Last night I was working with my sample maker seamstress, Maria. She only speaks Portuguese and is the finest tailor I've ever experienced. She can nuance a turned hem like no one I've ever seen, and I've worked with tailors in India, Indonesia and New York. Sometimes, since we have to operate on images, sign language and gestures and at last resort google translate, we get our signals crossed. Sometimes she cuts out a tiny version of a pattern on paper and puts it together for me so we can have a little 3-d version to agree on.
I'm not great at sketching - I never went through formal design school training - so sometimes it gets lost in translation.
Usually she goes way above and beyond what I asked her for. Once I asked her to make a skirt with a fabric that had spots of dark blue and light blue. I told her 'only use the dark blue area, not the light blue splotches.' I came back and she had made two skirts, one dark blue, one light blue. Oy.
Usually she goes way above and beyond what I asked her for. Once I asked her to make a skirt with a fabric that had spots of dark blue and light blue. I told her 'only use the dark blue area, not the light blue splotches.' I came back and she had made two skirts, one dark blue, one light blue. Oy.
When we first started working together, I remember I would have to take a breath before getting out of my car and entering her office. I just never knew if I was going to be completely delighted or holding my head in my hands. But even in the worst misunderstandings, I am amazed at the breadth of her skills.
But we have gotten a groove down. We understand each other a lot better now.
The last couple of evenings, I've been going to her office after work to learn from her and help her with the little stuff. I cut bias trim and fuse it with interfacing and sometimes do a bit of sewing. She holds so many secrets on how to make beautiful clothing, I'm eager to learn more from her. I have to know these details in order to instruct the factory that will make the final production run.
She's meticulous and exacting in a way that you rarely find anymore. She's a true tailor, who can size you up and cut a garment without a pattern. She told me once that her father was a tailor and her mother was a seamstress - she has been in the workroom as long as she can remember. She does everything the old fashioned way, taking the time to cut the garment so the stripes line up, sewing a french seam to ensure the joints don't rip. She has reverence for the fabric and how to cut it.
Which is why it makes me sad that she has to clean houses instead of do what she does best. She used to work two days out of the week cleaning houses and because of the work I've been giving her, now it's down to one day.If I had the funds, I'd hire her as my design assistant and set up a workroom around her. I have a weakness for people like Maria, people who are so skilled and care so much about the quality of their work. I feel the same about the weavers we work with. When I meet people like this, nothing could make me happier than employing them and keeping them working in their profession with dignity and fair compensation.
If I had the funds, I'd hire her as my design assistant and set up a workroom around her. I have a weakness for people like Maria, people who are so skilled and care so much about the quality of their work. I feel the same about the weavers we work with. When I meet people like this, nothing could make me happier than employing them and keeping them working in their profession with dignity and fair compensation
If I had the funds, I'd hire her as my design assistant and set up a workroom around her. I have a weakness for people like Maria, people who are so skilled and care so much about the quality of their work. I feel the same about the weavers we work with. When I meet people like this, nothing could make me happier than employing them and keeping them working in their profession with dignity and fair compensation
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