anything with an all-over print at the seams, and pleated skirts that need waist work. The structure fights you and the result never sits right.
How to brief a tailor
Wear the shoes and underwear you will wear with the piece. Stand naturally. Point to what bothers you rather than prescribing the fix — a good tailor will suggest a cleaner solution than the one you imagined.
About the author
Jevon, founder of Zingy Babe
Zingy Babe is written and edited in-house. Every recommendation is tested against real wardrobes, not press releases. Read our story.
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