Name/Title
Instructions for Learning Sarders' Course In Dress and Mantle CuttingEntry/Object ID
2005.09.01.01Scope and Content
27 page instruction book, printed in 1906. Oversized book about dress and mantle cutting. Black print on cover reads: "Instructions for Learning Sarders' Course In Dress and Mantle Cutting. A Complete course consisting of a Duplicate of these instructions and one of our ladies tailor systems will be sent to any address on receipt of $5.00, registered or money order. Address Sanser's Dress-Cutting School 157 Brunswick Sheet Stratford, Ontario, Canada." Book is bound with string and is complete with illustrations. $5.00 cut and posted over original sum. Brown paper cover and ivory smooth sheets.
Transcription :
SANDERS'
DRESS-CUTTING SCHOOL
STRATFORD, ONT., CAN.
Read this little book carefully and see the advantages you get by taking a course in Dress-Making by mail. You all know that next to cooking a good dinner, the best thing for a woman to know how to do perfectly, is how to make her own clothes. A few dollars can be put to no better purpose than this, and it is every father's duty to see that his daughter gets an education in this line, which is needed just as much as learning how to read, etc.
2 SANDERS' DRESS-CUTTING SCHOOL.
My Own and Others' Experience in Learning
Dress-Making in a Shop.
I thought, like most other people, that if you spent six months in a shop I could learn dressmaking; so at fifteen years of age I went to a shop for six months. I was as good a plain sewer at that time as most women double my age, The reason was that we came from England where they taught sewing in the schools, and as far back a$ I can remember, every Saturday we children practiced sewing all morning, and if it was not done neat, even if it was only hemming a duster, we were not allowed to play in the afternoon until our sewing was done, so we generally made a good job of our Saturday morning's work.
At the shop I, like the others, basted, hemmed, over- casted, ran errands, etc., for six months, never saw anything cut or fitted in that time, so how can you expect your daughters to know much more about dressmaking after they are through than before they start, when the only interest taken in them is to see that they get the work done, that someone has to do, and anyone can do. This is the reason so many girls who work in shops do not make a success at dressmaking : they go expecting to learn everything in dressmaking they stay six months or a year doing the work before mentioned, for in shops of any size there are always experienced hands to do the rest; in a. small place the person who is running the business does it herself.
Why is this ? Because it would take far longer to show a girl how to do these things than to it herself, and they are
needed to do something they can do. This is why the girls lose an interest in their work. By the time they have put in the number of months they are sick and tired of it. A day or so before they leave, if they say they want to learn how to cut, they are taught how to cut a tight-fitted waist lining by some system for which they pay from $5 to $25, and for which the dressmaker paid from 75c. to $5.00, and generally it is so poor a fit that they have to fit the lining of a waist first, which they wouldn't need to do if it was a good system.
They learn this so well that if they study it after they go home they will remember, but if they neglect it a few weeks it is generally forgotten. Any agent would have taught them to cut this lining for same, if not less than the dressmaker charged, and they would know as much about cutting and fitting if they had been in the shop a month as they would if they had stayed a year.
Why don't they learn how to cut this lining when they go instead of waiting until they are through ? That is never done because if they did, they would soon see that was all they were going to learn, and they simply would not stay very long after, knowing that was all they were going to learn about cutting. As for the basting, hemming, overcasting, etc., they would think what is the use of my staying here month after month doing this ?
How and Why I made a Success in Dress-Cutting
I had made up my mind to make a success in dressmaking, because I thought I would like to run a. business of my own, so the first week after leaving the shop I worked at buttonholes from 8 a. m. until 6 p. m., working them on pieces of cloth, cotton, etc., with coarse and fine silk and thread. The second week 1 made myself a dress, the next a coat and wrapper. The next week I opened up a dressmaking shop on my own account, and had the stall of ap-prentices working for nothing and small pay like the rest. But that doesn't mean that I knew how to do much cutting, no, that had to come next. I had learnt on a system how to cut a tight waist lining, and .1 might say here that was all I knew about cutting. When a lady would pick out a dress to be made, I would take up the fashion sheet after hours,and study out where to allow the fullness atone place, how much goods to pleat at another place, etc. until I knew exactly how to cut my cloth to allow for all the pleats, yokes, frills, etc., that went on the dress, before I commenced cutting it. This was not done in a few minutes, but it often took hours until I got used to it. By the end of the first year I could understand how to cut any style of dress by looking at the picture I was cutting from, as easy as reading a, story in a book. After that first year I used no patterns except a skirt pattern, as I had thought of no way at that time how to make a perfect rule by which to cut skirts.
