Tailoring foul weather gear

[Jonathan316]

Can anyone point me to a seamstress or tailor who knows what they are doing with expensive foul weather gear? I''ve Googled the heck out of it and cannot find one, not anywhere.

Just need a set of bibs hemmed but don''t want to loose the anklet ties. I -know- I''m not the shortest sailor out there, aside from rolling up the cuffs what are we short people to do? (smile) Darned if I''ll take it to the local alterations shop.

Jonathan

[meh]

Jonathan,

I had the same problem myself. Even thou I’m a reasonably good seamstress, perhaps because of it, I realized that all alterations I could come up with (resetting the ankle closure and hemming the bib; shortening the legs using the excess fabric as reinforcement) would compromise the strength and durability of the garment. I solved my problem by shortening the shoulder straps. It’s a fairly straight forward procedure and you might be able to do it yourself; otherwise good luck with your search.

[Jonathan316]

I know what you mean about the straps, and that helps a little. But when the inseam is around 33" and your little stubby legs give you a 28" inseam, you still end up in baggy trousers... heh... I look downright silly in any immersion suit I''ve found. The poor fit itself raises safety issues.

Apparently Henry Loyd offers a size betwen medium and large named ''MB'' which almost works, but no one stocks or sells that size.

With all the folks in foul weather gear on the water I am flummuxed as to why there are no tailor or alteration firms who specialize in this sort of thing. Odds are there are hundreds of them, I just can''t seem to find one (smile). Maybe I''ll try the sport diving/wet suit community. Methinks they might have a solution.

Thanks anyway!

Jonathan

[hamiam]

did you go directly to the manufacturer and ask them what to do? perhaps they can offer a solution.

[kimberlt]

henry lloyd can recommend a woman in connecticut that only does foul weather gear and remains waterproof.
fair winds,
eric

[ross99]

Another place to check might be folks who sell ski wear. My sister was a seamstress, and used to make a lot of alterations to expensive ski pants with ankle zippers, etc...