Seamstress in NYC?

I went to a fantastic seamstess - Williamsburg Seamster. I would say her pricing is very fair for NYC, though I wouldn't necessarily say cheap. She charges by the hour ($45 when I went to her very recently) rather than a flat fee, which I really appreciated - I understood exactly what I was paying for.

ETA link: http://williamsburgseamster.com/

I might be looking for one also- but for now my mom, aunt and their friends want to do the alterations. But BHDLN, where I bought my dress, recommended Jeeves. I called and I know it all depends what you are getting done, but they told me for straps, hemming and taking in would probably start at $300. I have not used their services, but they have good Yelp reviews. BHDLN also recommended a couple of other places, one I called and they have a base price of like $550, which I thought was crazy.

http://jeevesny.com/

Thanks! I have a dress that's also sold at BHLDN (penelope) so that's a good sign. I saw Jeeves on yelp but their "$$$$" scared me away. I'll also get in contact with Williamsburg Seamster. It's pretty far from me since I live in the Bronx, but it's so hard to find reasonable prices in NYC that I'll contact them as well too. Question: Is it generally okay to call seamstresses/tailors for an estimate or do they actually need to see the dress?

@Jeanine - PENELOPE IS MY DRESS TOO! :-) What are you looking to get done on it?

@anais WOOT! I haven't seen anyone on here with the penelope dress yet, despite it being the most gorgeous dress in the world! I'm going to have to get it taken in (the woman who measured me said that I'm a 8 in the bust, 6 in the waist, and 10 in the hips so I'm all over the place), hemmed, and cups put in. Did you need yours altered? Where did you go/what did you have done? ps - I'm also thinking of wearing this belt https://www.etsy.com/listing/190541894/gold-bridal-sash-bridal-belt-gold-belt?ref=favs_view_13

I'm also looking for an affordable seamstress, Brooklyn/Queens/Manhattan.

@Jeanine I know, right?! I've been shocked that no one on here seemed to have it! It's my favorite (except, as I just realized while confirming my MUA, that it has to be put on over your head). I didn't have to get much done - I had it bustled (if you're bustling it, let me know and I can message you a photo of what my seamstess did- she did a great job with it) and then I just had to let part of a seam out around the zipper because it was bunching weirdly.

That belt would be gorgeous. I went with a sort of leaf-y belt too:

http://www.bhldn.com/shoes-accessories-belts-sashes/sparkled-skinny-sash/productoptionids/2cfdddea-ce77-41fb-bdf9-1bdcb7ca63f8

@anais that belt is gorgeous! I'm not sure if I want to bustle it. I think it might depend on how much all of the alterations will cost. I'm budgeting $500 for all alterations but idk if I'm WAY off with the price or not. I've been getting sticker shock. I'd love to see your bustle if you don't mind just in case! Did you get yours altered in Brooklyn?

@Jeanine Yep! I went to Williamsburg Seamster (link up at the top in my first post). She gets a lot of BHLDN dresses and is really familiar with them. She charges an hourly rate rather than flat fees, which was one of the things I really liked about her. But yeah... alterations are expensive in NYC, no question about it. Offhand, the cups and hemming should both be fairly simple with that dress. Taking the waist in though, is still going to be simple, but a lot more time consuming. From my experience with it, I think you're in the right general range with your budget for what you need done, but probably don't have room to bustle it too.

@anais for some reason I completely disregarded your first post (I think I was too side-tracked by having my first dress-twin). I'll get in touch with her about an estimate. Given our dress, do you think it'll be a mistake to forgo the bustle?

Thanks dancingbearbride, I will keep that in mind too. I always feel better about personal recommendations.

@dancingbearbride That is an incredible price, and I'm totally storing that info away for a rainy day!

@Jeanine I'd vote bustle if it's doable for you cost wise, but I think you can survive without it if it's not in the budget. If you haven't already, put the dress and and just walk around in it a bit. The train follows pretty well when you're walking forward, but I definitely found it getting caught/stepped on when I tried to move a little more naturally. Also, the tulle definitely has a tendency to get caught in your heels if you wear them.

I'm no help but following as I need to find where to alter my dress next month!

@dancingbearbride Thanks for that recommendation! It seems like everyone's yelp reviews are always a bit mixed so it's hard to know what to trust.

@anais When I was first trying the dress on I was stepping all over it because it still needs to be hemmed (and I plan on wearing flats), so maybe after it gets hemmed I'll decide about a bustle.

@Jeanine Yep, that totally makes sense! And wearing flats will definitely help to. If you're already getting it hemmed, you could also consider getting the train cut off or shortened in the process as an alternative to doing a bustle.

OMG...I'm def following this thread closely!! I went to RK Bridal and had a weird experience with the lady at the front, supposedly the owner's wife but, that's a whole other story. I especially didn't like that I was told the minimum in alteration was $500 and its done offsite. I probably didnt understand correctly. Anyway, I paid $200 for my dress and I refuse to pay $500 for a bustle!

Williamsburg is perfect for me since that's where my dress will be kept!

@gonefishes I tried booking alterations asap like they suggested and they wouldn't pick up a phone. After a week of trying I gave up. The reviews for the alterations department on Yelp are terrible anyway, so I think we're better off going elsewhere!