Repair, renew and refresh your clothes
When I was doing a Wardrobe Edit for a personal styling client a couple of weeks ago, he had quite a few things he wasn’t wearing because they needed repairing. So I set about researching where he could get them done and getting quotes for him. I already knew some repair places, but there were a couple of new ones I found out about in the process.
Do you have things that you don’t want to get rid of but they stay sitting in your wardrobe because you don’t know where to get them fixed?
Well, this blog post sets out to address that, so you know exactly where to take your menswear items. Whether they need to be repaired, restored, renewed, refreshed, or altered, I’ve got you covered.
Repairs to jeans with sashiko stitching
“Sashiko is a Japanese visible mending tradition, where a simple stabbing stitch is used to reinforce garments” - as Rebecca Weef Smith explains it. It might not be everyone’s choice to have the mending so visible but personally I really like it.
In the image above are some jeans she repaired and reinforced for David from Grey Fox blog - you can see him wearing them in this post.
It costs from around £60 per hole, or you could even go and do one of her sashiko workshops in Dorset and learn how to do it yourself?!
Contact Rebecca here to find out more
Alden shoe repairs
I knew Trunk Clothiers stocked Alden shoes (these Cordovan ones are beautiful) so it was the first place I thought of asking to see if they knew where to get them repaired and reconditioned.
Luckily they said yes, and confirmed they’d be able to sort it out for us. All we needed to do was drop them off and they could handle all the shipping etc - very convenient.
It costs £240 to get a pair of shoes restored, so it’s not cheap but given the shoes above are £990 and the loafers are around £700 it might be worth it, depending on how badly worn yours are.
Give them a call at Trunk (speak to Aidan) and send a picture of your shoes to him, which he’ll forward on to Alden to check they can definitely be done and let you know.
Repairs, colour restoring, knitwear mending etc etc
The Clothes Doctor are fantastic! I’ve now had repairs done to numerous items by them - amongst other things they’ve recoloured a navy leather jacket for me, repaired knitwear and delicate fabrics, and replaced a zip in a leather backpack.
I asked about the men’s jeans my client needed repairing and they quoted £15 for each hole in the knee area and £25 for each hole in the crotch area……very reasonable.
You pay online and then post out the items to them. They’re great at communication and will confirm they’ve received them and let you know when they’ve sent them back. It’s a great service all round.
Send in photos of your item(s) here to get a quote for the repair.
Sneaker and trainer cleaning and repairs in London
Veja have always been a sustainable brand, and now they’ve added an in-store cobbler station to their London store. And they can repair and clean sneakers and shoes from all brands. How fab is that?
I haven’t yet had a chance to try them out with anyone but it was something I was really pleased to have found and will be recommending the service to other clients.
And, if I take any of my own trainers there I’ll update this post to let you know how it went.
Repairs to puffa jackets, Stone Island and Woolrich + re-waxing
I’d read about the twins who run Pinnas and Needles on the Permanent Style blog. If you don’t already know it, t’s a very well respected menswear blog where the founder, Simon Crompton, gives very honest reviews about the tailors, and high end clothing he buys as well as alterations and repairs services he uses, which I’d completely trust.
I wanted to try out their alterations service for myself, so I took in a pair of my own trousers to be taken in on the leg for a slimmer shape. They did a perfect job that cost £40.
They seem to collaborate with Stone Island as there was a lot of the jackets in there when I went in, and also Woolrich, and Belstaff, which not only have they repaired but re-waxed too.
Their Google reviews are all brilliant, and they’re obviously so popular that they’re now saying the turnaround for jobs is the end of January 2025!
So it’s not a fast service and I found it a bit of a hassle having to book an appointment but if you have something specific that needs doing and can wait a bit then check them out. They can give you a quote by email if you send in images.
Check out Pinnas & Needles services
Cashmere knitwear repair and re-dress service
You can see the repair I sent off to be dealt with by the Love Cashmere service in this Instagram post. You need to look very carefully as it’s barely visible! It’s prolonged the life of my cashmere sweater for a good few years which I’m very happy about.
If the moths have been eating your cashmere too then I can highly recommend them, or even if you’d just like to have your sweater professionally washed and de-pilled then book it in online and send it up to them.
Denim repairs and alterations
Blackhorse Lane Ateliers was suggested to me by one of the guys at Trunk Clothiers - I hadn’t realised they did repairs and that they have a new shop in Soho - so I popped down there to ask them about it.
I haven’t tried them out yet but they will repair your jeans for you - any brand - as long as they don’t have any stretch in them at all and are washed.
They quoted me £40 - £60 each for repairs in the crotch area and £25 - £40 for holes in the knees. It’s not cheap but if you have a pair of jeans you really love it might be worth it.
Alterations in London with a fast turnaround
This is my go-to place that I take my clients to for alterations after a Personal Shopping trip or Wardrobe Edit. They’re super fast and very good.
They’ve taken up hundreds of pairs of trousers for my clients, taken jackets and waistbands in, shortened numerous shirts and shirt sleeves, plus sleeves on blazers and suits. They’ve also fully relined a client’s dinner suit and replaced all the facings, which he was delighted with.
I can highly recommend them and they’e in Central London so convenient too. They’ll pin things on you to fit and will send them to you once they’re done if you can’t pick them up.
Do you know your clothes desperately need some attention?
But it feels too overwhelming, and you just can’t face doing it yourself.
You don’t want to end up with piles of stuff everywhere and then have to figure out what to do with it all, only for it still to be sitting there months later.
Well…..there is an easier way!! Click below to book in your Wardrobe Edit and I’ll make sense of it all for you.
It’s super satisfying to get repairs and alterations done to items that have been hanging around for ages not getting worn, and super cathartic to get rid of things that no longer suit you or your lifestyle.
So book in today and get your wardrobe sorted out in readiness for the upcoming party season and going forward to 2025! I don’t have that much availability left for this year now, so if you’d like to get it done before Christmas, then book in today!
Make sure you read the other posts below too, as there’s even more info on where to take items that need repairing and fixing.
Check out these posts for even more info: