Stitches

I needed the inside lining of a summer jacket pocket mended. I had ineptly cut through it when I attempted to undo the stitching when I bought the jacket. I took it to Stitches in Manchester and the lady there (with an Eastern European accent) indicated that they could repair it within a couple of hours and that it would cost £12. I was OK with the price but the dealbreaker for me was when she demanded «cash, no cards». And she was insistent about it. I could have paid it but was irked by the fact that (a) I thought that Stitches was a chain operation, not a one-​man band, so why the insistence on cash? (b) This is the 21^st century: I use a debit card for most shopping. I’m sorry, but I will not give my custom to a business such as this. Their motives for insisting on a cash payment are suspicious to say the least. In the end, I took my jacket to a quirky little operation in the Northern Quarter, who charged me £7 and did a fantastic job.

I’ve only used Stitches once, but it was a good overall experience. Needed a pair of jeans hemmed (nice and easy), and was impressed with the speedy turnaround and quality of service. Nicely priced and good quality stitch-​work, I’ll be returning whenever I need something altered.

i came here to have some alterations done after
reading the great reviews from fellow Unilocaler natalie w.
I bought a t shirt but could only find what i wanted in the mens section
as the manufacturers seem to think that females wont wear gaming
or super heroes t shirts and it being a mans t shirt it was way to long
so i had the t shirt shortened and i had the horrible lengh sleeves shortened as well to make them look more feminine.
price for this was £16 and was done within the hour
and was done very very professionaly .
They also let you try the clothes on and will pin and tuck
the item to the way you wont it to look.
Stitches will be getting a lot more trade from me in the following
months and years to come.

Best place to get your alterations done in Manchester. They are the contractor for huge designer and departmental chains like Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, House of Fraser, Burberry and Hugo Boss to name a few. I have always gotten my suits, jackets, trousers and jeans done here and the turn around time is very quick! Reasonably priced too!

I have been very pleased with all the work I’ve had done at Stitches which has encompassed altering a skirt, mending a tear in a dress, replacing a zip on a coat and mending about a million tears and broken buttons on another coat that I had managed to totally trash. The work done is never less than satisfactory and generally very good indeed. The staff are extremely efficient and professional and I think the prices are reasonable. I would definitely recommend, and the fact the shop always has customers is testament to its good service.

I went to a wedding that was all long gowns and fur wraps for this winter extravaganza, and what did I go and do? I went and bought a vintage 1980s pink chiffon gown from a clothing website called Rokit. I can’t recommend them more, they have stores in London. What arrived was an absolute delight, it’s a gorgeous dress with spaghetti straps, an asymmetrical neckline and falling layers of floaty chiffon at the skirt. But of course, I am of spindly model stature, thus rendering it slightly too short when I slap on a pair of kitten heels. Knowing this, I took it to Stitches, the little alteration shop just behind Kendal’s. And I’m so glad I did.
They had me try on the dress and explained what they would do, unpicking the straps and putting ribbons in their place. Each and every staff member was attentive and lovely, and I got a fab girl with a superb blondey-​orange haircut and fabulously quirky dress sense. She was my favourite, look out for her. She’s very good. Innovatively, she asked me if I’d like my new straps made out of the very thin belt attached to the dress. I hadn’t even thought of that, and the belt itself was so long and pointless that it made perfect sense. I agreed to this, put down a £5 deposit and at after 1pm, they told me this dress would be ready for 4pm. Impressive, and perfect for my day of those few last bits and bobs being bought for Christmas.
I returned and indeed it was perfect. She’d even spotted a few rips, it being a vintage piece, and fixed them for me. I tried it on later that evening and it’s now perfect. With the lace gloves I had from Junk and faux-​gold jewellery and a bolero from the dreaded Primarni, I channelled Audrey Hepburn. I didn’t want to take it off. I was like those Friends girls in that episode where they all feel better when they’re wearing wedding dresses, and sit there drinking beer and eating popcorn in them. Well, where the heck else am I going to wear a ridiculous dress like this? Apart from perhaps my own wedding dress? Thank you, Stitches, for making my dress mine. I’ll be back for some more refitting, without a doubt.

So, you buy a dress on eBay, and it gets to you, and it does not fit. Contrary to the photos, it is at least knee length, the sleeves are plain weiiiiird, and it is not as flattering to the girls as the girls would like. Hey, they spend all week put away in office-​friendly attire, at the weekends the girls like to have their time in the spotlight.
Being about as skilled with a needle and thread as I am with neurosurgery (ie– not at all; I did Literature so am not qualified to lobotomise you or anyone else, so don’t ask!) I pretty much resigned Weird Dress to the back of the wardrobe. Which was a shame. Its graphic monotone Biba print called out to me every time I opened the door, and I had to remind it «no, Weird Dress, your sleeves are mad and your neckline too matronly!» Which I think upset it somewhat. It lingered there for months, until the boyf (very unfortunately) had occasion to wear a suit; a funeral. He didn’t actually own a suit, so went to buy one. But the suit shop didn’t have trousers long enough, so they knocked £10 off the suit and sent us to Stitches, where those of the male persuasion can have a pair of suit trews let down and finished for £10, and an hour’s wait. Amazing.
A couple of months later, Tea Snob Friend announced her 1960s birthday dinner party. Oooh, I thought, Oooh! So, I sent Weird Dress to be altered. One day later, and £14 lighter, I was wearing a cutesy cap-​sleeved, boat-​necked, mini-​hemmed extraordinary dress. The clever folk at Stitches had even saved the contrast banding on the hem, and re-​sewn it onto the new hem. That’s what I call seamstressery (even though that’s not a word…)
This place is fantabulous. Whether it’s a simple trou-​down, or multiple alterations to your very own Weird Dress, the Stitches team will sort it out in double-​quick time, and for mere pennies. Why would you go anywhere else?!

These tailors must be the best tailors in the whole of Manchester. I often look at my old jeans and or old dresses and envisage a new life for them. I am used to asking multiple tailors who refuse to touch such items.
These tailors are the champions of tailoring. No task is too big for them and they will do it quicker than any other tailors in town. It is also worth mentioning how cheap they are in comparison to there failing rivals.
If you have some old clothes that you’re considering chucking soon, think twice. Those boyfriend jeans could soon be the best skinny jeans you own. That jacket your bought over Christmas when you ate to much Christmas pud could soon fit perfectly again. Give your clothes a new lease of life and save yourself a few pounds in the process.