How I came to think of Teaching Dress-Cutting.
Ten years ago I changed from Miss to Mrs., and the difference from having so much to look after, and then nothing to do as it seemed to me, was more than I could get used to. I thought I would rather run a shop if only for the pleasure of having to hustle up than have nothing to do. At last I thought, now if girls could learn how to cut, fit, and put together, which they could in a week or two, they would know more about dress-cutting than if they worked in Shops for years, that is if they knew how to do plain sewing, such as hemming, they would also take an interest in their work right from the start. So I invented my first course in dress-cutting in the next few months. As soon as I was through I took a class of ten girls and taught them every part in dress and mantle cutting, fitting and putting together in eight days. It worked well, better even than I expected, and they were all more than satisfied. After teaching a few hundred pupils I offered $500 to any one I could not teach, and still do so to-day.
How I Taught this Course.
I used to teach my pupils in classes. First I taught them to take measures properly; next how to draw the shape of all tight linings, put them together and fit. After this I used to cut out on paper about a dozen unlined shirt waists and pin all patterns together, after which the girls would do the same. Next I used to cut out all kinds of different styles in
lined waists, sleeves, skirts, coats, etc, everything in dress-cutting and putting together, having the girls do this after me until they could cut out and put together everything they saw in the fashion books. We used thousands of newspapers, but they got the same practise on them as they would with cloth, and it would have cost each pupil a couple of hundred dollars to cut up so much cloth, and would have been no better to learn to cut by than paper This proved to be by far the best way to teach dressmaking.
How do 1 Know it was the Best Way ?
Because I have taught over 7 thousand pupils, half of these had served from three months to two years in dress-making shops before coming to me, but knew no more about how to cut out a dress than when they commenced. I also know from personal experience, for did I not serve six months, also run a business myself, and found out that it would not pay a dressmaker to be bothered showing girls how to do such things, as in most cases they would lose more time teaching them than doing it themselves.
When I had girls working for me I used to let them watch me do the cutting, because I remembered what little help I had in this line, and this was the best I could do for them at the time, and although I have travelled a great deal I never met a dressmaker that did this for her apprentices, or ever heard tell of one. So it must be best to learn how to cut, fit, and put together this way. If you know how to do plain sewing you will be a better dressmaker by taking
a course in cutting, than if you worked in shops for years.
I have always offered $500.00 to anyone I could not teach, and not one to my knowledge was ever anything but well pleased that they took it up. Could I be doing this year after year if it wasn't all I say ? No. I can also say that when I taught one in a family this personal course, if there were any more girls, a year or two after another would take it up, also cousins, etc. It isn't likely a mother would send me her second and third daughters if she was not satisfied with the first.
Why I Improved my Course and Taught by Mail.
I used to receive mail every day from people in differ-ent places asking me if I was going to their town to teach; if I was they would take a course, etc. I also knew that there was a large number that could easily spend a few hours every week, but could not leave home for a week at a time, so I wanted to be able to teach anyone, no matter where they lived, and as I could not always go to their town and they could not come to me, the idea of teaching by mail was the one and only way it could be done, so I improved my course and commenced teaching by mail in 1905, and find it gives better satisfaction still.
Why is it better than the Personal Course ?
