I only ever sewed up from ready patterns — what do I write to still get called?

Write exactly the related work you did: sewing up ao dai and women's dresses from ready patterns, first fitting, taking in and letting out — one line per task stating your role. Do not invent pattern cutting you never did.

Should I list every garment type I have ever heard of?

List only garments you really sewed at work, and only to the level you can do. The shop will test your skills on exactly that garment — claiming one you never sewed and being found out on the test is a minus.

I worked in a team with a head tailor — how do I state my part without misleading anyone?

State your role in each step: pattern cutting, sewing up, fitting or finishing. Claiming a whole garment as sewn by you alone shows up at once when the shop asks you about that garment in detail.

Where should my strongest garment type go in the CV?

Right after the role line, at the top of the CV, with the sewing mode (made to measure or sewn up). The shop places you at a sewing table by garment type before reading about character — a garment type left at the end is often never read.

I never sewed difficult fabrics like chiffon or silk — should I write that?

Write plainly that you never sewed difficult fabrics, and list the work you did instead: cotton, linen and khaki sewing, ready-made alterations, fitting and handing over. The shop can place you at a table that does not need difficult fabrics yet — claiming them and then ruining a customer's fabric is the real minus.

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Job seekers8 min read

CV for tailors and fashion garment workers: write it so the shop sees at once that you can sew clothes that fit

Keep it to 1–2 pages: one line with the role plus the garment type and sewing mode, 4–6 real sewing tasks such as taking measurements, cutting patterns, sewing up, fitting, altering and handing over, the garment types and fabrics you have worked with, the sewing machines you have used, and when you can start. Skip vague lines like “good at sewing, careful, hard-working” with no real garment attached — the shop then has nothing to place you at the right sewing table.

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How a tailor's shop reads a CV

Unlike an industrial garment worker's CV — mass sewing on a line, one repeated step — a made-to-measure CV is judged in exactly three places: the garments you really sewed, how well they fit after fitting, and how you handle difficult fabrics. The shop looks for four answers: which garments you can sew, whether you cut patterns or only sew up from ready patterns, whether you can handle difficult fabrics, and whether you can fit and alter clothes for customers. Missing any one of the four usually puts the CV behind others, even if you are genuinely skilled. So put the garment type and sewing mode — made to measure or sewn up from a pattern — right after the role line, then measurements and patterns, then fabrics and fitting and altering last in the main part. The faster you show real garments, the more likely you get the call.

One role line: title + garment type + work mode

Open the CV with exactly one line: the title you want, the garment type, and the work mode. Examples: “Made-to-measure tailor for ao dai and women's dresses, full-time at the shop.” For a pattern cutter: “Pattern cutter for men's suits and trousers, office hours, cutting to sample.” For an alterations tailor: “Alterations tailor, taking in and letting out clothes, shift work, available on Saturdays.” One such line tells the shop at once whether you fit the sewing table that needs someone, instead of forcing it to read the whole CV only to learn you only sew up while it needs a pattern cutter, or only sew women's clothes while it needs someone for men's suits. The most common mistake is writing it too generally (“looking for sewing work”) or naming the title without the garment type and work mode — both force the shop to ask, and when hiring urgently before wedding, festival or Tet season, people who need asking are usually skipped first.

Garment types and measurements and patterns: one garment per line, exactly what you did

This section is mandatory for made-to-measure CVs and is the biggest difference from industrial sewing. List the garments you have sewn, one line each, written as concrete tasks. For ao dai: made-to-measure women's ao dai to personal measurements — your work was taking measurements, cutting the pattern, sewing up, doing the first fitting and adjusting the fit before delivery. For men's suits: cutting suit and trouser patterns to sample — your work was cutting to the customer's measurements, sewing the main parts, and handing over to the finisher. For alterations: altering ready-made clothes — your work was taking in waists, letting out backs, hemming, replacing zips, altering to the customer's request and delivering on time. State clearly which garments you only sew up from ready patterns, and do not claim a whole suit as cut and finished by you alone. Claiming a garment you never sewed to “make the CV look good” shows up at once when the shop hands you real fabric and measurements for a skills test — and costs you the place at that table.

