Sewing for Wages

When a woman decided to seek wage work, whether out of financial need or individual choice, how did she choose an occupation? There is little to indicate exactly how young women chose one job over another, but issues of social class, geography, peer associations, and education certainly played a part. They most often identified occupations that would provide more status, if possible, or that fit within definitions of their proper place in the home. While women were reported in small numbers in some traditionally male occupations, for the vast majority, the types of employment available could still be categorized into five general areas: farm work, domestic service, factory labor, the needle trades and teaching.[1] The jobs that involved traditional feminine occupations - food preparation, sewing, and domestic service - were most acceptable and available.

The needle trades employed significant numbers of women well into the twentieth century, with occupations that included dressmaker, mantuamaker, tailoress, milliner, and seamstress (both factory and non-factory). These trades could be widely divergent, and clearly differed in status and class associations. Dressmakers were considered the aristocrats of the needle trades, although that position began to change in the early 20th century, as the work environment in large shops became more like factory production.

As with other occupations, women chose dressmaking for a variety of reasons. Some chose it as a temporary method of earning an income, either when young and single or when older and forced into wage earning through loss of a husband’s or father’s income. Others chose to initiate a life long career as a dressmaker. Work environments included everything from large businesses and department stores to private homes. As a result, dressmakers engaged in work practices and processes that ranged from the most expensive and exclusive hand work to factory style, assembly-line production.
Dressmaking as a trade for women declined dramatically after 1910, as demand for custom clothing was rapidly replaced by ready-to-wear in all apparel categories.

[1]Joseph A. Hill, Women in Gainful Occupations: 1870-1920, Census Monographs IX, (Washington: GPO, 1929): 46.