For Someone Else

When you are sewing for someone, else there is a little anxiety happening because as you are sewing it you aren’t free to make impromptu changes at whim. Will it be tight enough or will it be loose enough? On your own body you know how you like the feel of the garment. So, before the fitting, you are scrunching every stitch.

You are measuring over and over again. Double checking the hem. Double checking what notes you’ve taken.

You are hoping and praying that this is what the person desires this garment to be.

Whether you are sewing for a client or you are sewing for your loved ones. Now they come. They are standing before you with the garment on looking at the mirror. You look from their eyes to the garment to see if there is anything that would need further adjusting. Because this was a garment you have been creating,

You look to see if the client approves or disapproves of this ‘baby’. Is it a curtesy smile or is it genuine?

You hold your breath hoping that the zipper goes all the way to the top because that client desire for the garment to be on the tight size. And it does.

They are wearing the garment and it’s beautiful.

You want to take pictures to show the creation and how well it turned out. But you refrain. It is no longer your baby. It is their body and their garment. It is their likeness. So, you refrain. So out of the door it goes. The one that you labor over. The one that rubbing your eyes you made sure of every stitches. But now they are wearing it.

Later you may get a chance to catch a glance of them wearing the garment along with all the nice accessories and hairdos. You smile like a proud parent at an event your child is play at.

Yet no one knows.