Sick of what your wardrobe has to offer? Ever consider that something special might be hiding, forgotten and discounted within your closet’s depths? Pants with too much room, sleeves that drag over your palms, and weirdly-cut jackets are a downer, but they’re no reason to retire a perfectly good garment.
A few light alterations from a professional tailor can reignite the excitement around almost-perfect new clothes, old favorites, and hopeful vintage finds. The right adjustment can improve everything from comfort, shape, drape, fit, and longevity. Plus, it doesn’t take a whole refit from a tailor to make an item shine. Often, all you need is a simple fix.
So, here are five of the most useful alterations for getting more from the clothes you already own.
Related: Why Tailoring is the Secret to Amazing Thrifted Fashion
1. Shortening Sleeves
Sleeve length, even by subtle amounts, has a pretty surprising effect on how a shirt, jacket, coat or dress fits, and whether it makes you look like a stunning professional or a kid playing in their parent’s clothing. Too-long sleeves will make a whole garment look oversized, while the extra fabric gets in the way, stains, and becomes damaged from use.
A tailor can shorten sleeves to create a more appropriate length while preserving the garment’s original proportions and finish. For shirt sleeves, this usually involves a quick removal or material and replacement of the cuff, if applicable. Jacket sleeves are a little more involved and require the removal and replacement of linings, buttons, buttonholes, and any other aesthetic elements.
2. Hemming Pants or Trousers
A pair of pants can fit perfectly through the waist and legs and still look wrong if the length isn’t right. That, and no one wants to wear away their pant bottoms by treading on them. Hemming adjusts the bottom of the trousers to create the desired “break” over the shoe, whether you prefer a modern, shorter look or more traditional coverage.
Here are the common ways to discuss breaks with a tailor:
- Full Break: The fabric folds over the top of the shoe. This is the traditional, relaxed style.
- Half Break: The fabric ends in a slight crease just above the shoe. This is the most common style for professional clothing.
- No Break: The hem of the fabric sits at the top of the shoe with no fold. This is a newer style designed to present a clean, uncomplicated look.
Related: Common Alteration Terms Used by Tailors
3. Taking In or Letting Out a Waistband
It’s natural for a person’s weight or measurements to change throughout their life, but that doesn’t mean saying goodbye to all your old clothes. A tailor may be able to take in a waistband when a garment is too loose or let it out when there is sufficient seam allowance (meaning extra fabric included by the designer or manufacturer for this purpose).
This type of alteration is particularly useful for suits, trousers, skirts, and other structured garments where the waist needs to fit securely without making the rest of the garment uncomfortable. Because the amount that can be adjusted depends on the garment’s construction and available fabric, a professional fitting is the best way to determine what’s possible. You never know what a skilled tailor might be able to achieve!
4. Tapering the Body of a Jacket, Dress, or Shirt
This kind of ill-fitting clothing can occasionally be difficult to identify. Ever get the feeling that a garment you really love just doesn’t look right, but you can’t put your finger on why? Sometimes the shoulders of a piece of clothing will fit well, but the rest hugs, hangs, or rests in unflattering ways. Often, it’s actually not too hard to salvage an item like this and make it really shine.
Tapering removes excess fabric along the appropriate seams to create a closer fit while maintaining the garment’s original structure. This can be perfect for jackets and fitted clothing, where simply sizing down could make the shoulders or sleeves too tight. A skilled tailor can adjust the body of a garment while taking its seams, lining, pockets, and overall construction into account.
5. Replacing or Moving Buttons
Buttons are a small detail, but a big part of how a garment functions and looks; this becomes super obvious when you lose one. Replacing a missing or damaged button can make a favorite piece wearable again, while moving a button can sometimes improve the fit of a shirt, jacket, coat, or waistband.
A professional tailor can also match replacement buttons to the garment’s existing design and place them appropriately so the alteration looks intentional rather than improvised. For designer or vintage garments, preserving the original button style and placement can go a long way in preserving the authentic spirit of a piece.
Want to do it yourself? Here’s how.
When Is an Alteration Worth It?
Not every garment can — or should — be altered. The amount of fabric available, the garment’s construction, the location of seams, and the type of material all affect what a tailor can change successfully.
In general, alterations are worth considering when you already love the garment but the fit is holding it back. They’re best for quality clothing, formalwear, suits, designer pieces, and garments that would be expensive, difficult, or sentimentally-impossible to replace. For specialty fabrics such as silk, leather and other delicate materials, professional expertise becomes even more important. An alteration that works perfectly on a basic cotton shirt may require a completely different approach when the garment has a delicate weave, lining, embellishments, or complex internal construction.
Related: Fabrics and Clothing Types to Avoid
A Better Fit Can Give Your Clothes a Longer Life
Clothing doesn’t have to fit perfect right off the rack to deserve a place in your wardrobe. A few thoughtful alterations can turn an almost-right garment into one you actually want to wear, or help you get more use from the great items you already own. All you need is the right tailor in your corner.
At Dependable Cleaners, our professional tailoring and alteration services can handle everything from traditional hemming and button repairs to more involved adjustments for suits, blouses, gowns, specialty garments, and beyond. Pair a great fit with eco-friendly dry cleaning to give your clothes better, longer-lasting protection and appearance. With expert garment care, free pickup & delivery, and a renowned quality guarantee, there’s more than one reason why we’re Dependable.
Find a Denver metro location or schedule pickup to get started.
