Let me introduce myself…
Hello, I’m Eleanor, the designer/maker of corsets and corsetry beneath my brand name, Apricot Couture.
At the moment I am planning my next collections, craving home baked apple pie and wondering why on Earth people question what I do for a living.
I used to call myself a seamstress, only for some reason that now only means someone who alters clothing, makes curtains and replaces zips/buttons for a small fee. No offense if you, or someone you know, does any of the above. It does require a certain amount of talent and skill to do all of the above and I can do all of the above myself. But that isn’t all I do.
I Design and Make Corsets.
I was talking with my partners sister about this just the other day, she is a ceramacist, only when she tells people that they often have no clue what she is on about, her further elaboration is simply “I make pots”. But thats not it!! No!! She is talented and skilled beyond belief and does more than “make pots” she designs and develops and creates and experiments and produces some of the most glorious things I’ve ever clapped eyes on.
I realised when telling her this, that thats what I do. I design, develop, create and experiment and that is what makes me different. I don’t just take a commercial pattern and sew it up in cheap cloth. I make patterns, source some of the most gorgeous fabrics known to man, and then spend hours putting it together, combining both hand and machine sewing.
I really do believe it’s time for those of us who are Designer/Makers to stand together and declare how rare and talented we are! Yes! Lots of people can sew! Yes, lots of people can handle clay and make jewellery!! But how many of them love it like we do? How many of them spend their life perfecting what they do?! How many of them don’t have a social life anymore!?
Anyway, back from my tyrannical rant. I love to sew, I love to sew corsets, I want the whole of the female population to love my sewing and my corsets! Hurrah!
Oh, and I don’t make tat!
