Nancy V. Martin is an independent researcher and lecturer at San Francisco State University, where she teaches apparel studio courses, costume history, and cultural aspects of dress. Her research focuses on aesthetics and innovation through the lens of dress as material culture. She received her certificate of Flat Pattern from Apparel Arts in 2006 and went on to work in the San Francisco fashion industry. She has taught pattern drafting, draping, and construction for over 20 years in College Fashion Programs. She recently received her Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota's College of Design in the Apparel, Dress, History, and Culture Track, and she has published in Dress: The Journal of the Costume Society of America and the International Journal of Sustainable Fashion and Textiles.