Inspired by history, made with heart...

Devon is the sewist behind Baseborn and creates from her home in Portland, Oregon... her sanctuary between mountain and sea.

She holds her craft to high standards and makes everything she sells to the best of her abilities. Each garment is intended to last for a lifetime ,~ideally longer~, so that they may even have second lives as heirlooms.

Baseborn designs are informed by extant garments from the 9th-17th century Europe as well as illustrated manuscripts and paintings depicting everything from daily life to the fantastical.

Wherever possible, recyclable packaging products are used at Baseborn. All garments are made of OEKO-TEX certified linen, carefully sourced 100% wool, and other natural materials (stated clearly where applicable).

Baseborn opts out of the arbitrary guidelines and psychology that other brands rely on to make sales. On this site you will rarely find discounts, gimmicks, and "standard sizes". You willl find prices set to earn a liveable wage and cover quality materials, and factual measurements -- for numbers are much more meaningful than the words we assign to body proportions...this is my hill i will gladly perish on. there goes the omniscient narrator.

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I am currently focusing on building up a larger stock of ready-to-ship inventory, and with a good amount of original designs (as opposed to generally historical)

I am NOT currently taking on custom work until later this year, possibly November or later.

But please read below to get a sense of how the process works. Thank you!

How to Start a Commission

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Custom Work

What Kind of Custom Work Can You Commission from Baseborn?

I specialize in historically accurate and/or inspired clothing from about a thousand-year range from 800-1800s Europe. Natural fibers are a non-negotiable must for me as a maker, and I do prefer using historical elements like lacing, buttons, hooks and eyes, rather than zippers or velcro (though I'm certainly accommodating, especially for mobility/sensory concerns).

When it comes to historical accuracy, the level of fidelity really comes down to how much you are willing to pay to ensure extra care is taken and proper research is done. I absolutely do not mind mixing eras or styles in a single garment or ensemble. Your enjoyment of the handmade clothing is most important to me! Just let me know if you care to achieve a certain "accurate" result, and I will gladly point you in the right direction for how we can achieve that, or what steps we can work around to achieve goals within a given budget. Often times, we can keep a price-point more modest by utilizing a combo of machine/hand sewing. Or, if historical touches are what you're after, I do love an entirely hand-sewn project.

At this point, I know my limits and I do not accept commissions for modern styles. There are simply far better sewists out there for making a sickeningly beautiful 1930s cut suit or mid-century New Look ball gown.

A note about gender and clothing

To describe my garments, sometimes I use phrases such as "inspired from extant mens shirts from the 18th century".

This in no way reflects a personal attitude that clothing has defined gender, but only meant to provide relevant reference info to how a garment came to be. All my garments are intended to fit and celebrate the body, any body.

Baseborn fully supports (nay, implores!) a person to explore and experiment outside of gender-binary fashion "norms". Indeed, any norms really. Life is more beautiful that way.

I will try to keep a small stock of ready-made inventory in the shop throughout the seasons. But, as this will inevitably fail to accommodate someone or other, I heartily welcome custom work.

How to Start

Purchase the Begin A Custom Order (digital product) that can be found on my shop page. This non-refundable fee of $15 not only helps compensate me for the extra time and care I spend on custom work, but also ensures your spot in line for production. If you email me first, I will add this non-refundable deposit to the total amount of the garment.

In addition to this deposit, customers are responsible for providing me the necessary information to fulfill a custom order (such as personal info, measurements, fabric, etc); if I don't hear back from you about certain details, I might not be able to start sewing for you and your theoretical garment will live on in limbo for who knows how long!

Once I have all the info required to fulfill a custom order, I will make a hidden product listing for you only so that you complete payment for the bespoke garment itself. The I will begin sewing for you!

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A note about Custom Work

Shipping:

  • Buyers are responsible for shipping fees as well as any customs and import taxes that may apply. Baseborn is not responsible for delays due to customs operations or damage/loss that may occur in transit.

  • Baseborn ships all over the world!

Shipping Timelines:

  • If an item is marked as "ready to ship", you can expect that item to be sent within 3-5 days of purchasing. If combined with a made-to-order item, or if you buy an individual item marked "made to order", you can expect your purchase to take 2-4 weeks to process before shipping. Bespoke commission can expect to take anywhere from 3-5 weeks, really just depending on where you're at in the queue. Any order that is expected to take longer than 4 weeks to fulfill will be sent a message regarding this timeline so you're kept in the loop.

  • As soon as an order has been packaged and dropped off at the post office, you will be notified via email with tracking info.

Returns:

  • Returns really impact a small, one-person operation like Baseborn. Please understand that because of this, returns are only accepted IF the purchased item arrives differently than described on Baseborn's website. All measurements are listed, so the onus is on the customer to determine for themselves if a measurement will fit properly or not.

  • The above point applies to both ready-to-ship items as well as custom orders. Custom work especially takes a lot of time between correspondence and sewing to an individual's specifications.

  • Buyers are responsible for all shipping costs. Seller is responsible for return shipping costs only if the reason for return is due to fault with the item (such as incorrect measurements, color, the wrong item).

Conditions of Returns:

  • An item(s) may be eligible for return if it does not line up with how it was represented on Baseborn's website or in email correspondence from Baseborn, such as measurements, materials, colors, or general design. If the Return Request is accepted, I will email you with confirmation of return and refund for the accepted returned items. Returned items must be returned in the exact condition as they were originally sent. If an item(s) is returned with any sign of damage (general stains, makeup stain, odors most foul, tears as in rips, tears as in sadness, etc) the buyer will be denied refund. There will of course be a respectful conversation before such a blow, but expect no mercy. Just kidding. There will probably be a lot of mercy. But saying "no mercy" is much more dramatic and hopefully deters at least a bit of this sort of headache.

We do not accept exchanges or cancellations on any orders.

Please understand that maintaining a small business as a one-person operation is as challenging as it is rewarding. Funds from orders have a huge, direct benefit on the people behind extremely small businesses like this one, and the unexpected loss or cancellation of orders can be damaging. Especially in the case of having already measured and cut out fabric specifically to fulfill an order, it really means the most to see that through to completion. Thank you for the support and understanding!

Shoppe Policies

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Send a raven for information about commissioning bespoke garments, questions about your order, item details, and more.

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