Janet Arnold (6 October 1932 – 2 November 1998) was a British clothing historian, costume designer, teacher, conservator, and author.
Arnold went on to start working with the department of drama and theatre studies at Royal Holloway College in 1978.
The volumes include a large number of sewing patterns showing the change in fashion across the period, with crucial details of the construction, accurately drawn to scale.
[4] The Costume Society, which Arnold helped to found, gives out an annual award of £500 in her memory to a student who has produced a reconstructed garment from one of her books.
[5] In May 2020, the rights to the out-of-print ''Patterns of Fashions 1-4'' books reverted from Macmillan Publishing to The School of Historical Dress.