Because I give my pupils drawings of all kinds of pat-terns in dressmaking, which makes cutting so plain a child
6 SANDERS' DRESS-CUTTING SCHOOL.
lined waists, sleeves, skirts, coats, etc, everything in dresscutting and putting together, having the girls do this after me until they could cut out and put together everything they saw in the fashion books. We used thousands of newspapers, but they got the same practise on them as they would with cloth, and it would have cost each pupil a couple of hundred dollars to cut up so much cloth, and would have been no better to learn to cut by than paper This proved to be by far the best way to teach dressmaking.
How do 1 Know it was the Best Way ?
Because I have taught over 7 thousand pupils, half of these had served from three months to two years in dressmaking shops before coming to me, but knew no more about how to cut out a dress than when they commenced. I also know from personal experience, for did I not serve six months, also run a business myself, and found out that it would not pay a dressmaker to be bothered showing girls how to do such things, as in most cases they would lose more time teaching them than doing it themselves.
When I had girls working for me I used to let them watch me do the cutting because I remembered what little help I had in this line, and this was the best I could do for them at the time, and although I have travelled a great deal I never met a dressmaker that did this for her apprentices, or ever heard tell of one. So it must be best to learn how to cut, fit, and put together this way. If you know how to do plain sewing you will be a better dressmaker by taking
a course in cutting, than if you worked in shops for years.
I have always offered $500.00 to anyone I could not teach, and not one to my knowledge was ever anything but well pleased that they took it up. Could I be doing this year after year if it wasn't all I say ? No. I Can also say that when I taught one in a family this personal course, if there were any more girls, a year or two after another would take it up, also cousins, etc. It isn't likely a mother would send me her second and third daughters if she was not sat- isfied with the first.
Why 1 Improved my Course and Taught by Mail.
I used to receive mail every day from people in different places asking me if I was going to their town to teach ; if I was they would take a course, etc. I also knew that there was a large number that could easily spend a few hours every week, but could not leave home for a week at a time, so I wanted to be able to teach anyone, no matter where they lived, and as I could not always go to their town and they could not come to me, the idea of teaching by mail was the one and only way it could be done, so I improved my course and commenced teaching by mail in 1905, and find it gives better satisfaction still.
Why is it better than the Personal Course ?
Because I give my pupils drawings of all kinds of patterns in dressmaking, which makes cutting so plain a child
could easily understand. Because it is all printed, and if you forget any part of dress-cutting, which you might do if you only sew for yourself and did not keep in practice, you have your leesons all printed to refer to. Because all the girls in the family can learn from the one course, so no mat" ter how many in a family one paying out does for all.
How do I Teach by Mail?
I send you my Tailor System and a large set of drawn patterns to learn from, divided into eight lessons.
First lesson consists of the printed form of a lady, showing by tape where to take the measures, drawn linings of two waists and sleeves, with printed lesson how to take measures, draw, cut, put together a waist lining to fit anyone. By the time you are through with this lesson you will know as much about dress-cutting and fitting as if you had worked in a shop for months, and paid from $5 to $25 for a system. In this lesson you test perfect fit of system by making a waist for yourself or friend.
Second lesson consists of drawn patterns of five different styles in shirt waists, with printed lesson how to cut, put together, fit and finish. After putting a few hours on this lesson you will be able to cut any style of unlined shirt waist.
Third lesson consists of draped, pleated, and shirred waists, dickies, drop yokes, plain and draped boleros or small coat front effects, flat collars, double and single breast
ed plain basques. Printed lesson explains fully cutting, putting together and fitting these waists.
Fourth lesson consists of patterns of yokes, round, square, rippled and pointed berthas, sailor, stand up, and coat collars, different styles in cuffs and girdles, with printed lesson how to cut any different style of same to fit any figure.
Fifth lesson consists of patterns of shirt waist sleeves, showing how to cut sleeves, having fulness come below the elbow, and other styles, having fullness at top of sleeve, leg o'mutton sleeve, and different styles in puffs. Printed lessson explaining fully cutting out, putting together and finishing.
Sixth lesson consists of patterns of a full, and plain tight-fitting gored wrapper, with printed lesson explaining how to cut, put together, and finish any kind of wrapper or princess dress.
