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A common misconception that is perpetuated about history is that people made their own clothes. All the time. For all of history. However, this simply isn't true. Just like today, there are only so many hours in a day, and there is always so much to do, to just function throughout your day. So, today, I want to walk you all through how people actually bought their clothes in the 18th and early 19th centuries, with a lot of explanation about the three main clothing trades: Tailors, Milliners, and Mantuamakers.

So, now, people didn't make their own clothes back then. During the 18th & most of the 19th centuries, people paid skilled professionals to cut, fit, and sew custom clothes for them. If they couldn't have new clothes made, they would have old clothes remade. In some parts of Great Britain and during some time periods, secondhand clothing was an option too (but I don't talk about that here, btw) ((it also wasn't a thing the Colonies too much money & too much pride)).

Socials
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Tiktok: @nabs_co

My books:
The American Duchess Guide to 18thCentury Dressmaking: https://amzn.to/2GrkAIQ

The American Duchess Guide to 18thCentury Beauty: https://amzn.to/2TTwJtq

A Couple of Sewing Manuals:

Workwoman's Guide, 1838: https://archive.org/details/TheWorkwo...

The Science & Geometry of Dress, 1876: https://archive.org/details/sciencege...

Images Used

Qu'en ditesvous?, 1818, British Museum https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The Morning Ramble, 1782 British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Nine Tailors Make a Man, 1774, British Museum https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The Pretty MantuaMaker, 1772, British Museum https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

A Milliner’s Shop, 1787, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Intelligence on the Change of the Ministry, 1783, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Man’s Uncut Waistcoat, c. 1760, LACMA https://collections.lacma.org/node/21...

Le Bon Genre, Une Parisienne à son lever, 1815, British Museum https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The Bum Shop, 1785, British Museum https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Barbara Johnson’s Album from 17461823, Victoria and Albert Museum https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1...

A Domestick Scene, 1740s, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Atelier de Modistes, 1815, British Museum https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The Pretty Milliners, 1781, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The Man of Feeling, in search of indispensibles; a scene in the little French Milleners, 1800, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The Man Milliner, 1783, British Museum https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The Unwelcomed Customer, 1772, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

The devil among the tailors, 1805, British Museum
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Le Lever des Modistes, 1830, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Trade Card for Turner & Hitchcock Milleners, 1803, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Advertisement, Milliners & Haberdashers, c. 1800, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Houses on the Corner of Red Crosse Street and Fore Street, Cripplegate, 1850, British Museum,
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Trade card of Daniels, Tailor, 1810, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...

Trade card, T.Beck, Tailor, 1805, British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collect...


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