Simply Barbara

Simply Barbara is excellent! I highly recommend her! Not only is she very personable, but she is very prompt and accommodating.
I arrived at Simply Barbara in need of alterations. I had two suits, and both the trousers and jackets needed work. I should mention, that I visited Simply Barbara after having tried another tailor/​seamstress who was not open. After searching for another tailor/​seamstress close by, I found Simply Barbara, and she helped me right away. I think it may have been divine!
With both suits, Barbara accurately assessed what needed to be done. She fully explained the work that was going to be conducted, and made certain that I was going to be getting what I wanted. Further, I informed Barbara that I needed the suits (at least one) soon for an upcoming job interview. She had them both to me very quickly.
I am so impressed with the work! My wife was really impressed as well and wishes that we had found Simply Barbara sooner.
My interview went great, and I am waiting to hear of the next step. One way or the other, I felt awesome in my suit during the interview because of the work Simply Barbara did.
Joey V.

Barbara is not a people person. She scolded another customer and me for being five minutes late for our appointments. And this, after I called her moments before to tell her I was parking! Funny she scheduled two people for the same time — how did SHE expect to be on time for both of us?
She took my $ 20 deposit and gave me quite a runaround about when my dress would be ready. She gave me a «try on» date before the final date in case we needed to make further alterations. When I went to pick it up I was happy with the way the dress looked but she insisted it wasn’t finished and wanted to keep the dress and charge me more. I told her I wanted the dress the way it was and she wanted to charge me more for the dress being done early! I did not have the cash to pay the balance since she never mentioned that’s the only form of payment she accepts. I told her to forget it and I walked out. She called me two minutes later and said I should pick up my dress and my deposit.
When I went back to get the dress she gave me a hassle about not having my original slip even though she clearly remembered me. Then she wanted to charge me the full balance even though she had said earlier she would give me my deposit back.
She interjected some religious mumbo jumbo about how the «good Lord takes care of losers and he takes care» of her, too.
I left with my dress and my young son who was with me and was appalled by her behavior (!!!) and walked out without getting my deposit back.
Turns out a close friend of mine also had a less than pleasant experience with «Barbara» when she had two pairs of jeans hemmed. She was rude to my friend, too.
The work is decent but her pricing is crazy and she has an atrocious approach at how she treats customers.
Overall, it’s a very shady operation. I won’t be going back nor recommending Barbara. My son, at age was shocked at how she spoke to me.

Wanted my pants tailored. She was hard to understand because she didnt speak too much. She told me something weird was going on with my butt. She offered a suggestion but seemed wayyy NOT confident like she was trying to figure this pants thing out for the first time. Just going by the vibe she was throwing at me i decided to not have her do anything with the butt issue. So all i needed was a hem. I wen to pick up my pants and was late for my appointment which i didnt think i had for a hem. There was one other person in there with an open dressing room. She made me wait 15 minutes i tried on the pants length was good but the stitching was pretty noticeable sitting two inches above the bottom o the pant leg. I figured you shouldnt see it at all or very little or at least have the stitching sit closer to the bottom of the pants. She was just extremely awkward to talk to and didnt seem too confident with mens pants. It cost me 20 dollars for a hem to be picked up in two days… Not sure how that compares to other places for a rush job.

Barbara is a lifesaver!!! 4 days before the wedding I was in, I decided to try on my dress one last time… Apparently all the beer and food from the cookouts this summer have added a few pounds, so my once perfect fitting dress was a tad tight! It was to the point I was afraid that the zipper may bust open! Panicking I called Barbara the next day and told her I needed to have my dress let out and have it the very next day. She was the nicest lady EVER! Had me try it on and said I just needed a half inch let out on each side so it fit comfortably. I paid a rush charge but it was worth every penny! I came in once the next day after she let it out to make sure it fit, then she put the finishing touches on it and had it to me that evening! Best part was my dress looked absolutley perfect, like it was never altered! I will use Barbara every time I need tailoring from now on!

I went to Barbara because she is local to my house, and had some positive reviews here. I brought in my bridesmaids dress for alterations, i needed the top let out and the hem brought up. Her quote was $ 85, which i thought was high, but i agreed to pay it anyway. She did the measurments so fast and whipped me around and pinned and what not… it felt incredibly rushed, but again, i went with the flow, because i assumed she knew what she was doing. I had to come back EVERY SINGLE SATURDAY in May. She was so rude to me everytime i went in there, and the last fitting i put the dress on and she hadn’t put in the cups that we had discussed the first time i went in there, and subsequently put them in for every fitting. she just «forgot» to sew them in, and at that point the top was too tight to fit them in, without her having to let it out all over again. She blamed me for not reminding her… AND that final time i was in there, i was visibly upset, and when i came out of the fitting room to ask her why she hadn’t put them in, some random other customer said that i had been rude since i walked in… I HADN’T EVEN OPENNED MY MOUTH SINCE I GOT THERE… I couldn’t believe it, honestly. I picked up the dress, it was ill-​fitting, but unfortunately there wasn’t enough time before my brother’s wedding to have it fixed, and I didn’t want her touching my dress anymore. As a side note, every single time I was in there (4 total) somebody was complaining about something she had done, or she was rushing to fix something she had screwed up. I would avoid her like the plague… too expensive, terrible craftsmanship, and horrible HORRIBLE attitude.

