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Whether you sew or not, you may wonder why alterations might cost so much. Well, there’s a lot of labor and materials involved, let alone special skills.
I don’t do many alterations, but occasionally, I’ll take in some pants or fix a hem. And I’ll definitely charge the local tailor shop’s going rate.
And because someone questioned me on my pricing, I’ll break it down.
Sewists Don’t Necessarily Do Alterations
I call myself a sewist because I sew for creativity and as a hobby. If you want alterations, you might look for a tailor or seamstress.
A neighbor knew I sewed and had a whole setup in my house. So, once he stopped by to drop off several pairs of pants.
Because I sewed, I suppose he assumed I could do alterations. Well, I do, but not all sewists know how or do this for hire.
He asked if I could take in his pants because they were too big. Now, these pants were several years old, I suppose he had lost weight.
Well, I don’t normally do alterations unless they’re for me. I have better things to be sewing.
So the last thing I want to do is mess with someone else’s clothes. But I took the pants anyway and said I’d take a look.
Alterations Involve Labor and Cost Money
After a couple of days, I got back to him and said it’d be $40 per pants. Well, he was shocked it’d cost that much to take them in.
He said for that amount of money he could buy new pants. Plus, he mentioned another place that’d do it cheaper.
I told him that the local tailor charges $40 to take in pants, and that’s my rate.
Now, he could buy new pants, as he said. For $40, you’ll probably find some cheap fast fashion or better quality from the thrift store.
Whatever the deal, labor costs money. I’m not going to take in several pairs of pants for free.
And for anyone doing it for cheap, well, you get what you pay for. I saw the work of this cheaper place.
The seams weren’t finished, and that means they’ll fray. They simply sew the seam with a straight stitch and cut off the excess fabric.
That’s $10 worth of labor. Quick and easy, but unfinished seams. Believe me, they’re only giving you what you pay for.
Cheap Garments Don’t Change the Cost of Labor
He commented that the pants weren’t worth that much. They were old, plus he could buy a new pair for $40—the price of the alteration.
Yes, that might be true. But that still doesn’t change the cost of labor.
Say you buy pants for $20, and you need them taken in. The price of the alteration remains the same.
It doesn’t matter that these pants might be so cheap that they fall apart as you wear them.
It’s still $40 to take in those pants. The price of labor and materials does not change because the pants cost less.
And on the other side, if the pants cost $200, the price to take in the pants will still be $40. Of course, if we’re dealing with flat-fell or French seams, the price might even be more.
Alterations Aren’t So Easy and Require Skill
If alterations were so easy, then everyone would be doing them. People wouldn’t be going to the local tailor or asking a sewist to fix their clothes.
And I’m referring to good alterations that look professional. Those require skill.
Before altering, we have to consider the fabric and figure out how the garment was constructed. It’s important to know how the fabric behaves and where the grainlines are.
We need to do a fitting, take measurements, and find the best way to fix it. Then we mark, deconstruct, cut, pin, sew, and finally finish the seams.
Only experience will build these skills. And you pay for that, plus everything else involved. So hence the price.
What do you think? Drop a comment below!
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