Seamstresses

A dressmaker, also known as a seamstress, is a person who makes custom clothing for women, such as dresses, blouses, and evening gowns. Dressmakers were historically known as mantua-makers, and are also known as a modiste or fabrician.

Notable dressmakers

* Cristóbal Balenciaga
* Pierre Balmain
* Coco Chanel
*Christian Dior
* David Emanuel
* Norman Hartnell, royal dressmaker
* Elizabeth Keckley, modiste and confidante to Mary Todd Lincoln
* Jean Muir, fashion designer
* Madame Palmyre, a favorite designer and dressmaker of the empress of France
* Anna and Laura Tirocchi, Providence, Rhode Island
* Isabel Toledo
* Madeleine Vionnet
*Janet Walker, costumier and dress-making-bust inventor
* Charles Frederick Worth

Related terms

* 'Dressmaker' denotes clothing made in the style of a dressmaker, frequently in the term 'dressmaker details' which includes ruffles, frills, ribbon or braid trim. 'Dressmaker' in this sense is contrasted to ' tailored' and has fallen out of use since the rise of casual wear in the mid-20th century.
* Mantua-maker, in the 18th century a maker of mantuas, or in general a dressmaker.
* Modiste, a maker of fashionable clothing and accessories, with the implication that the articles made reflect the current Paris fashions.
*Fabrician, a person who is considered an expert in making modifications and alterations to fabrics and other articles of clothing.
* Sewing professional is the most general term for those who make their living by sewing, teaching, writing about sewing, or retailing sewing supplies. A sewing professional may work out of the home, a studio, or retail shop, and may work part-time or full-time. This work may include any or all of the following sub-specialities:
** A custom clothier makes custom garments one at a time, to order, to meet an individual customer's needs and preferences.
** A custom dressmaker specializes in women's custom apparel, including day dresses, career wear, suits, evening or bridal wear, sportswear, or lingerie.
** A tailor/tailoress makes custom menswear-style jackets and the skirts or trousers that go with them, for men or women.
** An alterations specialist or alterationist adjusts the fit of completed garments, usually ready-to-wear, or restyles them. Note that while all tailors can do alterations, by no means can all alterationists do tailoring.
** Designers choose combinations of line, proportion, color, and texture for intended garments. They may have no sewing or patternmaking skills, and may only sketch or conceptualize garments.
** Patternmakers flat draft the shapes and sizes of the numerous pieces of a garment by hand using paper and measuring tools or by computer using CAD software, or by draping muslin on a dress form.
** A wardrobe consultant or fashion advisor recommends styles and colors for a client.
** A seamstress is a woman who sews, especially one who earns a living by sewing. Before the Industrial Revolution, a seamstress did hand sewing, especially under the putting-out system. Older variants are seamster and sempstress.
**A costume designer is a person who designs costumes for a film, stage production or television show.

See also

*Bespoke
* Fashion design
*Haute couture
* Sewing
* Tailor

References

Further reading

*Butterick Publishing Company: "The Art of Garment Cutting, Fitting and Making", 1894.
*Deckert, Barbara: ''Sewing for Plus Sizes: Design, Fit and Construction for Ample Apparel'', Taunton, 1999, ''Appendix B: How to Find, Select, and Work With a Custom Clothier'', pp. 142–143.
*Kirke, Betty: "Madeleine Vionnet", Chronicle Books, 1998.
*Picken, Mary Brooks: ''The Fashion Dictionary'', Funk and Wagnalls, 1957.

External links

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Fashion occupations
Sewing
Tailors