will insure individual attention, or correction, you may call it, and a chance to work on all parts of a gown. In the large shops you are apt to settle down as a maker of sleeves, or vests or panels, some one part of each gown always being turned over to you. Thus your general training is neglected.
Now we will say that you have a fair working knowledge of dressmaking, fitting and designing. You want to be an independent, not a salaried worker. By this I mean that either you wish to establish a house-to-house clientele of your own or a shop with help to execute your orders and carry out your designs. Right here I want to speak of your health. Barring teaching, I doubt if there is another trade or profession which holds so many wrecks, nervous and physical, as dressmaking. This condition exists because the work is confining. In the busy season, dressmakers do not leave their workrooms for weeks at a time, and then they wonder why they have headaches, digestive disorders, neuralgia and nervous prostration. The woman who means to last in this trade must guard her health. A brisk walk night and morning, proper ventilation of the workrooms, regular hours for meals, and relaxation, downright fun after working hours, will save your reason, protect your health, lengthen your period of
