The Alterationist Reviews
Reviews
5.0 out of 5 rating
5.0 out of 5 rating
29 Reviews
100% recommend it
Awards
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Kara M. Sent on 11/16/2023
Mary is truly an expert!
Mary is truly an expert! Her work is impeccable, and I fully trusted her alteration recommendations. She made me feel so beautiful in my dress and I’m so grateful. Mary is so professional, yet also so kind and down-to-Earth – I highly recommend her for wedding dress alterations! -
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![Makayla D.]()
Makayla Sent on 06/25/2023Highly Recommend - Amazing to Work With!
Mary was absolutely amazing to work with for my wedding dress alterations! From the moment I walked into her shop she instantly made me feel comfortable with her warm and welcoming personality! She was so knowledgeable and easy to talk to and helped answer all my questions, including helping me pick out my veil color and length. She is incredibly organized and a great communicator. After my first fitting, she sent me a detailed email summarizing all the agreed upon changes, costs, and important dates which was so helpful to reference back to as needed. My dress fit absolutely perfectly and I felt so beautiful on my wedding day! Overall, Mary was a joy to work with and I cannot recommend her enough! -
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![Anh]()
Anh N. Sent on 09/14/2021The best alterations experience!
Mary is truly amazing, and I can't recommend her enough!! She did a stellar job making my dress look like it was custom made even though it was big in nearly every single area when I originally bought it. She transformed an incredibly heavy and structured dress. Even though we had to delay our wedding 3 times due to COVID, she was so flexible in adjusting the fittings accordingly. Mary is incredibly organized, confirming upcoming appointments through email, detailing every single change we discuss in written email notes and outlining all of the costs upfront so that there are no surprise expenses at the end. She will also tell you which alterations are must haves vs. nice to haves so that you can choose based on what you're comfortable with and your budget. She is super warm and friendly, making you feel comfortable throughout the entire process. For any bride in the Chicago area, I would highly recommend reaching out to Mary for your dress alterations!! -
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![Sue E]()
Sue Sent on 12/14/2019Love Mary!
Mary is fantastic! She’s got the cutest little shop and my family and I always felt so welcome during appointments. My wedding dress fit me decently well when I bought it but after spending a few minutes with Mary tucking and pinning during our first appointment, I knew she was going to help make my dress unique to my body. My gown fit perfectly on my wedding day and I was comfortable in it all evening.
Mary’s work is amazing and detailed. She is busy and gets booked quickly so reach out ASAP (I booked my fittings with her a little under a year in advance to get dates that worked for me). Her prices are very reasonable for the quality work she does.
Happy to have trusted Mary with such an important dress and would do it again in a heartbeat. Thanks, Mary!!The Alterationist's reply:
Sue, you're the best! Thanks so much for your kind words -- I really had a great time at our fittings, and with your family in town! I wish both of you the very best for 2020 and beyond!
Mary -
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![Nicole M]()
Nicole Sent on 01/17/2020Perfect Fit
Mary is the best. My wedding dress had a very structured bodice, that was not easy to work with but Mary took on the task to ensure my dress fit me as perfectly as possible. She was always honest with me about what would look best, regardless of how much work it would be for her and I greatly valued her opinion. Mary followed up each appointment with a full summary of what we discussed and next steps, making the entire process clear from beginning to end. I will be sending all future brides her way!The Alterationist's reply:
Hi Nicole!
How sweet of you to use such praise in a review -- I really had a great time working on your gown with you and loved the fabric and construction! Thank you so much, and I wish you and your husband all the best for your married life!
-- Mary -
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![Aleksandra]()
Aleksandra Sent on 10/21/2019Mary was great to work with!
