I am not one to write bad reviews for local businesses, but hopefully this review can save one bride the heartache and anxiety I experienced by going to Monetti's for my wedding dress alterations.
To start, I was initially very trusting of Monetti's, as it was recommended as one of a handful of places in the south-central Wisconsin area by my wedding dress shop, and I had heard of good experiences from friends who had gotten hems and other alterations (though, not wedding dresses) done with Monetti's.
I had bought a dress thinking that only a few minor alterations would be required, but after my first appointment with them, they quoted me a price of over $700 for alterations and said that they would need to completely reconstruct the dress. Being unfamiliar with the alteration process and trying to respect Mario's craftsmanship and expertise, I agreed on the quoted price.
A few appointments later, I tried on my dress and could not lift my arms even above my shoulders due to the arm holes being too tight (they were just cap sleeves, not full sleeves or over the shoulder). It would have been impossible for me to even HUG anyone on my wedding day--a total deal breaker. I expressed my concerns to Mario, and he got very upset and frustrated, and blamed me for not saying that I wanted enough room in my dress to move/dance/hug. He suggested that I could take my wedding dress with me that day (unfinished and still in pieces!) if I was unhappy--totally unprofessional and I felt backed into a corner. It was only a month or so until my wedding and I was not going to risk going to another tailor. So, he tried to charge me an additional $200 for the additional work--after much debating, we settled on a $100 upcharge.
From then on, of course, it was difficult to trust that I was going to have a beautiful dress on my wedding day and I dreaded every appointment. I really felt that Mario had stepped out of line and taken advantage of the vulnerable position I was in as a bride.
Over the course of my over 10 (TEN!) appointments with Mario, I walked out of the shop with a scuffed up dress that had dirt marks all over it and that they would not take responsibility for. They blamed the dirty marks on me walking across the floor during the alteration process, but it seemed as if they had not treated my dress with care after we had the argument about the sleeve alterations. Mario suggested taking my dress to a cleaners before my wedding day, but, the woman he recommended would not do it. AGAIN, Mario gave me a dirty dress and basically left me high and dry two weeks before my wedding and I felt the dress I walked out with was worse than I had when I walked in!
Thankfully, I contacted my dress shop and they were able to help me get my dress cleaned up (Mary Jo Townsend of Premiere Couture in Cambridge, WI--she's amazing!!).
Please, if you're a bride who wants to keep things simple and feel confident, beautiful, and empowered on your wedding day, *don't* go to Monetti's. read more