Seventh lesson consists of patterns of a circular rippled skirt, cut in one piece, a two-piece skirt, three-piece skirt, four-gored skirt, five-gored skirt, and a seven-gored skirt, with printed lesson how to cut any style in skirt for either children or ladies, plain, kilted, pleated, shirred, with or without yokes, from one to twenty-two or as many different gored skirts as there is. All styles are cut by measurement with the skirt system which is taught how to be used in this lesson.
Eighth lesson consists of how to put together, skirts from start to finish. Coats are also taught in this lesson from start to finish, and are cut by the same system as waists.
After you study all your lessons, send back all the patterns you are requested to cut, and answer all questions. We correct same and explain any part you may have found a little difficult; also answer any question you wish to ask about dressmaking. 4
What Does it Cost to Learn. C
The cash price is $15.00. If you send a money order for $15.00 you will receive the full course with system. If taken on the instalment plan, price is $18.00, you send $5 first instalment, upon receiving same we send system and 1st lesson after which you send $2 every week or every other week until you have taken the seven following lessons, you receiving a lesson each time you send $2 for same or you may come to Stratfdrd and take a personal course at school. We teach a class at school once a month commencing last Tuesday of each month, and taking four days in which to learn, costing $15, to be paid the day you are through. If taken at school we must have two day's notice you are coming before class commences, and you must come to city the day before. Boarding houses will be found for strangers if required.
Consider then, that not one, but as many as there are in the family can learn dress-making for this small sum. What a difference to working in a shop from six months to a year, and then after all not know as much about it as the first lesson alone teaches. This $15.00 would not buy the clothes you would wear out, not counting your board and work, and even if you did learn to cut the plain lining of a
waist, which is all you would be taught even in the best places, you will still have to pay lor the system you use, and it certainly would not be as good as this.
Don't wait until some other time, but send a money order for SI5.00 to Sanders' Dress-Cutting School, Stratford, Ontario. Canada. Upon receiving the same we will send you system and full course in dress-cutting, registered, to any address in Canada, so you will be sure to get it, with no more expense or bother.
What our Pupils say 'Before and After
Taking a Course.
BEFORE-lf\you can learn all this, and get a $10.00 system for such a price it is dirt cheap."
AFTER-" I have enjoyed learning my lessons and would not have believed it was so simple to learn if I had not tried it myself."
In closing I will say, you know you need this badly, and it is certaiidy dirt cheap, and as I have taught over' seven thousand pupils, and always have, and do, offer $500 to anyone I cannot teach, you are not risking one cent by taking it up.
Hoping to hear from you at an early date,
I remain, yours truly,
MRS. WM, SANDERS,
INVENTOR AND INSTRUCTOR.
[end]Collection
tedTextile IndustryCataloged By
Lay, KatrinaLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Primary Object Term
Book, InstructionNomenclature Sub-Class
Instructional DocumentsNomenclature Class
Documentary ObjectsNomenclature Category
Category 08: Communication ObjectsLOC Thesaurus for Graphic Materials
Book & magazine postersSearch Terms
InstructionsArchive Details
Creator
Mrs. W.M SandersDate(s) of Creation
1906Archive Size/Extent
27 pagesArchive Notes
Date(s): 1906Location
Location
Container
Box 1Shelf
Shelf 47Room
Collections RoomBuilding
M.V.T.M.Category
PermanentDate
November 7, 2023Location
Container
Box 1Drawer
D 2Shelf
Shelf 47, Shelf 47Room
Collections RoomBuilding
M.V.T.M.Category
PermanentMoved By
Cotter, EllenDate
June 2, 2022Location
Drawer
D 2Room
Collections RoomBuilding
M.V.T.M.Category
PermanentMoved By
Whit, ElizabethDate
July 19, 2017General Notes
Note
Status: OK
Status By: Cotter, Ellen
Status Date: 2022-02-06Created By
admin@catalogit.appCreate Date
July 22, 2005Updated By
admin@catalogit.appUpdate Date
November 12, 2023
