Become a good Tailor 2

ce. One of
the best things you can do to
prepare yourself for work as a
professional tailor is to take an
apprenticeship under a tailor who is
already established in the business. An
apprenticeship will train you in the
skills you need to enter the business,
and the experience will look good on
your resume or CV.
You might be able to find an
apprenticeship program working
with an alteration tailor, custom
tailor, or shop tailor. An official
alteration tailor apprenticeship will
consist of roughly 4000 hours of
work, while apprentices to custom
tailors and shop tailors will
complete roughly 8000 hours.
The tailor you apprentice under
will start you with simple tasks
related to sewing, mending, and
altering garments. As you
demonstrate skill and
understanding, you will be given
more complex tasks.
Opt for informal training, if
necessary. Since actual
apprenticeships can be difficult to
come by, you can also obtain a little
training simply by working with a tailor
or in an alterations department doing
tasks that are not directly related to
the work of the tailor.
If you cannot land an official
apprenticeship, try to get hired
part-time in an alterations
department at a clothing store
or other similar workplace. Even
if you do nothing but answer
phones, tidy up, and schedule
appointments, you will at least
gain knowledge about the
atmosphere you can expect to
work in as well as any essential
terminology or concepts.
Practice retail work. A tailor will
need to work with the public, so
practicing your salesmanship and
customer service will be beneficial to
you in the long-run. Moreover, having
retail work experience could actually
look good on your resume or CV if
you decide to apply for a job with a
professional tailor or alterations
department.
You need to develop
communication and interpersonal
skills so that customers will feel
comfortable with you as you take
measurements and discuss the
best ways to improve their
garments.
While all retail work will give you
some experience working with the
public, some jobs are better than
others. Part-time jobs in
department stores, clothing
stores, shoe stores, stores
specializing in accessories are
preferable to fast food or sit-
down restaurant work. Store jobs,
especially those just mentioned,
will get you accustomed to the
fashion retail setting instead of
any generic retail setting. On
the other hand, jobs at pet
stores, convenient stores, and
grocery stores have nothing to
do with the industry and
therefore are not as ideal.
Refine your skills on your own.
Official, professional training
helps, but if you want to become an
excellent tailor, you will need to
practice on your own time, as well. If
you plan on being self-employed, self-
training might even be enough to get
you started.
You can browse around at a
book store for manuals that can
teach you new sewing techniques
or more information about fabric
types, fashion design, and other
topics related to the field.
You can also look for video
demonstrations online to learn
about different sewing techniques
if you need more precise, step-by-
step examples to follow.
Train with the tools of the
trade. No matter how you choose
to get your training and work
experience in before you start your
career as a tailor, you should make
sure that you have plenty experience
with the actual tools used in that
line of work. [2]
You must be proficient in using a
standard cloth measuring tape as
well as other measuring
instruments. Measuring tape is
usually used for body
measurements, but a short ruler
is usually used for buttonhole
spacing and hem lengths. French
curve rulers help tailors work with
angled seam lines.
You also need to work with
professional level sewing machines
and sergers. Learning when use
different settings on these
machines, different needle types,
and different thread types should
also be done.
Use a range of cutting tools,
including sewing scissors, trimming
shears, and rotary cutters. Know
when to use each one and for
what purpose.