Recommendations on repairs, alterations and how to restore your clothes

As the topic of climate change hots up (sorry, couldn't resist!) ahead of the conference in Glasgow, there's more and more discussion in the fashion world about sustainability.

Even though taking people shopping for a living is not really in line with this thinking, I hate waste so I also help clients understand what suits them and how to put things together, to make sure whatever they buy gets worn a lot.

Alongside that, I do wardrobe edits, where people often rediscover things they've forgotten about, and we put outfits together with items they don't know how to wear, plus I recommend where to go to have their clothes and accessories repaired, altered and generally revived.

I've been gathering details of places I know over the years and am always discovering new services via other bloggers reviews too, so I thought it'd be useful to share them all in one place. Hopefully this means less of your things end up in landfill and more of them can be worn and loved for longer.

If there's a service you're looking for, that's not mentioned then do feel free to email me and I'll see if I can help point you in the right direction. Or if you've got a recommendation to make of a brilliant repair or alteration you've had done then please do let me know about it and I can add it in.

The Clothes Doctor is one of my very recent discoveries and the inspiration to write this post. I haven't used them but was impressed when I saw how they transformed a leather jacket for Alyson from That's Not My Age blog, by re-dying it and restoring it to its original colour. They also do other repairs to leather, so if you have a jacket in your wardrobe that desperately needs some TLC, then drop them an email.

I noticed from the comments section, they do an amazing job of darning wool sweaters too, but not such a good job of altering hems. No worries though, see my next recommendation for that.....

Savva Tailors - I asked Louca from alterations service Savva Tailors recently if he could take in the shoulders of a blazer - his reply? Yes we can do everything! And though I didn't think you could alter the shoulders of blazers, I'd trust him to do it.  I've taken tons of clients here to have shirts shortened in the body and sleeves, trousers taken up and in, waists pinched in on jackets and even pieces put into the back of jeans to make them larger. I don't usually get to see the results,  but everyone has always been very happy and satisfied with them.

Give them a call before you go and don't mind their slight abruptness on the phone - Louca and his son George who run it are lovely!

The Jaunty Flaneur - Tom, who runs this shoe care and repair service, is passionate about what he does, so if you like many of my (naughty!) clients have been neglecting your shoes, don't kid yourself you'll get round to it, just pass them on to him to sort them out for you.

You can drop them off in Savile Row or use their postal service, so next time I come to visit, I expect your shoes to be looking ship shape and shiny!

Love Cashmere Care Service - I tested out this service earlier in the year and they did an amazing job of repairing a moth hole in my cashmere sweater. Unfortunately it says on the site, they're not currently providing the service, but I'll keep checking and as soon as they're back up and running, I'm going to post the reel I made showing the 'before' and 'after' of my sweater on Instagram. If you've just got your jumpers out for the coming winter and found them full of holes, follow me over on Insta and I'll let you know when they open up the service again.

D.M.Buttons - I'm not going to lie, though the woman who answered the phone was cheerful & helpful, the guy who does the repairs is pretty grumpy! There's not that many people I know of that replace rivets, press studs, and eyelets though, so I'm prepared to overlook it!  You'll need to take in the garment you need the repair done on to see if they can help....I went in with a client who had a jacket that needed a press stud replacing, and they were able to replace it with one that was very similar, though not exactly the same. You may be in luck and get an exact match, or if you do know of anyone else who provides this service then do let me know please!

The Restory - this is a great service if you have a prized item that needs repairing or restoring. They work with many of the big department stores in London, like Harvey Nichols and Selfridges on high end designer items. There's a guideline to the prices on the website, but you can email them an image and description of what you'd like done and they'll give you a quote. You can then decide if you think it's worth it (financially or from the sustainability angle) to repair or just replace the item. They do have amazing before and after videos on their site, so watch a few of those if you're unsure.

Cromford Leather - Not only do they make leather jackets here but they do alterations too and (other than the earlier recommendation) it's not so easy to find someone to do that. I took a client in to have a leather jacket made, and Pauline who runs it, is delightfully friendly and down to earth. She'll tell you straight if something can or can't be done. I haven't personally had anything altered here but Simon from Permanent Style has, so you can read about his experiences for more information.

Collingwood-Norris - there are more and more of these 'visible mending' services popping up on Instagram, and I became aware of this company via Grey Fox blog.  It's not for everyone, but it's an interesting idea to make a feature of a repair. There's either very high demand for her services or she's busy doing something else, as like the Love Cashmere service it appears she's not taking on commissions right now. However you can sign up to be notified when she is.....or learn to do it yourself via her book and tutorials perhaps?!

Would you like some help to go through your wardrobe and sort out what to keep, what should go and what and where to repair or alter things? Book in for your wardrobe edit here

"Sarah was absolutely fantastic. Her professionalism was exceptional. The wardrobe edit was a much needed cull! But it also gave me the confidence to reconsider neglected items."

There's some more info on where to recycle and some other useful tips in these posts:

Secondhand September: Keep your clothes looking good for longer

How and where to recycle your clothes once you've cleared out your wardrobe