Traveling seamstress alters the tailoring business with house calls

A Barrington business owner pinned down an easy way for clients to have their clothes altered.

Mindy Trisko operates The Stitch Fairy, a delivery tailor service. Trisko makes house calls to make alterations. Or customers can come to her Lake Barrington home for pinning and stitching.

Suit jackets and pants, bridesmaids gowns, skirts, pant hems, zippers, lining replacements and some leather work are included in her list of jobs. Trisko also handles pillows, chair pads, tablecloths and a variety of other projects.

She travels throughout the Barrington area and surrounding suburbs.

"I have flexible hours, making it easy for clients who work," said Trisko, who works by appointment only.

She added that her prices are competitive. Pant hems range from $10 to $16.

Trisko, 28, has always been fascinating with sewing. Growing up in Palatine, she remembers watching her grandmother sew.

"I can picture all the dresses and pillows she made for me," she said.

A graduate of Fremd High School and Colorado State University, Trisko spent the past few years in New York City working for fashion designers. She always did alterations on the side for extra money.

Longing to be closer to her family, Trisko moved back to Barrington and over the past two years her alterations business took off.

Trisko is also starting her own organic clothing line made from organic cotton, soy and bamboo knits.

She said most of her alteration jobs take between seven and 10 days.

For more information, call (847) 602-7397 or check out www.thestitchfairy.com.

New ownership: Paul Suellentrop is the new owner of the Design Center for Kitchen and Bath, formerly known as Lake Forest Kitchen and Bath, at 7327 N. Harlem Ave., Niles.

The center offers a range of cabinets, appliances, countertops, flooring and plumbing fixtures along with professional design services on premise.

The center seeks to be environmentally friendly with its own operations and by using "green" products by Crystal and other manufactures.

For example, Crystal uses some pre-consumer recycled materials and processes that reduce or eliminate harmful chemicals.

Name brands offered at the Design Center include cabinets from Cabico, Shiloh and Merillat, appliances from Viking and Sub-Zero, and plumbing fixtures from Kohler and Grohe.

A native of Kansas, Suellentrop purchased the business earlier this year. His career includes a range of experience, from banking to retail and automotive glass distributorship. He resides in Evanston. The shop is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.