That's men for ya.

♲ Natalie - 2024-08-15 01:37:01 GMT

The amount of men who walk into our shop and ask us to fix their clothes is staggering. We are a fabric and craft op shop, we do not do mending and alterations for the general public. We will do no or low cost sewing for people who can't afford new clothing but we simply don't have the staff or the time for well-off men who can be better served going to an actual alterations and mending business.We struggle to find volunteers simply to staff the stores, much less sort and price all the donations and ready them for display. Our sewing volunteers are making premmie clothes or activity lap blankets for people with dementia or quilts for kids who've had to leave the family home due to violence. Every class we have has waiting lists and we can't find teachers to volunteer.

Men, particularly middle class men, can learn to sew for themselves. Men can make absolutely beautiful garments and other objects. Men do themselves no favours with learned helplessness. Sewing, mending, and alterations are not a feminised favour to men. We get to decide who we dedicate our labour to.

#sewing #volunteering