Fabric Stores and me.
I went to Handcock (sp) Fabrics yesterday after my Dr's visit so that I could chat with my mother-in-law. The store is across the parking lot from the Dr's office and I wanted some quiet time away from the hustle and bustle of two rambunctious kids and an excited dog.
My mother-in-law wasn't there so I wandered a bit talking to some of the ladies working there and feeling up different fabrics. I shop for clothes by the way that they feel on my skin as much as the way that they look. So I did the same thing here.
One very nice rotund lady needed to kill the last few minutes of her shift doing absolutely as little as possible and showed me where to look for patterns. Patterns are little packages of really thin paper that one places over the cloth so that they know where to cut. Patterns do not tell one what kind of fabric to use, what colors to use, or how to sew the pieces together once you have them cut out. This is all implied knowledge.
In fact, it's kinda weird that the patterns do not have this kind of information. What's even more strange is that I didn't see any starter kits or how-to books in the entire store. Even worse was the fact that none of the different fabric sections were labeled. If you the customer want to find sky blue silk then you have to ask an employee and hope that they remember where the silk is.
Compare this to a hardware store. In a hardware store like Lowe's EVERYTHING is clearly labeled, including large obvious things like doors and windows. Everything has it's own department and the store is clearly laid out and marked so that customers can shop without bothering the employees who have more important things to do, like gossip.
I have decided, based on my experience at Handcock Fabrics, that women as a whole either all inherently KNOW how to follow patterns and sew or they are all just mean spiteful creatures who enjoy the feeling of power that comes with looking down on someone who obviously has no idea of what they are doing in an area that you excel in. Either way, it sucks being a man in a store like that. Maybe it'd help if I were gay, but I think that I'd still be screwed...
I did pick up three patterns. They were on sale for a buck each. I got a really cool swordsman outfit for me, an absolutely gorgeous gown with a hooded cloak for my wife, and some princess costumes for my daughter, including a really nice Asian outfit. I couldn't find anything worthwhile for my son but I just bought him a complete outfit from the Asian store in the mall, so he's good.
As you may have guessed, I like Asian things a lot. Especially clothes and weapons. It'd cost me over $100 for me to get a whole outfit for myself, so I'll have to wait awhile. Thus the costume. I hope to have it ready for the Renaissance Festival this summer. I've only been there a couple of times and I only got to dress up once. This year, with the new job and everything, I think that we'll be able to go a couple of times. It's gonna be cool...
My mother-in-law wasn't there so I wandered a bit talking to some of the ladies working there and feeling up different fabrics. I shop for clothes by the way that they feel on my skin as much as the way that they look. So I did the same thing here.
One very nice rotund lady needed to kill the last few minutes of her shift doing absolutely as little as possible and showed me where to look for patterns. Patterns are little packages of really thin paper that one places over the cloth so that they know where to cut. Patterns do not tell one what kind of fabric to use, what colors to use, or how to sew the pieces together once you have them cut out. This is all implied knowledge.
In fact, it's kinda weird that the patterns do not have this kind of information. What's even more strange is that I didn't see any starter kits or how-to books in the entire store. Even worse was the fact that none of the different fabric sections were labeled. If you the customer want to find sky blue silk then you have to ask an employee and hope that they remember where the silk is.
Compare this to a hardware store. In a hardware store like Lowe's EVERYTHING is clearly labeled, including large obvious things like doors and windows. Everything has it's own department and the store is clearly laid out and marked so that customers can shop without bothering the employees who have more important things to do, like gossip.
I have decided, based on my experience at Handcock Fabrics, that women as a whole either all inherently KNOW how to follow patterns and sew or they are all just mean spiteful creatures who enjoy the feeling of power that comes with looking down on someone who obviously has no idea of what they are doing in an area that you excel in. Either way, it sucks being a man in a store like that. Maybe it'd help if I were gay, but I think that I'd still be screwed...
I did pick up three patterns. They were on sale for a buck each. I got a really cool swordsman outfit for me, an absolutely gorgeous gown with a hooded cloak for my wife, and some princess costumes for my daughter, including a really nice Asian outfit. I couldn't find anything worthwhile for my son but I just bought him a complete outfit from the Asian store in the mall, so he's good.
As you may have guessed, I like Asian things a lot. Especially clothes and weapons. It'd cost me over $100 for me to get a whole outfit for myself, so I'll have to wait awhile. Thus the costume. I hope to have it ready for the Renaissance Festival this summer. I've only been there a couple of times and I only got to dress up once. This year, with the new job and everything, I think that we'll be able to go a couple of times. It's gonna be cool...
posted by Keko at 08:13
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