Jamie Miller, Designer and Seamstress
A success story driven by collaboration, DIY energy, and a thriving local network of artists
By Meg Chellew
Instagram
What made the biggest visual impression on you as a child? Who influenced your style, taste, or love for clothing and textiles?
When I was little, probably five or six years old, I would watch West Side Story on repeat. I was obsessed with the rooftop dance scene (“America”) and Anita's dress. I would rewind and watch that scene over and over again. I was captivated by how dresses moved when women danced. We had these pink, yellow, and blue tissues in my childhood home, and I would use them to create volume beneath my Barbie dolls’ clothes and reverse-engineer the shapes made by those Hollywood double circle skirts.
I still enjoy all the classic MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) musicals. Those films are grandiose and extravagant, with over-the-top costumes. I now have all the materials to recreate Rita Moreno’s dress for myself someday, including the long, lilac fringe on her skirt.
Young Jamie recreating the shape of Hollywood double circle skirts on her Barbie dolls’ clothes with tissue paper.
How did you get started as a sewist and what attracted you to clothing originally? What excites you about clothing?
I was really interested in hippie culture and style during high school. At that time, bell bottoms were difficult to find pre–internet shopping, especially secondhand at Goodwill. So I decided to try to make my own; I cut a slit at the bottom of each pant leg and inserted large triangles of denim fabric into my jeans, and voilà! I was wearing bell bottoms.
I had this old sewing machine passed down to me from my great-grandmother. It was an early Singer; I think a 1914 model. The machine was falling apart, but I successfully used it to make my own pants. Eventually, my love of theater clothing landed me at Point Park University. I studied costume design, and from there I worked in theaters all over Pittsburgh until I started a family and then my own business.
The Singer (c. 1914) sewing machine passed down from Jamie’s great-grandmother that Jamie used to sew her own pants.
Who are the types of clients you see most often? What kinds of services or events do people reach out for?
I separate my work into a few categories. The first is performance wear. I work with professional dancers on outfit design. We will often sit down together, and they’ll share their vision with me while I contribute my knowledge of fit and fabric. We look at colors and swatches and design a custom piece together.
The second category is bridal. I work with brides to create custom gowns with a very similar workflow. There is a constant back and forth. I would never just take complete creative control and run away with an idea, since it’s important to me that the client is present with every decision.
The third category is clothing alterations. I have a strong background in restoring antique garments, true vintage, and unique pieces. I work to adjust the fit to a modern body, so something that's 50 years old can be worn for another 50 years and more.
Jamie working on the hem of a bridal gown. (Photo by Melissa Pearson)
What do you want people to know about alterations, mending, and garment repair?
I think the number one thing to remember is that no piece of clothing is garbage — period. It blows my mind that anybody would ever throw anything away.
Mending is a necessity, and I think it's somewhat of a lost art nowadays. I try to influence my clients to reframe their thinking around repurposing and repairing clothing. Garments can eventually become patches for other pieces of clothing. Even the most ragged T-shirt could be used as a cleaning cloth at the very, very end of its life.
Small things, like patching a tiny hole or sewing a missing button, are easy skills that you could learn to do on your own with limited ability and materials (just a needle and thread!).
Pittsburgh is such a unique city, especially in the context of fashion. There aren’t a lot of Big Box retailers with strong hold on the community. How would you describe Pittsburgh style?
I really think Pittsburgh is such a melting pot of fashion styles. With its blue-collar roots, people have a deep appreciation for hand-me-downs, secondhand garments, and their inherent value. Pittsburgh is a place where people can really express themselves. I've seen so many style evolutions during my time here.
What’s most exciting about Pittsburgh fashion is all the different points of view. My showcase at Pittsburgh Fashion Week included lots of weird, fantasy, avant-garde stuff. I met a wonderful designer there, Stu Frick, who created beautiful painted pieces.
Ultimately, I think Pittsburgh style can be summed up in one word: “gritty.” Yes, there are strong, punk undertones. It's urban, it's country, and it’s punk.
Fantasy-inspired, avant-garde pieces Jamie created for her showcase at Pittsburgh Fashion Week. (Photo by Melissa Pearson)
Thrifting and secondhand purchases have become a strong trend. Any advice for people who are new to thrifting and want to cultivate a sense of style?
I think it's really worth investing in quality pieces that will last. A really good place to start is your closet. Put on your favorite outfit. Pick out the pieces that you wish that you could wear every single day. And then look at yourself in the mirror and try to understand the “look” you have instinctually created. Figure out what stirs you and excites you, whether it's a certain kind of T-shirt or jacket or specific colors and textures. Everything that's ever been made is always in style if you put it on your body and it feels good.
Hopefully, after doing this exercise, your next trip to the thrift store won’t feel as overwhelming. It’s also helpful to have something specific in mind; I'm always looking for black dresses, something with interesting sleeves, or anything shiny. Give yourself plenty of time, go in with a plan, and have an open mind. (You don’t know exactly what you’ll find.) Say a little prayer to all the grannies and vintage goddesses to guide you. And give thanks when you find something good!
How would you categorize or describe your own personal style?
I think I finally have a clear understanding of my style. It took so long because I used to feel like I'm all over the place. I have a very specific flavor now; a good friend described me as “fantasy antique.” I love that label.
