House of Couture

My dress was perfect! Made from my mothers gown, which was especially poignant, because she passed away when I was 19. It fit perfectly without any alterations required AND looked exactly how I pictured it, within my budget. Sharifa is a true artist. Worth every penny. I HIGHLY recommend House of Couture.

If I could give zero stars, I would… read on.
Me: 8,000.00 Monique Lhuillier dress
Seamstress: NO PROBLEM $ 460 we take in a little here, we take up a little here, we add bustle here AND we dry clean
Me: ugh, okay.
2 weeks later
Me: Yikes, you took it up too much, can you make it longer, this just won’t look right?
Seamstress: NO PROBLEM, it’s ready for you next week.
2 Days before wedding
Me: The hem is entirely crooked AND you’ve used WHITE THREAD on a CHAMPAGNE COLORED DRESS??? Oh no :(My once PERFECT dress is wrecked, I can’t pay you for this work.
Seamstress: Then I’ll hold your dress here until you pay me; remember though, you’re getting married the day after tomorrow.
Me: Paid the lady for her work and left and cried, a lot.
Day of Wedding
Me: Can’t find bustle loops ANYWHERE. My dress proceeds to be dragged behind me AT AN OUTDOOR VENUE and the eyelash lace at the hem is consequently ruined (and I’ve since checked for those bustle loops and pearls — nonexistent).
AWFUL, HORRIBLE, CLUELESS work, that the seamstress put off on another person and most of my wedding pictures, from the front are TRASH because you can SEE MY SLIP, unless you cut my feet off… no biggie.

Shame on anyone for giving a bad review! She is The incredible !!! The owner is so welcoming and knowledgeable on todays fashion! Very professional and stylish!
I walked in here wit no appointment 3 weeks before my wedding day and she turned what was an originally 3 sizes too big, short sleeve, (open back) wedding gown, into a long sleeve ALL LACE, (closed back) with beautiful buttons running down, and fitted (mermaid style), it turned out to be the dress of my dreams!!! The dress made me look more curvy than I really am! Just GORGEOUS! And not to mention, the price was unbelievingly affordable!!! You can’t beat it anywhere especially for lace!!! Thank you soooo much for making me look like a Queen on the most important day of my life !!! Here are some before and after pictures.

I chose Shari to make my custom wedding dress because her shop was clean and she had beautiful dresses that she had made on display. When I interacted with her throughout the months, she was very «dry» not exactly the warmest personality, but I shook it off since I’m there for her work, not her.
Then, when described how I wanted my wedding dress (a soft tulle-​type of dress) and NOT pouffy she said «so you want like a ball gown, not like wedding dress» I said yeah, even though I was slightly offended by her comment. Oh and when I chose the lace I wanted for my dress, she kept saying that she would have to use all of that lace on me and would not be left with any for her, but that it was ok because she wants to do the best for her customers… throwing it in my face. She also mentioned a few times about the amount I was paying… she didn’t have to accept my offer…
Then when I went to try it on, she was for the first time, really friendly and excited for me, so yay for that, but the dress was huge… really really pouffy even though I specified earlier how I wanted it and she took the freedom to add jewels to the front of the dress, which were nice, but I didn’t ask for that.
The last time I tried on my dress, she had taken layers off tulle off, and the dress was more relaxed, not quite what I wanted, but still beautiful and actually looked like a wedding dress. She did a good job, but she did not make the dress how I wanted .
So yes, I would recommend her, but not if you have something very exact in your head.

I had the best first time experience today at House of Couture, I brought in a bridesmaid dress that was too big in some areas, tight in others, too long and overall did not fit well with my 5 month pregnant stomach. Sharifa was amazing and took time to give me options of different ways to make me more comfortable without breaking the bank. She was so friendly and professional. My girlfriend was with me having her dress altered as well for the same wedding and also was given exceptional service and options for her dress. I will 100% be back and will recommend Sharifa and her shop to anyone in need for alterations. Thank you so much for being so affordable, timely and professional. Shop is clean and has easy parking right behind the building (a plus for walnut creek).

The lady in this store is an opportunist and a liar. She tries to sell herself as an «expert» in tailoring wedding dresses and tries to make simple modifications into big expensive tasks. She is dishonest and thinks her lies will get through anyone. Don’t go to her if you want an honest, decent job done without a huge hole in your wallet and a sense of being tricked. I took my wedding dress to be modified and she have us an outrageous price and a lot of attitude. We happily went somewhere else.

