Magically altering clothes

[jrober4211]

No: HPFGUIDX 34598

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., "blpurdom" <blpurdom at y...> wrote:
> --- In HPforGrownups at y..., "lucky_kari" <lucky_kari at y...> wrote:
> > > Magically altering robes does not, for some strange reason, 
work 
> > in the Harry Potter world, in the same way that cosmetic surgery 
> > doesn't seem to exist anywhere. I don't think JKR thought out 
that 
> > one.
> 
> I do think you're right about the altering not working, but it's 
> also consistent with many other things in the Potterverse.  
> Polyjuice Potion lasts for only an hour.  Moody needs a prosthetic 
> leg and eye (magic won't just miraculously replace the former body 
> parts).  Magic isn't a cure-all for shabby clothes; you would 
> probably need to continually reinforce the spell.  
> 
> With this in mind, now one has to wonder why one can't put a 
> fairly long-lasting transfiguration spell on any garment to give it 
> any appearance one might wish.  THIS actually seems to be the bit 
> that JKR didn't think out too well, rather than the earlier part.
> 
> --Barb
> 
When I read the part about Ron taking the lace off of his robe and 
messing up the spell by leaving ragged edges, I immediatly wondered 
why he did not grab a roll of spellotape and have Hermione or Harry 
help him turn the edge under and tape it to the inside of the robe. 
It worked for me in college when I had no time to repair a loose hem 
in a pair of pants or a sleeve, except , of course, i used masking 
tape instead of spellotape.....lolol. Another solution I thought of, 
was for Ron to go to the kitchen and see what the House Elves could 
do with the robe. Since they can do laundry, he could have taken the 
robe off and laid it on a table for them to fix, or Ron could have 
left the robe on and let the Elves mend it so they could judge what 
length it needed to be hemmed at....oh well, just a thought. 

Jo Ellen