Gaby Couture Alterations & Design

took in some Levi’s 501s i bought on clearance at tjmaxx in to be tapered for a slimmer calf and leg opening. i was a little wary of paying right when i dropped my pants off and didn’t get to see the completed job yet, but no worries. they did a great job, and pretty reasonably priced. took ~2 weeks, but that’s understandable since they were pretty full and the tapering job is pretty involved labor-​wise i think. i would definitely recommend!

I needed sleeves on my bridesmaid dress for my best friend’s wedding, and Gaby did such a great job altering it and making it look fantastic on me! Very reasonably priced. Thanks a bunch Gaby :)
Edited:
11/​19/​2014
Gaby can do simple jobs such as the one described above, which she did for me in July 2014. However, she completely ruined my wedding dress causing me to have to go buy a dress off the rack at David’s Bridal less than two weeks before my wedding.
I gave Gaby my wedding dress in late September 2014 to do three things (1) add a modesty piece (2) cover the keyhole back and (3) add sleeves. After calling several times in October, I was told I could come in for a fitting on November 7^th even though I originally expected the dress to be done November 7^th
I came in November 11^th for what I thought was a fitting, but was told the dress was completed. When I bent over, the buttons Gaby installed popped open, the sleeves (chiffon material) were skin tight and did not allow room to move. Additionally, the sleeves had little bulges where the sleeve meets the shoulder making the work look very sloppy. Both Gaby and her husband insisted that the fault was mine (e.g., I picked the wrong material, I did not give them enough time, they didn’t have my telephone number to call me earlier), but still offered to fix it.
With less than 3 weeks until my wedding, I gave Gaby another week to work on it. I came in again and the sleeves did not fit me (e.g., popping at the seams, too tight). I, again, gave her a week to work on it. I went in yesterday morning to pick the dress up when we agreed on and it was not done. I finally went back to pick it up later in the day and I was tired of dealing with it, so I just took it even though the modesty piece she installed was loose and floppy, and the back she added to the dress was poorly done. I gave up on asking her to do the sleeves properly and finally told her to just remove them all together. Finally, what made the dress (which was made of a delicate material) *really* unwearable, was runs throughout it that were not there when I originally left it with Gaby.
I took the dress from her Tuesday morning and she refunded me for her fee on the sleeves. I noticed the runs, floppy modesty piece, and poorly done back when I left but simply did not want to deal with it any more.
If working with a specific material or type of dress is beyond your scope, it’s more professional to admit that it is not something you are able to do rather than insist you have «experience» and «make dresses from scratch.» Because Gaby failed to admit the limits of her abilities, I had to spend $ 1200 on a new dress off the rack and rushed alterations at a bridal shop in town. That is not including the $ 500 I paid for my original dress which now can’t even be used as a shower curtain.
TL;DR
Don’t take your wedding dress to Gaby if it requires really delicate work. It will get ruined.

Gaby did a fine job with hemming and taking in a prom dress. It was a simple alteration and the work was done as expected.

I have very pleased with professional quality of work done by Gaby, on time every time. I have been treated with courtesy and respect and I highly value our professional relationship. I can count on her for any work great or small to be done with integrity and honesty. I hope your business continues to prosper.

No appoint necessary! Quick and affordable. I’m so glad I found them. Four pants hemmed in less than a week.

I wish I could leave a glowing review for Gaby, who is a very nice person, but I can’t in good conscience recommend anyone use Gaby Couture for alterations. Yes, the prices are reasonable, but I’d rather pay more and get quality workmanship.
I took a pair of jeans and specifically asked if she could do an original hem and she laughed and said, «Oh yes, everyone asks that.» I left with full confidence and was dismayed to find the hem was not only *not* the original hem technique (which turns out she didn’t know about) but the thread used for the hem was noticeably lighter than the topstitching/​seam hem used on the rest of the jean. She kindly offered to redo the hem but it is only slightly better, is uneven and some loops of thread are left on the hem. I’ll have to pay again somewhere else to have them done properly.
I also left a pair of Giorgio Armani black slacks and they are ruined. The hand-​stitched hem shows in some places, not others, is unevenly stitched, the fabric is gathered/​puckered slightly in a few places and worst (and what ruins them) there are 2 shiny places left on the fabric where they were pressed. ~sigh~
Don’t take anything you value or expect to be done well to be hemmed. I don’t know about other alterations or tailoring.