28 April 2012

Stitcher's Indecision


One of the wonderful things about making your own clothes is the ability to design bespoke garments exactly how you want them. You choose the colour, the style, the fit, the neckline, the sleeve, the buttons... At times, however, I consider this availability of choice more of a curse than a blessing. It can take me days to decide which buttons to sew onto a blouse. My fabric stash is full of pieces I bought with one project in mind, then changed my mind. Matching the perfect pattern to the perfect fabric is no easy task. It can get a bit ridiculous sometimes.

Apparently people fall into two categories - "satisficers" and "maximisers". If a satisficer wants to buy an apple, they'll go into the nearest shop selling apples, and pick out an apple which is "good enough". A maximiser, on the other hand, will consider all the possible shops they could go into, perhaps do some research on their ethical credentials and pricing, then once there will examine each and every apple on sale to find the one without any bruises and the perfect blend of red and green. Do you recognise one of these behaviour patterns in yourself when you're in a fabric store or rifling through your fabric stash? I definitely fall into the maximiser category. Even though I may end up with the "best" choice, it's no surprise that maximisers tend to be more anxious and stressed than satisficers who keep the task simple and don't worry too much about their decision.

For my Greensleeves Dress, for example, I changed my mind about how to finish it around fifty times. Tab or belt? Cap or elbow length sleeves? Collar or no collar? For the red button-back blouse I'm currently working on, a seemingly simple step like picking out the buttons turned into a soul-searching quest. Are teal buttons too obvious a choice? Would red fabric-covered buttons send out the message that I want to blend in? Am I really a floral button kinda girl? Cripes!



Am I the only one who suffers from Stitcher's Indecision? Do you face the same problem? If so, have you developed any strategies to overcome this blockage? Help me!

[Soundtrack: 'Too Many Fish in the Sea' by The Marvelettes]