I had a very fitted dress that originally needed just sleeves shortened and a little bit taken out around my waist as well as shortening around the waist. However I lost 10 pounds before my wedding and a month out my wedding dress did not fit me pretty much anywhere, it lost its shape and was not flattering. Mary managed to make the dress fit completely perfect without it losing its design (how she did it I am not sure). She is also very responsive and very sweet and easy to work with. Thank you Mary!The Alterationist's reply:
Aleksandra! Thanks so much for these kind words. I'm so glad all worked out the way it did, even though the timing was not the easiest! Your gown looks amazing and you look stunning. Congratulations to you both! -
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Sarah J. Sent on 08/08/2019
10000% recommend
When I purchased my gown, my bridal salon gave me three suggested names for where to have my dress alterations done. My first stop was to sift through all the reviews. When I got to Mary at The Alterationist, it was obvious I didn’t need to look any further. There’s a reason she has perfect reviews across every single platform - her work is impeccable and she’s friendly and organized. Like others have mentioned, if you want to work with her, you need to reach out well in advance of your wedding. For my July 2019 wedding, I reached out in summer 2018 to set up an initial consultation in the fall. We then set up a series of fittings starting around March, and Mary made sure to touch base with me before each one to see if I had any questions or if I needed to make any changes to the appointment time. I had purchased a sample Lazaro dress from Glamor Closet, and it fit me pretty well but definitely needed some work. Mary added a bustle, hemmed it, fixed the shoulders, and took in a fair amount on the sides and around the bust to make it fit me perfectly. It had several layers of fabric that each needed individual attention, and some really intricate lace on the outer layer, but Mary handled it like the total pro that she is. She also worked with the inner layers and built up the bust so that it was a little more structured; without that work, the inner lining was kind of like a loose slip that would get twisted easily. I wasn’t even thinking about lining placement on my wedding day because it fit so well. In sum, if you can get in with Mary, DO IT. It’s money well spent for making your dress look perfect AND for your peace of mind. -
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Chelsea M. Sent on 04/23/2018Mary was incredible to work with! And she certainly had her work cut out for her with my gown. Several layers of fabric that all had to be shortened and brought in, lace and detachable sleeves. Mary’s work with my sleeves was flawless, and my gown turned out better than I could have imagined, like it was literally made for me. She was very easy to communicate with, and timely with appointment scheduling and follow-up emails noting exactly what progress was being made on my gown. This gave me ease knowing step by step what work was being done on my gown. Visiting her lovely boutique over the course of 4 months was always a joy, and she welcomed me to bring family and friends, and even had glasses for us to sip champagne in during my fittings. I would highly recommend Mary’s services, as she is truly an expert at what she does!
The Alterationist's reply:
Chelsea! Thanks so much for your kind words, they mean the world to a small-business owner! You are stunning in your photos -- and I just love your finished wedding look! All the best to you and your husband for 2018 and beyond!
-- Mary -
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Chanel Sent on 10/07/2017Mary is seriously the go-to person for wedding dresses!! If you have a dress in need of alterations, definitely go to Mary! She is one of the sweetest people and so easy to work with. I had a crazy ballgown dress, and I was really worried that it would get messed up in the alteration process, since there were just sooooo many layers on this thing. Mary worked on my dress so wonderfully (including a hemming and bustle, among other things), and the end result was amazing! The dress fit like a glove on the day of the wedding and I felt beautiful. Also, Mary's prices are SUPER fair. I went to see one other tailor before Mary, and she was about double the price for the same changes. One thing to also note is that Mary books up fast! When I got my dress, I reached out to Mary and got an appointment two months from that day. So as soon as you have your dress (or know you are right at the time of receiving it), book your appointment!
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Emily Sent on 10/02/2017Mary was a magician with my dress. I brought her a much too big sample, and she hand-stitched and cut and sewed it to fit me perfectly! I was so so happy with my wedding dress, and would not have taken it off it was it my choice. Mary is very patient, and a wonderful listener. She’s full of ideas but always takes your into consideration first. Her studio is very convenient, as are her appointment schedules (just remember to book her early!). I also loved that she takes electronic payments - very easy! Mary made dress alterations a cinch - I never had to worry, because I knew it was in capable, confident hands. Thanks so much Mary!
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![Shayna]()
Shayna Sent on 08/26/2016Mary did a fantastic job taking my dress in almost 2 sizes! She is seriously one of the sweetest people I have ever met. She was honest about what alterations I needed and what I could skip. I would recommend her to anyone! -
User2125099 Sent on 05/09/2015My experience with The Alterationist was amazing. Mary is experienced, professional, and a pleasure to work with. I bought a lace dress off the rack that was several sizes too big. It needed many alterations throughout the dress, including the challenge of making the delicate cut of the top and back fit perfectly. Mary was easy to talk to throughout the process; she provided honest opinions and advice while helping me achieve the right fit. The dress was a challenge and I was so impressed with her talent. I could not be happier with the end result! I wore the dress at my wedding last week and I felt absolutely amazing in it. -
User1854235 Sent on 10/08/2014It is terrifying to hand your wedding gown over to a stranger knowing that it is going to get cut up and sewn back together. Luckily, Mary is a complete rockstar! It is very obvious from her beautiful work why she has a waiting list for gown alterations. I was lucky enough to find her at the perfect time to get my dress altered for my September 2014 wedding. She was flexible with the timing of alterations (including evenings and weekends). My wedding salon had originally asked me to come in M-F 9a-5p (who can do that??). I had a total of 3 fittings with Mary and with each fitting the dress came together more and more. Mary is even more of a perfectionist than I am and kept working until the dress and bustle were absolutely perfect. My bridesmaids and mother were completely impressed by her work. The final product (including veil) were professionally steamed/pressed and packaged beautifully with tissue paper. It was like opening the best present on my wedding day. I got so many compliments on my dress and I know a big part of that was thanks to Mary's perfect alterations - it fit me like a glove! If you can get an appointment, I cannot recommend Mary and The Alterationist highly enough!!
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