Peggendott Design Studio

Anxiety city, not the price I was told, time frame was all over the place. Whenever you need your stuff back tell her two weeks before that. I was given a price from another business, she said she had never charged that much for something, and that it wouldn’t be that much, and it ended up being more! Never going back!

I was the maid of honor in a friends wedding and it was a fast wedding due to her father being terminally ill. I took the dress we managed to find to Dottie and asked her to sew the front slit shut and hem the dress — she had it done super fast and it looked like she never even touched it. She’s awesome. I’m getting married next July and as of right now I plan on having Dottie custom make my wedding dress — she’s that good at what she does.

Dottie is the best! She always does an exceptional job on anything I bring to her. From my wedding gown to vintage items, she can do it all and everything looks like it was custom designed, just for me. She actually made a custom dress for my second wedding reception and it was perfect! I’m on the shorter side, so EVERYTHING I buy has to be altered. She is the only person I trust to do the job (I’ve tried many other places). I’ve been going to her for 9 years now, and will continue to do so. If you care about your clothes, Dottie is your gal!

I spoke with the owner months before my wedding date to see if everything i wanted accomplished could be, and she assured me it could.
My dress needed several layers brought up, needed to be let out, as well as the armholes to be widened, so I expected it to cost a lot.
When I asked how much it would be, they couldn’t give me a ballpark. They just requested a $ 60 deposit. When I came in for another fitting, I asked again how much we were looking at, and was given a run around («maybe 8 – 12 hours of work; at $ 40/​hr») Since my dress was in pieces, I had to continue.
I ended up picking up my dress 3 weeks after I was supposed to (my choice due to the flood) for our pre-​wedding photo shoot, to find my dress still wasn’t complete. I had requested (at final fitting 3 weeks earlier) for a new zipper (it was showing) & the zipper on the slip to be fixed, neither was done. I was also supposed to have sequins sewn into my veil, and when I opened it up to put it on, there was none. I also requested my balance, and she had no idea what it was. I was honest, and told her I knew I owed another $ 10, as well as the cost for the zipper (but it wasn’t even completed) and she requested another $ 30 from me (for unfinished work!!)
Perhaps because I got my dress previous to the wedding date, they were relaxed about this transaction as we would have time to fix the bugs… but our photo shoot was gastly expensive, and equally as important as the wedding itself.
In all, I spent $ 490 on an unfinished dress and unfinished veil. Very disappointed.

For anyone who is getting married and considering going to Peggendott ‘s (Berkeley) for wedding alterations… I would just like to share what a horrible experience I had. I paid over $ 250 for alterations to my dress, when I picked it up the owner insisted that I shouldn’t take the dress out of the bag and that the dress was perfectly altered. I took the dress, and on and on my wedding day, an hour before I was to get married I put the dress on, to find out that the inner most layer hadn’t been hemmed and was about 6 inches too long. We literally had to get scissors and cut this brides wedding dress! Imagine the stress and anxiety this caused! My MOH called the owner and spoke with her at that moment and she assured her that I would reimburse Andrea for the alterations she paid for. Now when I went to pick up the dress today, after getting that inner layer fixed, the owner refused to reimburse me and only offered her $ 25 or HALF the cleaning expense. She had my dress since the end of March & I picked it up the day before. She didnt start working on the hem until 2 weeks before when I had to call to find out whats was going on. Also the dress should have been taken in more on the sides and when i mentioned it Dotty said you don’t want to do that then the flap of skin that we all hate will hang over (I dont have an ounce of fat on me… who says that) Also instead of her calling me I always had to call her. I would also like to mention instead of my photographer taking photos of my bridesmaids and I at my house like I wanted we were rushed to figure out what to do and she could only get a few shots of my dress being cut (Not so great memories). Just beware if you are considering using this business for any wedding service. Her prices are just as much as any chain bridal store (I.e. Davids Bridal) and her work was careless, and in the end she didn’t keep her word. BEWARE! — at Peggendott Design Studio and the Coolidge Collection.

I somehow ended up with a swimsuit bottom that was far too large that I couldn’t replace or return. I read great reviews and took it right over to Dottie. I gave her the bottom with a bottom the size of what I wanted it. She completely restructured the bottom and made it two sizes smaller! It looked great, but when I tried it on it was kind of a mess. I took it back and told her and she fixed the back (where it was most crazy) without any complaints or annoyance and had it back to me in two days. She’s great. One star was deducted because although the back is great now– the front is still a little large (and honestly I feel weird complaining again). But I’d say regardless it was a positive experience and I would recommend to others.

I recently used Peggendott Design Studio for a complex custom project that I had going for a client, which (of course) also had a very short timeline. I selected them based on the glowing reviews I found online, and they absolutely exceeded my expectations. Dottie was very knowledgeable, and knew exactly what to do to get the job done properly. Their craftsmanship is outstanding, and we were very happy with the end result. I highly recommend Peggendott to anyone in need of a talented seamstress /​designer.

I took a bridesmaid gown to an alterationist* in my new town, recommended to me by a coworker… and she pulled an utter hack job. Ripples at the seams like she had no idea how fabric on the bias would lie, uneven hem, didn’t take the straps up enough. Of course I wasn’t able to pick it up until right before I left town and then I didn’t have time to have her work on repairs. That is obviously my fault, but the disgustingly shoddy work has insured that I will never patronize that shop again.
I called Dottie in a panic (on the road home) to see if she could squeeze me in. Of course she could. And of course she had it ready in a day. And of course the work she did was professional and well-​done. She has been in the business for years and knows gowns of all kinds, and if I didn’t live hundreds of miles away I would have (probably should have) gone to her first.
*I have not yet reviewed this alterationist, so please don’t think it’s Caterina, who is excellent but who wanted to charge too much for the alterations I needed.