Alterations Are Not a Sign of Failure

Your clothes don't fit you perfectly straight off the rack? So what!

Needing alterations is not a sign of failure. It's not a sign that something is wrong with you or your body.

Clothing manufacturers are trying to make clothes:

Cheaply (means cutting clothes straighter rather than curvier)
To get onto the bodies of as many people as possible, (I didn't say to "fit as many people as possible"!)

They aren't spending time hoping that it will look great on you. In fact, it's in their interest for your clothes not to look great, so you're dissatisfied and keep shopping (and spending your money, buying more clothes from them).

When you buy "off the rack" you are taking a generic garment, not designed to fit you individually (nobody came and took your measurements before they made the piece did they?). So needing to get some tweaks to alter that generic garment is completely fine. There is absolutely nothing wrong with you or your body.

Take Action:

Go through your wardrobe and try on those clothes that you know don't fit quite right. Decide if you want to get them altered and what needs to be done to have them made to fit you correctly, write a quick note and pin it to the garment.

Take everything that needs alterations to your dressmaker or tailor (or if you can sew, do it yourself).

If you're not prepared to invest in an alteration, consider if the garment still earns its place in your wardrobe.

Alterations Are Not a Sign of Failure

Take Action:

Further Reading