Barbara is a superior seamstress and excels at her craft. She altered a wedding dress that had been purchased and altered elsewhere at a shop in Quincy that did a very poor bodice fitting even though it was a simple design. She was clear that several fittings would be needed to make sure it was well done and she charged a fair price.
She also altered a MOB dress that she observed had a too-​heavy zipper that caused the sheer fabric at the end to bunch so an unsightly puff occurred right on the butt and since it was a slip dress with a short jacket, it was not possible to hide it (this was apparently the result of using a zipper from a standard roll and not one suited to the dress). She offered me the option of putting in another zipper or removing it completely as the dress could then just slip on; it was perfect.
I would not hesitate to use her again.

Barbara was fast and efficient, I needed some pants hemmed over a weekend, and she was able to finish it in 3 days.
It seems there are set prices for items, which is good (i.e., you can call up and ask how much it would cost to hem a pair of pants and she’ll give you a straight answer), though it would be nice to see a website or just posted in writing somewhere, though I“m sure for more complicated items, it’d be hard to give a firm price. My pants were $ 12 for hemming +$ 3 for the lining, which seems affordable.
She was straight business at first, no small talk, and didnt share any of her own insights (e.g., asking me where I wanted the hem to fall, and when I wasnt sure, she didnt really explain her own thoughts as to the different cuts)…but when I came back to pick them up, I made a comment on something she was passionate about, and she became alot more personable and we just chatted for 20+mins.
I’d definitely recommend Barbara, she’s experienced, efficient, and affordable… only negative was, for my pick up appt, I was the first appt of the day, and she arrived 10 minutes late, so I was locked out, standing in the cold for awhile… luckily the library isnt too far away.

Barbara was a life saver! I recently had a wedding to go to with Kelly and needed to get my pants hemed and taken in a bit. After going to a well know tailor in Quincy Center and being told that he wouldn’t be able to have my pant’s ready in time I stopped into Barbara’s shop.
From the get go she was amazing. Did I mention that I needed this pants hemed in 4 days? Because I did, or else I was showing up to the wedding sans pants. Barbara assured me that she would be able to do it in time, even told me that they would be ready in 2 days! I was expecting a large rush fee but when I asked how much it would be she said «only ten extra dollars my dear». Barbara was truly my angel that week! Oh, and side note… I happened to walk in on the day of the week that Barbara is closed, yet she was in and the door was unlock and I didn’t see the sign… instead of turning me away she offer to take my business! Have I mentioned that Barbara is a life saver?! Because she is!
When I went back in two days to get my pants, Barbara had them all ready for me. I tried them on and they fit like a glove! All and all, everything only came to $ 30 (including the rush fee)!!

Recently I brought a bridesmaid gown in for Barbara to alter. The dress was pretty ill-​fitting prior to alterations, which was frustrating since it was a rather expensive Alfred Angelo gown.
Barbara initially was going to fix it one way but changed her mind because she didnt like how it was coming out. In the end, she did a lot of work and my dress fit perfectly. I paid $ 50 for the alterations and after mentioning it to the other bridesmaids, was told that was a bargain.
I would definitely use Barbara again should I need alterations.

I went to Simply Barbara with several pants and suit jackets for tailoring — adjusting the length of the sleeves and the pants. Like Julie T., I went in for a fitting after one week and received my garments back in two weeks. I was very impressed not only with the quality of the final work, but with Barbara’s meticulousness and attention to detail throughout the process. I will be going to her again and would recommend her to anyone.

I went to Simply Barbara to have a knee-​length, strapless cocktail dress made for a social event I was attending. The dress came out very beautiful. I provided my own material and total cost for it all was around $ 300 – 350. (I don’t remember the exact price) It seemed a little high to make a dress, but alas I wanted something that would be tailored to my body.
I wanted to wear the dress again for a wedding I was attending about 5 months later only I wanted a couple alterations made to change the cut of the dress on the bottom. Wasn’t much work involved-​just cutting, taking off some material and sewing some hems. (I should prefice this by saying that I am handy and knowledgable enough with a needle and thread-​but had no initiative to make my own dress. With that said, I had a good appreciation for the kind of work that goes into and what DOES NOT go into making a dress). After all was said and done, she wanted to charge me over $ 250 to alter the dress. I was dumbfounded when she gave me the cost. I told her that I might as well have just had a new dress made. or just bought a brand new one at the store… because obviously the cost to alter it was almost as high as it was to make it. She tried to justify her pricing but nothing made sense. She asked me what I thought was fair-​and I told her that 150 – 175 was acceptable for this work. She proceeded to try to insult me by saying «Well, if $ 150 is all you can afford, then just write out the check and leave.» Wishing to be done with this horrible experience, I just gave in and wrote her a check for the price she requested and asked for my dress back. (which by the way was only ¾ done).
She insisted she finish it and I picked up the dress 3 days later. Like I said, I understand the work that goes into sewing, being an avid seamstress myself and having made my own curtains and clothes before-​but to expect over $ 250 for altering a dress is insane. You’re not performing surgery-you’re sewing!
Will never recommend her or use her again.

Up front, I should say that when I went to Simply Barbara, it was the first time I’ve ever been to a tailor to have alterations done, so I have nothing to compare it to :-)
Overall, I had a great experience. It’s a small place with one person working there — Barbara. I went in with a suit I’d bought on super-​discount at Filene’s Basement that was basically a size too big. She took in the seam/​zipper on the skirt, moved the button on the jacket, took in the rear seam on the jacket, and adjusted the seams on either side of the jacket to make it fit. The total came to $ 100, which some may consider expensive, but considering how many adjustments she had to make, I thought it was worth it — especially considering how cheap I got the suit for in the first place! Timewise it took just under 2 weeks, with an appointment after 1 week to double check that everything would fit the way she was going. There are signs in the shop saying she can usually do rush jobs, but it would cost more.
Overall, I had a good experience and would definitely go back. Barbara was very nice and seemed very competent, and I would encourage others to stop by!