Fabrics and sewing machines: only fabrics and machines you really handled

Fabric is what sets this CV apart from production CVs — state clearly: fabrics you really sewed (cotton, linen, khaki, silk, chiffon, lace, stretch fabric — list the fabrics you really sewed, never a blanket “can sew all fabrics”), difficult fabrics you handled (thin chiffon that shifts easily, silk that pulls, lace that needs pattern placement, stretch fabric that needs seams that hold the shape — state the real handling, never claim a fabric you never sewed), and machines you used (single-needle, overlock, hemming, buttonhole machines — list the machines you really used, and state plainly any machine you have not used). The shop assigns work by skill level — overstating it and then ruining a customer's fabric wastes everyone's time. State your real level from the start, even if you are strong on women's clothes and only support on men's, rather than writing vaguely and then struggling when the shop needs someone to cut a suit pattern.

Fitting, altering and handing over: only deliver clothes that fit and please the customer

Each point on fitting and handing over needs just one line stating the main task: the first fitting (trying the garment on the customer or a mannequin, marking what needs adjusting — state the real method, not a vague “good customer care”), altering after fitting (taking in or letting out, adjusting shoulders, hems and fit — state the real alterations), and handing over (pressing flat, checking seams and buttons and zips before delivery, delivering on time — state the real handover, and mention urgent orders only if you really handled them). If you once ruined a garment (for example cutting a shoulder off-line or sewing to the wrong measurements), do not hide it: note it and what you changed afterwards (measuring twice before cutting, doing the first fitting before finishing, checking measurements with the customer before cutting expensive fabric). One mistake fixed with a clear checking process is not an absolute weakness here; hiding it and being found out by the customer is.

Experience, shifts and how you take work: only what is true and checkable

State your experience clearly: years of made-to-measure sewing (the true number of years), shops you worked at (name the shop if allowed, never name private customers), and your strongest garment type (the type you sewed most). State your shifts clearly: office hours, shift work, Saturdays and Sundays, urgent orders — and state plainly any mode you cannot do. Do not claim garments you never sewed or fabrics you never handled, and skip hobbies and elaborate portrait photos. The shop mostly calls or messages — your phone number must be one you actually use and answer during office hours.

Contact details and next step

At the end, only four things are needed: full name, phone number, title and strongest garment type, and the work modes you accept. No detailed home address, no hobbies, no elaborate portrait photo. Next, create an account and upload your CV so tailor shops can find it: register as a candidate on timviecde.vn (/register). Note: with an unverified email you cannot upload a CV or receive selection emails — verify your email right after registering, before uploading.

Do this next

One role line: the title you want + the garment type + the work mode.
Real garments sewn, measurements and patterns worked with, fabrics handled, and how you fit and alter clothes.
State plainly what you have never done; a phone number you actually use and answer during office hours.

Common questions

I only ever sewed up from ready patterns — what do I write to still get called?: Write exactly the related work you did: sewing up ao dai and women's dresses from ready patterns, first fitting, taking in and letting out — one line per task stating your role. Do not invent pattern cutting you never did.
Should I list every garment type I have ever heard of?: List only garments you really sewed at work, and only to the level you can do. The shop will test your skills on exactly that garment — claiming one you never sewed and being found out on the test is a minus.
I worked in a team with a head tailor — how do I state my part without misleading anyone?: State your role in each step: pattern cutting, sewing up, fitting or finishing. Claiming a whole garment as sewn by you alone shows up at once when the shop asks you about that garment in detail.
Where should my strongest garment type go in the CV?: Right after the role line, at the top of the CV, with the sewing mode (made to measure or sewn up). The shop places you at a sewing table by garment type before reading about character — a garment type left at the end is often never read.
I never sewed difficult fabrics like chiffon or silk — should I write that?: Write plainly that you never sewed difficult fabrics, and list the work you did instead: cotton, linen and khaki sewing, ready-made alterations, fitting and handing over. The shop can place you at a table that does not need difficult fabrics yet — claiming them and then ruining a customer's fabric is the real minus.

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