Jamie (in a photo from high school) dressed in a “fantasy antique” style, homemade dress.
You have engaged in some exciting collaborations with local artists (for example, Three Pigs Vintage). How do these projects come about, and what factors into your decisions on who to work with?
I have been super excited to work with Sadie Shoaf (of Three Pigs Vintage), and we put out our second collection together for Valentine’s Day in 2022. Although I often work solo, I would say that almost everything I do in life is a collaboration. I have a desire to create my own pieces, and Sadie really helped me start to explore that space. Sadie provided me with beautiful, vintage materials, and we worked together on developing our concept and inspiration for the collection. I assembled each and every garment by hand.
I identify more as an artist than as a fashion designer, so I would love to work with some printmakers in town to create unique textiles and turn them into garments. For example, my good friend Randy Stewart created this textile piece that is part of an installation at the Pittsburgh airport. She and I have also talked about affixing her print onto a wearable fabric and creating some pieces together. Hopefully that will happen in fall 2022.
Some lingerie pieces Jamie created in collaboration with Three Pigs Vintage (Sadie Shoaf) for Valentine’s Day 2022. (Photo by Luke Mouradain)
Your creations are not only beautiful; it seems a lot of them are fantasy-inspired or surrealist. You work with ballroom and burlesque dancers as well as other performers and high style people. Where do you draw inspiration for your creations?
I look to nature most often for creative inspiration. I love organic shapes and studying the natural lines of plants and flowers, their petals, overlaps, and curves. I study change and growth — how a bud blossoms into a flower. If I ever feel stuck or stagnant, I just go to the river and just listen to the water. The peace, calm, and layers of sound and movement stimulate my mind.
In March 2022, I worked on a solo performance where I embodied a magic mushroom. The costume resembled a mushroom cap and had twinkle lights inside. I used a structure that resembled a vintage lamp shade, and it was covered with pearls.
Jamie performing a belly dance with the mushroom cap costume she made.
What other creative hobbies help you feel balanced?
I have sunk deeply into the term artist. I am an artist, and I try to incorporate that into everything that I do in life. Even cooking and arranging my bookshelf are ways of creating art.
I am also a belly dancer. But, even within my dance community, I'm a little bit of an oddball. I am more of a fusion dancer, because I do more modern-inspired work. I’ve been dancing with a group for six years, but I am still figuring out my personal choreography style and finding my own voice. It’s very exciting and terrifying as a performer, but you're never too old to experiment and learn new skills.
I also paint and draw; I love just sitting and sketching. I also love writing. I don’t want to wait too long to start documenting my life, so I am very slowly creating a pictorial memoir and want to make it into a coffee-table book of some sort. I think about artists who became famous after they die, so I will have this whole volume ready when the time comes.
Some may describe your internet presence as subtle. How do you network and grow your business as an expert sewist and costume designer outside of the internet?
Everyone finds me by word of mouth. The sewists in Pittsburgh all know each other and have different specialties. Rebecca Harrison (Old Flame Mending), Hannah Lane Critzer (HLane Dry Goods), and I send clients to one another based on which job best matches our skills. Lately, I feel like I have been able to exist solely by referrals. I don't have an active website right now, and I only post on Instagram about once a month. If I go back to my personal camera reel, I have so many things that I feel like I could be posting daily. But I want to exist so much more in the real world. I value being on this physical plane, and I have no shortage of work.
The not-so-secret to success is networking. Networking may sound like a loaded business term, but it is truly important. I am very active in my community. I also think that I do good work. My biggest advertising is just the work that I do, which people wear and share with others. Every single person who contacts me tells me they got my name through someone that I know.
I want to help everybody, and I want to sew everything. I only recently learned how to say no to a job offer. It’s important for me to keep a schedule that allows me to go home and sleep in my bed at night. In the past I’ve been so overloaded with work that I’ve crashed on my studio couch for a full week! There are only so many hours in a day, and I only have two hands.
Some of our community have discussed struggling with turning their artistic passions into side hustles or full-time careers. It seems you have found good success with your work. Could you describe your experience in monetizing your strong creative skills?
I spent a decade being a struggling artist. A starving artist, practically squatting in a crumbling Lawrenceville house and working in a restaurant or coffee shop for steady income while making art. I think my struggles were a beautiful part of my development. I don't take for granted how they have shaped me.
I have always tried to build on my skills, to grow, and to learn new techniques all the time. The success that I have now comes from how long I have practiced and from the myriad of jobs I’ve experienced. There have been so many times where I felt like throwing in the towel and going to nursing school or something but I kept going. We suffer for art. It's hard to be an artist, but I can't imagine functioning in any other way.
You really have to put yourself out there and go for it. Success doesn’t happen overnight. It takes patience and persistence. As far as my fashion career goes, I have never been in a hurry. I really appreciate whatever project is in my hands at the moment and how each little piece gradually becomes this really cool story of art and fashion that I'm just so happy the matrix designed for me.
Last Updated: July 14, 2022
Editor: Anna Hou | Photographer: Jamie Miller (unless noted otherwise) | Designer: Haley Marie | Copywriter: Karrie Witkin | Copy Editor: Kate Frankowicz
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