Wardrobe Workout

Julia Dee is the fairy godmother of disorganised wardrobes, and she’s a dab hand with a sewing machine too, says Lorraine Crighton-Smith

Above: Julia Dee

Designer Alterations, Julia Dee’s company, is responsible for mending, altering, updating and organising the wardrobes of London’s finest. Boasting celebrity clients such as supermodel Elle MacPherson, Dee has been taking care of other people’s wardrobes for over 16 years.

Aged 23 Julia Dee, a fashion college graduate, left for the more exotic climes of Bahrain to set up a design and tailoring house for wealthy Middle Eastern women. “There were no boutiques, there really was nothing. Dubai was just a desert,” says Dee, who accepted a job working with a tailor for a year before setting up her own service.

“I started my tailoring service on a much smaller scale with eight Filipino seamstresses. But after a few years Sadam left Israel and the UK was going through a recession,” and when Julia returned to London things had changed dramatically.

“Black Monday – it was ghastly time. I went to the dole office in Streatham. Having gone from this 60ft yacht, eating caviar to sign on was a shock to the system,” she says. Dee managed to get a part time job working for Harvey Nichols. The demand for alterations from customers led to Dee taking their clothes home with her.

“Harvey Nicks were happy with the arrangement, in the beginning,” she says, “In concessions people were more discerning. It wasn’t the throw away market we have now. People were willing to spend good money on clothes and having them altered.”

Next Julia took up a part time position at Harrods and put an ad in the back of Vogue – and for three days a week she worked from home with her sewing machine. One year later Julia packed in the job at Harrods and worked full time from home. As her list of clients grew, and she began extending her services to home visits, she started the search for a premises to run her business from. Home for Julia at the time was West Norwood but her clients mostly lived in Kensington and Chelsea so she was looking for a more convenient location.

“I was going to visit clients in Chelsea, Kensington and Sloane Square. Having to cross the river was exhausting, driving back and forth. I needed a launching pad into the City,” says Dee. Cue Julia’s move to Battersea, where Designer Alterations is currently based. You can see the sign for Designer Alterations from the platform of Queenstown Road Station – whilst expensive, the sign has long since paid for itself with the number of clients it has attracted.

Speaking of moving, another service Designer Alterations offers is care of your wardrobe whilst moving home – a task of great importance according to Julia Dee. “When people move house they don’t count their clothes. My advice is to count your clothes and measure them. You need about 2cm a garment, so if you have a one metre wardrobe you can fit about 50 things – not 60 or 70 which people do,” says Dee.

Also, investing in the right hangers is of utmost importance according to Julia: “Invest in the right hanger and make sure they’re all the same. Put skirts together and jackets together etc. They must all be on the relevant hangers so that it’s even to the eye. Clients always asked about hangers so I launched my product range,” she says. Although when Julia started out she used to source hangers from the bins of the boutique fashion shops where she lived!

House moves and total wardrobe overhauls are an exhausting task, Julia tells us, and preparation is the key. The owner of the wardrobe’s imput is vital – and they must be present so Julia can encourage them to clear out moth-eaten cashmeres.

“I have a young wardrobe mistress who helps me now. Together the process takes a day but it would take twice as long on my own. It costs £600 to have us in for a day but the typical bill will average £1,000,” says Dee, “it’s the ideal gift for someone has everything – except a house keeper!”

Julia likens the intensity of the task to brain surgery: “You stay so focused on that person’s wardrobe. It’s like wardrobe surgery! It becomes very draining for us as we are often exposed to stale and stagnant energy. At the end of the day it’s neat, pretty things that go back into the wardrobe. We then show the before and after – the reaction from people is cathartic, they say it really is a life changing experience.” l

Designer Alterations can be found at

220a Queenstown Road SW8; 020 7498 4360; www.designeralterations.com