Week 22: Getting a Jacket Repaired is #BetterByBicycle

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Not that I used my bike to repair my jacket, but rather, going to a tailor service shop by bicycle, except that it's not really a tailor but an embroidery service shop. 😅

Because I delayed my  trip for a month out of my desire to participate in the Philippine midterm elections, a huge part of my vacation in Australia fell on winter season and  my sister advised me to bring a winter jacket as it would be very cold by the time I arrived. I only have  one winter jacket, but the left sleeve was ripped when it was brought to a dry cleaning service by a friend who borrowed it. 


It wasn't really a problem, stuffs are meant to get broken or decay at some point. But I am not about to buy a new one, I have been trying my best to live a minimalist lifestyle, I've always looked for alternatives to buying new stuff, and that includes clothes. I decided that I will just patch the ripped part to fix it but the truth is I don't know how to do it so I knew I would have to take it to a tailor, but I realized that it was a good opportunity to have my Psyclist logo patch on it so I looked for an embroidery service instead. I couldn't find anyone in my area, I was advised by a friend to check Taytay Rizal, true enough, when I searched "embroidery service" in Google Maps, a bunch of results came up. 

Taytay Rizal is known for its garments, about 27 km from my home, and I couldn't commit to a pure bike ride going there because it's a long climb. So I scheduled it on the same day that I took my car for a preventive maintenance service. I folded my bike and loaded it into my car, drove to Toyota Taytay, queued my car for the service, unloaded  and unfolded my bike, typed "embroidery" in my Google Maps, and started pedaling towards the closest embroidery service shop on my map. I couldn't explain how amused I was to be cycling from an automobile dealer/service center in search of an embroiderer. There’s just something ironic and grounding about it. From machines to manual, from speed to slowness, from steel to fabric.


Except for the hot weather, cycling made the search easier and more convenient. I could stop easily, peek into small alleys, talk to shopkeepers, and in a way see and feel the town. The first shop I came across to was still closed when I arrived, the next one doesn't accept the thread that I brought because they have to use specific thread for their digital machines (for context, I have a luminous thread from my collection that I wanted to use so my patch would glow in the dark). But the shop owner was kind enough to refer me to a tailor that uses traditional sewing machine so I pedaled my way through there. Even with Google Maps, I would still end up getting lost at some point and when that happens, I use the most effective way of locating my destination - asking locals around. Now Filipinos have a very interesting (sometimes confusing) way of providing directions to lost travelers, it's always landmark  and contextual based rather than map based. They would say it like “Diretso lang ‘yan, tapos may malaking puno, kumanan ka. May makikita kang sari-sari store, doon ka magtanong ulit.” ("It's straight ahead, then there's a big tree, turn right. You'll see a sari-sari store, ask again there.") 😅 In my case, I was told to go straight ahead, after seeing the basketball court, keep going until I reach the dead end, then turn right and keep going, I was told that a big white house would loom in sight, and that was my supposed destination, where the embroiderer resides. As confusing as it sounded, I did find my way there and was able to  talk to the embroiderer to discuss my service request. I went back after two weeks, a day before my flight to claim my jacket, and I was satisfied, turned out just how I wanted. Nothing fancy, just clean work and exactly what I asked for, the embroiderer really knew what she was doing.


I liked it so much that I'd often flex it on my solo pics, I had to coz winter's the only time  I can wear it, and we don't have that in the Philippines 😆 



But seriously, I felt extremely satisfied. There’s something deeply satisfying about taking the long way, about choosing to cycle, to move at your own pace, to support a local craftsperson, and to give new life to something you already love.

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