Tailoring can bring out the best in clothes

PASADENA, Calif. -- "It's all about the fit." That unspoken motto has been passed down in my family for generations, from my late grandfather, a tailor, to me.

So through weight gain, weight loss and style changes, I've gone to tailors to make sure my clothes fit and flatter my body. Velvet formal gowns and discounted jeans have all been cinched in and hemmed.

Tailoring, an old-school craft with roots going back at least to the Renaissance, can range from pricey alterations at a swanky department store to less-expensive tweaking at a dry cleaning or tailoring business. Attention to detail is essential for the desired result: impeccably fitted skirts, suits, dresses, jackets and pants for customers of all shapes, sizes and ages.

"I like the feeling customers get from the right fit. When I'm happy sewing, my customers are happy," said tailor Grace Myung Lee, 61, who co-owns Grace Cleaners in Pasadena with her husband. Lee learned to sew when she was 10, in South Korea.

For a streamlined look, she recommends first changing the hemline of pants so they're not too long or too short, and the hemline of dresses to a flattering length.

In this photo taken on April 2, tailor Grace Myung Lee, 61, smiles while holding up a tray of sewing machine thread in her dry cleaning and alterations shop Grace Cleaners in Pasadena, California, that she co-owns with her husband, Sung Jae Lee. Tailoring, an old-school craft with roots going back at least to the Renaissance, can range from pricey alterations at a swanky department store to less-expensive tweaking at a dry cleaning or tailoring business. (Solvej Schou via AP)

For simple fixes, you can try doing alterations yourself with a needle and thread. Easy DIY jobs range from sewing on a button to darning socks and mending a slight rip along a seam. Plenty of books or YouTube videos give instructions.

Going to a tailor, though, is worth it for more complex adjustments, elevating an ill-fitting dress from frumpy to fashionable.

Possible alterations include nipping in the waist and hips, bringing in the shoulders, lowering the arm holes and sewing in darts, said Maria Tesseris, 62, owner of Golden Needle Tailoring in Chicago.

"We as women have curves and a butt and busts! It's very rare for people to put on a piece of clothing and it perfectly fits," said Tesseris, who learned tailoring in high school in her native Greece.

Shortening too-long sleeves is a good way to make shirts and jackets look more polished on both men and women.

In this April 2 photo, writer Solveg Schou, left, has her dress fitted by Grace Myung at Myung's shop in Pasadena, California. Tailoring, an old-school craft with roots going back at least to the Renaissance, can range from pricey alterations at a swanky department store to less-expensive tweaking at a dry cleaning or tailoring business. (Sung Jae Lee/Solvej Schou via AP)

Tesseris has seen more men wanting their clothes tapered and their pants narrowed.