Pants Hemming - $20 flat fee - for plain, blind and stretch hems (additional fee for cuffs, lining, wide hems and special fabrics or construction)

$50 per hour - for all other sewing projects (as of October 1st, 2024)

Many alterations and repairs can be done in an hour or less. I charge in 15 minute increments. I can give you an estimate when you bring the item in for a consultation. I do not give estimates over the phone or from photos.

___________________________________

$50.00 per hour can sound like a lot for sewing. However, consider the hourly rate of carpenters, electricians, car mechanics, and plumbers. The sewing profession requires as much skill as any of these others, and often charges much less.

I accept cash, debit, credit and Apple Pay. I no longer accept personal checks. You can pay in person or I can send you a link to pay your invoice online through Quickbooks, which also accepts Paypal.

Typically my turnaround time is 2-4 weeks. Sometimes it's longer, especially during the summer season. In general, I spend about 3 hours per day working on alterations. The rest of my day is spent on clothing design and construction, and all of the other tasks that need to be done in a small business. If you have a deadline, please let me know up front, so that I can let you know if I can meet it.

Life has its various sewing emergencies, so I do try to accommodate rush orders and faster than current turnaround time when I can. Please keep in mind that a rush order means you are cutting in line ahead of other clients. So use those requests sparingly.

A rush fee may be charged on any alteration/repair request that you want back sooner than my current turnaround time (which varies from 2-8 weeks). Rush fees are billed as time-and-a-half (like overtime) for every hour worked on your project.

Would you want to work on my dirty clothes? But seriously, in the interest of health and hygiene, and respect for me and my other clients whose clothes will be hung next to yours, please wash or dry-clean your clothes (both old and new) before you bring them in for alteration or repair. This includes clothes you might not wash all that often, such as wool sweaters, jackets, selvage jeans, etc. New clothes will sometimes shrink in the wash, so it’s best to go through this process before having them altered. Also, new clothes often contain chemicals from the manufacturing process.

Zipper replacement can be tricky as there are many sizes and styles of zippers. Often just the zipper pull needs tweaking or replacing. However, if the teeth or tape are damaged, the whole zipper needs to be replaced. Replacing a whole zipper generally takes 1-3 hours of sewing time, depending on if the item is lined or unlined and the complexity of the construction and styling details.

_____________________________

Here are some typical repair times:
Jeans/Pants

• Zipper Fly replacement - 1 hour (unlined)

Jacket

• Pull/Slider Only Replacement - 15 minutes
• Full Replacement - Unlined Jacket - 1 hour plus cost of zipper
  
• Full Replacement - Lined Jacket - 2 hours plus cost of zipper
  
• Full Replacement - Long Jacket and/or Complex Styling - 3 hours and up

__________________________

For zipper repair on waterproof and technical clothing (Gore-Tex, REI jackets, etc) I recommend RainyPass.com

While I do make some exceptions, the following are items that I do not generally repair or work on.

• Sweaters
• Leather
• Waterproof Jackets
• Quilts
• Home Decor (curtains, etc)
• Upholstery 
• Heavy Duty Non-Clothing Items (backpacks, couch cushions, etc.)
• Outdoor Items (cushions, covers, tents, sails, etc.)
• Marine Items (cushions, sails, etc)

For outdoor and heavy-duty items, I recommend SewRugged who is also in Blue Hill.

For zipper repair on waterproof and technical clothing (Gore-Tex, REI jackets, etc) I recommend RainyPass.com

I do most hems and alterations on bridesmaid and Mother-of-the-Bride/Groom attire.

During the busy summer season, I do get booked up. If the wedding is sometime in June-October, contact me as soon as know you will need alterations with the wedding date and the estimated date that you will receive your dress, so that I can give you a time slot. Once your dress arrives we'll set up an appointment. When you come in for a fitting, please bring the shoes and any undergarments you plan to wear with the dress, as these can affect both the fit and the length of the hem.

____________________________

I do not work on dresses that are worth (or have a replacement value) over $3,000 due to the liability involved.

The best place to get your wedding dress altered is usually at the shop you bought it from. If however, that is not an option or you want to get your alterations done closer to home, I may be able to help you. I do not have the setup to work on huge ballgowns with lots of layers. Also, I do not work on dresses that are worth (or have a replacement value) over $3,000 due to the liability involved.

If you would like me to do your alterations, feel free to contact me and we'll set up a time for you to come in to talk about your dress and your timeline.

____________________________

During the busy summer season, I do get booked up. If your wedding is sometime in June-October, contact me as soon as know you will need alterations with the wedding date and the estimated date that you will receive your dress.

Yes, I do tailor men's clothing, mostly shirts and pants. However, I am not a traditional "men's tailor", so my skills for tailoring suit jackets are limited. I can usually take in (waist tapering) jackets, but for more extensive alterations (fitting shoulders, shortening sleeves, etc), you could try Andy's Tailor, located in Bangor.

I do take on some custom projects. If you have a custom project you'd like me to consider, feel free to contact me or stop in during drop-in hours.

I do not source fabric for alterations or custom projects. Some seamstresses will source fabric for you, however that is not a service I provide as it can be time consuming and is often is something only you can choose for yourself.

If your project needs a small piece of fabric, I may have a scrap in house that we can use. I also have lots of thread and other notions (buttons, snaps, etc.) Sometimes I will order an item from one of my suppliers, if it is clear when we need, such as bra cups or elastic. However, if you require special materials, color matching or yards of fabric, you will need to source and purchase that yourself.

As a first stop, I recommend Ebb and Flow Fiber Arts right here in Blue Hill, which is a fabric thrift store. They have a ton of pre-owned fabric, yarn, notions and tools. If they don't have what you're looking for, three other local options are Fiddlehead Artisan Supply in Belfast, Marden's in Ellsworth, and Joann's in Bangor.