I am so grateful to Heather, "The Singing Seamstress"! Could not more highly recommend a seamstress for wedding dress alterations, vintage dress restoration, or friendly conversation. I've included way more rambling information below about the ...story of my Granny's 1961, Mom's 1988, and my 2017 wedding dress for fun - but if you don't feel like reading all of that... trust that you are in great hands if you choose to work with Heather. She is the best!
My mom and I called Heather at the recommendation of a friend, after another seamstress had ripped the bodice from the skirt of my grandmother (and my mom's!) wedding dress during a consultation (before quoting what I considered to be an insane price).
We visited Heather with a very sentimental dress, in multiple pieces, and a vision of hope to restore it. The original dress was still so beautiful in my eyes - despite being a little worn in places, with set-in champagne stains on the skirt, not "heir-loomed" in the slightest, and with the distinct smell of my Granny's closet where it had been sitting for the better part of 56 years. As a last ditch "why not" effort, my mom and I even soaked the lace bodice in OxiClean before visiting Heather to try to restore the original ivory that had yellowed over time (probably not recommended... but it worked!). All that to give you a picture of what Heather had to work with.
We wanted to retain or reuse as much of the original dress as possible, but also use a couple layers of flowy fabric to hide the stains in the skirt that were too set-in to come out. Heather was incredibly helpful in explaining her process. She recommended types of fabric, fabric stores, and provided us with an estimate of hours and her reasonable hourly rate up-front. All in all, Heather did a full revamp of the skirt and train, altered the bodice and cap sleeves, and replaced worn covered silk buttons.
This was all also happening right before Hurricane Harvey. In the midst of evacuating before the storm, Heather reached out to let us know she was bringing the dress with her to Dallas to ensure it was safe and dry. Talk about going above and beyond!
When she returned and the dress was ready, we had one last fitting to be sure everything was just right! There were tears and lots of hugs and appreciation. My now husband thinks it is the coolest thing that we wore the dress for three generations - while at the same time, with Heather's help, I feel it was made just for me.
Thank you so much for everything!