My name is Philip Sefton. I have been a professional dressmaker with 35 years of experience but am now retired from paid sewing work – you can see my work here. I still offer bespoke lessons in dressmaking, cutting, and clothing construction, all from my home in Muswell Hill, north London.
About me
I began my professional career manufacturing my own design of innovative electronic controls, but later switched to dressmaking. After two years at the London College of Fashion, I opened a dressmaking shop in London, which I ran successfully for seven years until soaring rent and business rates made working at home a more viable option.
I have been busy here now for 27 years, and during that time have made over 100 individually-designed wedding dresses, have created over 500 other garments, and have completed over 10,000 alterations and repairs. For many of those years, I have also taught dressmaking skills one-to-one, often to work-experience students.