Miriam Mades
Professional Overview
Miriam Mades is the Owner of AlterKnit, New York. This invisible garment repair service has been open for over ten years, quite an accomplishment in one of the most competitive cities in America, especially for small business owners. Miriam Mades’ team is small, but her loyal clientele returns, again and again, choosing her business over much larger firms. There is a good reason for that. Her innate talent, passion, and early foothold in the knit repair scene cemented Miriam’s legacy in the industry early on. Miriam and her staff specialize in alterations and repair. Clients come for reweaving, reknitting, moth hole repair, and knitwear restyling, to name a few services she provides.
Miriam caters to a broad spectrum of clientele, not just the general public. Her patrons include dry cleaners and cashmere merchants. Her enthusiasm for clothing repair is contagious, and she gets immense satisfaction from seeing her customers happy, especially when items come with sentimental value. Some stories linger in her mind, such as the gentleman who needed a 20-year-old sweater repaired because it was his wife’s first gift to him. One thing Miriam will not do, however, is accept an item that cannot be completed well. Subpar garment repair is the same as unfixable in Miriam’s eyes, and she will bluntly but gently notify her customers.
Brand – Johnstons of Elgin
Material – Cashmere
Customer – Clary McCall, Asheville, NC
Work Completed – 2019
One of Miriam Mades’ true talents lies in color matching, which is the foundation of her miraculous invisible repair work. Miriam is skilled at extracting root fabric colors from the garment itself. If she is unable to use this method, she has an extensive inventory of yarn and the dyeing skills to allow her to find a suitable match.
Miriam’s abilities as a craftsman are matched only by her ambition. Down the line, she sees herself doing projects with Martha Stewart and other admirable leaders in her field. Travel is also on her list of must-does. There is a lot of world to see and many holes to fill. For the time being, Miriam is delighted to be able to bring joy to those who seek to preserve cherished memories. In her spare time, Miriam enjoys amateur boxing and playing the guitar. She has been musically inclined since attending NYU, playing guitar and singing for an alternative rock band. That free spirit drives her daily to produce the best output for her patrons.
To learn more about Miriam Mades and her career, visit her other websites, miriammades.net and miriammades.org.
Brand – Marimekko
Material – Wool
Customer – Aletta S.,
Chevy Chase, MD
Work Completed – 2022
Brand – H&M
Material – Cashmere
Customer – Mari D., Brooklyn, NY
Work Completed – 2017