Your First Visit to the Tailor

Working on your style is a wonderful and never ending process. If there’s one thing it teaches you is to pay attention to details.

But you’re not alone on this journey. There are people to help you every step of the way in putting together those amazing outfits. The tailor is one of them.

A strange feeling of calm hits you right when you walk into his workshop. A crowded little place full of stacked clothes. It’s as if you’ve stepped foot into another dimension; one far away form the noisy streets.

After about half a minutes’ wait (just enough to get accustomed with the silence), he shows up from behind a curtain. Shy and friendly, he greets you and asks you to sit down.

How may I help you? he asks.

You’re not sure. It’s your first time. So you open up your bag with your latest aquisitions and leave the rest… to him.

Please undress right over there. he politely asks you.

Oh no, do I have to? you’re thinking to yourself. But you don’t say it out loud. You know he’s been doing this for 20 years so you listem to him… to the letter.

So you take each of the clothing items you brought with yourself. You want to get this over with – getting in and out of clothes is just not your thing.

You put on the first shirt.

Yes, that’s very loose. he exclaims. The sleeves are too long, too large and there’s too much material on the sides. The length of the actual shirt is ok, on the other hand.

How long does it take to put the needles? you timidly ask.

Actually I’m almost done. Let’s put on the other 2 shirts.

There! That’s just perfect! he exclaims after marking how much he wants to shorten each dress shirt. Now let’s take a look at those chinos. How short do you want them?

Shorter than usual. I want to be able to show my socks.

Sure, I can do that. But what if you want to change your mind?

Ummm…

I’ll make them a little shorter than usualbut not too short.

Ok, no problem. Oh! i need them to fit well at the bottom. I want them to follow the body line perfectly.

Consider it done. I can’t shrink them above the knee but below it I can remove as much material as it’s necessary. There we go, sir!

Awesome! I thought this was going to take longer. Oh, wait! I have this V-neck sweater…

The sleeves look pretty good. They fit your arms very well.

Yes, but, you see, the sleeves are too long…

Sorry, there’s nothing I can do about it.

But you did the same thing for the shirt… I just want them shorter to be able to see the shirt’s sleeves from underneath it… maybe to roll up the shirts’ sleeves over it and look really stylish?

There is nothing I can do. You see how this is sewed here?

Ummm, yes.

It’s one piece. It’s not like a shirt’s cuff. I can’t open the threads, cut them, then put them back on. It will ruin the entire shirt.

Oh, ok then. So how could you shrink it then?

You see how it’s knitted on the inside of the arms and on the inside of the body? Those are the places where I can take material out. But since it fits you perfectly except for the sleeves, there’s nothing more I can do.

I see. Well, I guess that’s that. I’ll be more careful next time now that I know what you can and can’t do.

When can I come get them?

You’ll have them 2 days from today. your tailor replies.

Thanks, see you soon!

Good bye sir. Oh, one more thing… Is this your first visit to the tailor?

Why, yes it is.

You’ll be very happy with how your new clothes will fit you. Fit is something overlooked by guys today. All they care about is the latest gadgetry. They forgot a lot of the old values.

I’m just learning them… I’m not happy with how I look and dress…

Then I have a feeling we’ll be seeing more of each other, sir.