Professional Services in Columbia
Recommended Professional Services by Groupon Customers
"We use the best soaps, solvents and equipment available to the industry. We do not take short cuts," Tripp Penninger told Columbia Metropolitan in 2011, one year after the magazine's readers voted Tripp's Fine Cleaners as the best dry cleaners in Columbia. Grandson of the couple that founded the business in 1987, Tripp and his staff of nearly 100 employees have earned their prestige; as Sanitone-certified master dry cleaners, they've carefully cleaned thousands of garments and have been trusted with preserving the wedding gowns of brides in South Carolina and beyond.
They clean regular laundry with low-temperature water, ensuring that nothing shrinks or becomes misshapen, and they use special procedures for high-end garments, making sure to wine and dine Chanel suits before removing wine or dinner stains. Tripp’s seamstresses are on hand to remedy ill-fitting garments, usually returning alterations in about three days. The staff picks up and drops off items free of charge in specified areas and offers complimentary seasonal storage with the purchase of cleaning.
When Redic Earl Robinson started making house calls in 1919, he visited his customers by bicycle. Each family knew him as "Mister Ed," and they bundled their laundry for him to take back to the shop on Gervais Street. Meanwhile, Myrtle Beckham Robinson, Mister Ed's wife, warmed an iron with a coal-fire stove as she awaited the shipment. Together, they soaked the garments in buckets and worked stains out on scrub boards.
Today, Redic Earl Robinson Jr. carries on the family tradition with modern equipment. Twice weekly, his team travels by motorized horse to pick up laundry and make deliveries. They utilize custom cleaning solutions for specific fabrics and offer specialty services for leather, suede, quilts, and comforters. In addition to stain removal, Ed Robinson Cleaners offers alteration services at its 2551 Forest Dr. location.
The experienced leather doctors at Dickson's Old Cobbler Shoe Repair apply their nimble hands to all manner of footwear. Cobblers can repair the full soles and heels on a pair of men or women's shoes, repair the corkbed and soles on Birkenstocks, or entirely recraft tattered cowboy boots. Technicians keep leathers looking luxurious with a shine job on boots, purses, and jackets, or heighten shoes up to 1.25 inches so customers can finally reach the height required to vote.
Drawing on 32 years of bespoke experience, the duo of talented tailors at Éclat Tailoring & Design by Robert Ríson morphs garments with meticulous alterations and designs custom-made ensembles for men, women, and children. The clothing experts construct elegant apparel from sundry pattern catalogs by Vogue, New Look, and Style, with fine materials such as fur and mink and fabrics such as wrought silk, organza, tulle, tweed, and bubble wrap. The accommodating clothiers also work with customers to fashion garments according to client specifications. In an initial consultation, designers meet with customers to gain a thorough understanding of desired styles and designs, take measurements, and provide counsel on any recent public displays of pants splitting. Custom garments are completed and ready to wear within four weeks.
The American Red Cross of South Carolina is part of an international, politically neutral movement that has delivered humanitarian care since 1863. It provides relief to survivors of national and manmade disasters in the forms of shelter, food, clothing, medication, and counseling. The organization also works to prevent future emergencies, and prepares community members to respond to them when they occur.
In South Carolina, the Red Cross collects blood donations, provides resources for the armed forces, and hosts health and safety training programs for citizens, including lifeguard and CPR training. Its volunteers also provide physical and emotional aid to survivors of disasters such as fires.
Certified professional photographer Gene Taylor has fine-tuned his artistic vision while working in photojournalism and portrait photography for more than 30 years. During classes at Your Photo Safari, Gene introduces students to the photographic arts and the workings of DSLR cameras. Sessions begin in classroom settings, allowing students to get acquainted with camera basics as well as advanced features such as setting white balance and reducing blur. After learning how to navigate the multiple settings and buttons on their digital cameras, students traipse to area gardens to explore the natural world through their lenses. The hands-on experience allows students to take home artfully composed shots of plants bathed in natural light or trees planking over riverbanks in a bid for Internet fame.