I went to Shari to create a beaded illusion piece to my wedding gown. She assured me that the work would be easy since it’s essentially adding a small piece to the top of my gown, and that it would be finished within two months maximum. Beaded designs were to be hand done and that does require some time, so I was happy with that time frame.
After the first fitting, the illusion piece was not quite done but seemed to be going in the right direction, although I noticed the piece was not created on the exact tulle I had requested, I let it go.
After I went in for the third fitting with my wedding gown in hand, it was clear that Shari had done no further work on the illusion piece, it had been over three months already, and just 3 – 4 weeks before my wedding. When it came time to figuring out how to attach the piece to my gown, she literally handed me the piece and told me to «play with it.» The confident attitude that was there during my consultation was no longer there, and there was absolutely no sense of urgency.
When I asked for her professional advice on the best way to connect the illusion to my dress, she told me I should have made the illusion a cap sleeve instead, since that would have been easier for her to attach. No help, no professionalism or regard.
I was livid and told her we’d have the piece finished elsewhere and would pay her for the work she had done, but not for the entirety of the work she had promised. (We had already paid a deposit upon soliciting her work). She lost it and insisted we would not leave the store with the illusion unless we paid her for work she had not completed.
My fiancé at the time was with me, and he knew we had only a few weeks before the wedding, so he gave in to her unreasonable request and paid her in full. She did this because she knew we had no choice just weeks before our big day.
Shari is incredibly, for lack of a better word «shady» in how she does business, she’s incredibly inefficient and has no sense of time. Luckily I found an amazing woman in San Francisco that was not only more reasonable in price, but far more talented and efficient, who was able to save the illusion piece and made it look absolutely beautiful.
If you’re thinking of working with Shari on your wedding gown, you may want to think again.

Great trailering! Brought in a bridesmaids dress I posted over seas and she rocked or up great. Also had a Unilocal discount ($ 50 for $ 75). Very nice lady and the shop was always very clean. Will have to remember her for my next tailoring. Thank you!

I asked for same day turnaround on an alteration which wasn’t cheap, but the quality of work was very good and I had no complaints about the service. Confused about the negative reviews here. Thank you Shari for your help!

Shari is amazing I took my wedding dress to her to get altered and she did an amazing job. Two weeks before my wedding I felt like my dress was a little tight and she told me not to worry and bring it back in to her. She let it out and it was ready the next day. I am absolutely satisfied and happy with how my dress fits now.

Last minute urgent need for garment alteration for a wedding the same afternoon. No push back on my request, more like when would you like it ! Equally important was the cost of services — very very reasonable. This woman is a tailor. Resident in her shop were gorgeous gowns waiting to be picked up for what was prom weekend.

AWFUL experience. My mom went to here to have her wedding dress custom made. She is having a basketball themed wedding and wanted a long mermaid dress in jersey material with the number 1 on the back. We also were supposed to have custom made bridesmaids dresses in jersey material with the number of our choosing on the back. We came for a fitting once the dresses were finished, the material was cheap nylon, the dresses were the wrong color, wrong length, and on top of all of it the dresses said «BIG 13» on the back! Wth?! And my moms wedding dress had the same issues and said «BIG LEADER» on the back. Ruined our wedding apparel, didn’t wanna say sorry was reluctant giving us our deposit money back and made my mom cry. This place is horrible! DONT GO HERE!

Can I give zero stars? Spent $ 295 on a suite alteration which I had to take back 3 times because she could not get it right. One sleeve was even longer than the other! I am pretty sure my arm lengths are the same size. She never even called me back after the third time to pick up my suit since she jacked it up soo soo bad. She also hemmed my $ 200 jeans way too short. They are no use to me now. Do yourself and your clothes a favor… do not go here. EVER!

Wonderful place. They were extremely fast, friendly and efficient! I will recommend everyone to get their clothes done here!

I had a great experience with alternations on a bridesmaid dress. I found House of Couture on Unilocal,bought the Unilocal voucher, and rolled the dice. I got in quickly, my dress was finished in one week and they didn’t over charge me. The Wedding Party told me to expect my alternations to cost around $ 80 and the House of Couture charged me $ 65.
I was very happy. I would recommend this place.

