Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers

Design, make, alter, repair, or fit garments.

Median Annual Wage: $26,460

Projected Growth: Decline (-3% or lower)

Related Job Titles: Designer; Seamstress; Dressmaker; Tailor; Alterations Sewer; Custom Dressmaker; Prototype Technician; Alterations Expert; Couture Alterations Dressmaker; Couturiere

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Source: O*NET OnLine information for Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers.

More Production Careers

  • Sew garments, using needles and thread or sewing machines.
  • Measure parts such as sleeves or pant legs, and mark or pin-fold alteration lines.
  • Take up or let down hems to shorten or lengthen garment parts such as sleeves.
  • Let out or take in seams in suits and other garments to improve fit.
  • Assemble garment parts and join parts with basting stitches, using needles and thread or sewing machines.
  • Remove stitches from garments to be altered, using rippers or razor blades.
  • Record required alterations and instructions on tags, and attach them to garments.
  • Examine tags on garments to determine alterations that are needed.
  • Press garments, using hand irons or pressing machines.
  • Trim excess material, using scissors.
  • Maintain garment drape and proportions as alterations are performed.
  • Fit, alter, repair, and make made-to-measure clothing, according to customers' and clothing manufacturers' specifications and fit, and applying principles of garment design, construction, and styling.
  • Develop, copy, or adapt designs for garments, and design patterns to fit measurements, applying knowledge of garment design, construction, styling, and fabric.
  • Make garment style changes, such as tapering pant legs, narrowing lapels, and adding or removing padding.
  • Measure customers, using tape measures, and record measurements.
  • Estimate how much a garment will cost to make, based on factors such as time and material requirements.
  • Repair or replace defective garment parts such as pockets, zippers, snaps, buttons, and linings.
  • Confer with customers to determine types of material and garment styles desired.
  • Position patterns of garment parts on fabric, and cut fabric along outlines, using scissors.
  • Sew buttonholes and attach buttons to finish garments.
  • Put in padding and shaping materials.

Source: O*NET OnLine information for Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers.

  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
  • Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
  • Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
  • Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
  • Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
  • Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.

Source: O*NET OnLine information for Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers.

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