Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers
Production
The work covers making garments from parts as well as altering and repairing ones that already exist. Customers are measured with a tape, and clothes are tried on so the needed changes show up. Alteration lines are marked or pinned; old stitches come out with a ripper or blade, seams are let out or taken in, and pieces are basted, then sewn by hand or machine. Extra cloth is trimmed as sleeves, pant legs, and other parts are brought to length. Suits people who like fitting clothes to a real body, listening to what the wearer wants, and working to exact measurements.
Typical education: High School Diploma or GED
Annual Median Wage in Field (2025)
$41'640
Median Wage Market Position
$41'640
What you might do
- Fit garments on customers and plan alterations
- Measure customers and write down their sizes
- Sew garments by hand or on a machine
- Take in or let out seams for fit
- Rip out stitches before changing a garment
- Pin alteration lines on sleeves and pant legs
Skills that matter
- Measuring customers and writing sizes down
- Fitting garments to see what to change
- Taking in or letting out seams
- Listening to how the wearer wants it
- Sewing clothes by needle or machine
- Ripping stitches and marking new lines
AI & the future of this role
Custom fitting, alterations, and one-off design rest on in-person trust and aesthetic judgment that software struggles to replace. Pattern suggestions may speed some steps, yet client fittings and hand finishing are likely to keep this work grounded.
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Includes O*NET® 30.3 Database information by USDOL/ETA under CC BY 4.0; modified by LostInCareer. Wage/outlook from BLS. Attribution details