I rarely give one star reviews, but I think my Unilocaler friends should avoid House of Couture.
I went by House of Couture on a Saturday to get some pants hemmed after looking through the Unilocal reviews here that are obviously mixed. I tried on my slacks, she marked them and was told they’d be ready in a week. That seemed like kind of a long time for just a length adjustment, but whatever, just as long as it’s done properly. I went by the following Saturday and the lady was talking on her cell phone with a friend. She asked for my ticket and went back to look for my pants (still talking on her cell phone). I could hear her looking through her racks for my obviously not done pants.
She asked me to wait a few minutes and I said, ok. Still on her cell phone, I can hear her using her sewing machine. I walked over and said what are you doing? She said it will take just a few minutes to hem my pants. I told her to take her time and that I’d rather have it done properly than right now and I left.
I came back later in the day and they were done as promised. Here is where House of Couture enters one-​star-​ville. I tried them on when I got home and my girlfriend says they are too short. Great. A friend of ours that works for Barney’s in SF happened to be by the next day and she confirmed, too short. She looked at the quality of the sewing and asked how much I paid. I said $ 15. She said this is a $ 2 sweatshop job (colorful language omitted).
I don’t mind overpaying a little for quality work. I don’t mind waiting a little longer for quality work. I don’t even mind the work to be done a little late if it’s quality work. What I definitely object to is sloppy, wrong, over-​priced and under-​delivered work. I have to imagine that a shop that can’t do a hem on a pair of slacks ought not to be trusted with anything more complicated than that, and I honestly can’t think of something that might be simpler.

The alterations were good! Well done. My fiancé is having a custom suit made for our wedding and I’m referring everyone I know to Shari. Please go see her. She is wonderful. It gets pretty busy on the weekends so go in early if you can.

Sharifa custom made our wedding gowns. She did a fabulous job and her prices were extremely fair. I found her friendly & easy to work with. She listened to our requests/​ideas, looked through our pictures & gave us honest & kind feedback about the designs & what would work best for our body types & desires.
I recommended her to a friend, and she made her gown as well. It was a detailed, lace design & all parties were very pleased. I’ve recently recommended her to another friend who is getting a gown made for a up-​scale party.
If your looking for a dress or gown — Sharifa is phenomenal.

Had a great experience with alterations on two wedding gowns. Yes, both for me (and yes, same wedding). She did a wonderful job and I received my gowns back in a timely manner and at a reasonable price. The owner designs and sews her own line of dresses so I felt comfortable leaving them in capable hands. She knew what needed to be done and woked hard to make sure I was happy when I left.
To explain the two dresses: I am getting married at the Zoo (in 4 days!) and expect my dress to get dirty as we walk around for pictures before the ceremony and reception. So, sticking with tradition, I wanted the groom to not see me in my actual wedding dress until I walked down the aisle. Hence, two dresses. Very different styles with very different alterations needed.
I’d come back here for future alterations (hopefully none will ever be on another wedding dress!!)
The big negative is it’s very hard to see the storefront. You really need to know where it is EXACTLY or you’ll pass it and end up having to make two U-​turns to get back to the area where you can park again. Also, the parking isn’t clearly marked as reserved for her (and the other businesses). The one business the lot lays behind kind of makes it seem like it’s their private lot. A bigger sign for the store and for parking would do a lot.

There was a certain gown I had my heart set on but could not find anywhere. I called all over. I even called stores in Arizona to try and find it. It was no where to be found.
On top of that the maker was not bringing it back to the fall line of dresses. What was I supposed to do? This was a very important event and probably the party of the century I was attending. I needed that dress.
I decided to get it custom made instead. I did some local research and made an appointment to have her take a look at the dress I wanted.
There is many wedding dresses in her shop and she also does special dresses for wedding parties.
My dress came out lovely and the hand done beading is second to non. I went and looked at other gowns after seeing the beading on mine and all other gowns beading looks so cheesy. The beading is just stunning.
I wish there was a little more communication during the dress making process though. I know that she is a very experienced designer and took some liberties with the beading colors and such but I just wished that I could have had a little more input in the final decision.
Also, some of the accessories I bought in the interim didn’t match because I thought the beading was going to be a different color than the final outcome and I didn’t have time to go look for different accessories.
Believe me though, the beading was immaculate in the end.
The other thing was the amount of time it took. I went in with the design around mid August 2009 and my party was in March of 2010. I didn’t get a finished dress until 2 weeks before the date of the party.
It just felt very rushed towards the end and there were minor things that I over looked because of the time crunch. Again I think this is due to some communication issues.
My dress is gorgeous and she really does know how to make some amazing clothes.