All about the profession of a seamstress

Since primitive times, a man hid from the wind and cold in his own hand-made “clothes” from the skins of dead animals. The pieces of the skin were torn and sewn together with a hair thread using a stone needle. More often, women were engaged in sewing, while they waited for the head of the family from the hunt. With the development of sewing skills in the profession of a seamstress, there has been tremendous progress, and, having acquired this specialty, girls can now realize a variety of creative ideas.

The activity of a seamstress is based on stitching individual parts of clothing or any other product. There is a great demand for such women workers in various factories, as well as in stores where they sell their own products. Depending on the characteristics of the production, high-class seamstresses can work with absolutely different materials and produce not only standard wardrobe items, but also bags, cases and even shoes.

This type of activity implies a long monotonous work in a sitting position, which can cause damage and diseases of the spine, deterioration of blood flow in the limbs - this is an undoubted minus, however, as well as a deterioration in visual acuity. If a person is on the staff of a large sewing enterprise, then the place of work due to the high noise level should also be attributed to a negative moment.

Despite this, there are many advantages to the profession in question.

• Self-realization. A skilled seamstress will never sit idle. If you have additional education, it is quite possible to start working for yourself: to fulfill orders at home or open your own production. A very good option to become self-employed.
• Affordable training. You can unlearn a profession in almost any city. And everyone can prove themselves in this creative endeavor.
• The ability to sew clothes for the whole family. Knowing how to sew, a woman can be useful not only to society, but also to her family. If you have equipment at home, it is quite possible to replenish the family wardrobe with unique outfits.

Seamstresses, like tailors, are directly related to sewing clothes or other products. Differences - only in the form of work. The tailor has a higher qualification. He carries out all the main work (from start to finish) on the product and in some way combines both the seamstress and the cutter at once. The tailor's place of work, as a rule, is in the atelier and various sewing workshops where orders are made to private individuals. His task is to take measurements, cut the fabric, cut and much more - until the transfer of the finished product to the customer.

Starting professional growth in the field of tailoring, you need to understand that with an increase in the level, with each category, responsibilities also increase. There are six categories of skill.

All students of a special college or vocational school get them.

With such a discharge, a hand-seamstress can perform the basic skills of the profession. An employee may well make bedding, shorten or lengthen a simple product, with the help of a sewing machine, hem cuffs and pockets. Usually, the beginning seamstress works with internal seams on cotton material.

Having improved her qualifications, the employee begins processing external seams. Allow to combine various simple and complex details. A 4-grade seamstress designer can sew small items on clothes, stitch edges, buttonholes and work with a double needle. There is also the possibility of working with more complex materials, such as wool, nylon, rayon.

Further on qualification, the craftswoman expands her capabilities and begins to sew various products on her own. Seamstress works with curved edges. Performs work on altering clothes without violating the general pattern, connects curved parts, knows how to alter pockets and cuffs, and can perform sewing curtains.

It is considered the most upscale professional in its field. Having received the last rank, the seamstress already has quite a lot of experience. Such a master is allowed absolutely to any complexity of work, he is entrusted with the most responsible tasks, where errors are unacceptable so as not to disrupt the whole appearance of the finished product. The seamstress deftly works with multi-layer products (jacket, coat), takes on the tailoring of overalls and even expensive suits. Highly specialized seamstresses, in addition to the sewing factory, can work in the furniture industry.

Despite various skills, a seamstress of any category has her own responsibilities and must comply with job descriptions that are at a particular sewing production. The employee must be able to refuel the sewing unit, clean and lubricate it if necessary, adjust the thread tension and the length of the stitch, and also adjust the speed. Specialists of 3 and 6 categories should be able to work with heavy products weighing up to 20 kilograms.

Due to the fact that the seamstress profession itself implies long and monotonous work in one position, the main requirement for the master is perseverance. An integral part is also a good eye, sleight of hand, accuracy. As a rule, men do not have these qualities, so the profession is most likely suitable for the female half. Patience is also important in work, because if you do not follow the rules and sewing techniques, the finished product can upset the customer, and in large-scale production they will be completely decorated as marriage and forced to be redone.

The enterprise also has its own professional standard, which all employees are obligated to observe. It includes:

• safety precautions;
• the manufacture of various things from fabrics, leather and other materials;
• the ability to adjust the tension of the thread and observe the line;
• the ability to control a sewing machine and other similar equipment, as well as carry out minor repairs;
• checking the color matching of accessories and fabric;
• finished product finishing and preparation;
• quality control cut.

In order to get the basics in the field of sewing skills, optional higher education. You can unlearn at any professional college or school in the profession of “Operator of sewing equipment” or “Operator of knitting and sewing production”. Such educational institutions, as a rule, are in every city. The most popular in our country:

• Vocational school No 99, g. Moscow, specialty - “The seamstress for the manufacture of clothing” and “The operator of sewing skills”;
• Vocational school No 119, Moscow, here, in addition to being unlearned as a seamstress, they receive the profession of tailor and cutter;
• Technological College of Sewing Profile, Moscow, the best graduates of this institution can practice abroad;
• Higher vocational school of sewing design No 307, Moscow, here you can unlearn not only a seamstress, but also get knowledge on modeling and designing clothes, subsequent employment is guaranteed.

All vocational schools can enroll students on the basis of grades 9–11. Studying lasts an average of 2-3 years. The profession itself is creative, so in-depth knowledge of mathematics is not required. In the future, if you study well in college, you can improve your acquired skills at the university and get a higher-paying profession as a clothing designer.

The advantage of sewing craftsmanship is that a seamstress who does her job well and with high quality can be realized by opening her own business, or actively moving up the career ladder at a prestigious sewing enterprise and earn decent amounts.