Repair at the sewing shop

I’ve never paid much attention to my clothes. As long as I’m something other than a billboard, it’s okay. It’s more an object of daily use than an object of beauty or social status. So I’ve never been to a stewing store!

There’s nothing to tempt me. The new price of certain products (in stores like H&M) is cheaper than the cost of repair, especially during promotions. It’s also quicker to order online than to bring them in and take them back to the store. I also have a family habit of buying new, and wearing them until they have holes in several places before throwing them away. Clothes are bought new and last until it’s no longer physically possible to wear them. For the past few months, I’ve been sourcing my main clothes exclusively from Vinted. It’s just inexpensive and fast. I feel good, because they are reused and no longer wanted.

The obvious next step is to make these clothes last as long as possible. If I’m going to spend money, you might as well spend it on people whose work is useful and beneficial. So I walked through the door of the sewing store. I’d never been there before. I was greeted by someone with experience. I ask her if it’s possible to repair horse fly masks. By providing her with the material and experimenting, it would be possible. We will see whether this is viable compared to the price of the new ones (50€). I don’t think so. However, I’ve also come for two pairs of jeans with holes in the crotch and three buttons to sew on two pairs of shorts and a polo shirt. No worries about the 65€ repair. At the price of new jeans, it’s viable and I’m happy with it.

I left the store happy. Happy to have someone working directly for me. Happy to repair instead of throw away. Happy to use resources efficiently. Repairing and making my clothes last seems obvious: as long as they can be worn, they should be. This is the next logical step in reducing my resource consumption. I plan to repair them more often, and to open the sewing store door regularly. Let’s see.