Hardy Amies made a very particular type of clothes for a most particular sort of woman.

But the house founded by the venerable Savile Row couturier -- and dressmaker to the Queen -- is nearing collapse as its traditional client base dwindles, and the British fashion scene could soon lose one of its most revered names.

Amies himself was best known for sewing the Queen's dresses, but the designer did more than that. His was one of the first British brands to cross the Atlantic to the United States. In London, he was one of the first celebrity couturiers, tying his own image to that of his company. He retired in 2002, and died a year later.

"Hardy Amies was a very forceful personality, and when he died, something of the company died with him," said Alistair O'Neill, a lecturer in fashion at Central and St. Martin's College in London.

Amies began his career in fashion after he left the British army in 1945, and his core customers were ladies of a certain class who had very specific sartorial needs.

She needed something just right -- but not too showy -- for the races, for a country house weekend, for the balls and parties that made up the British social season.

His most famous client, the Queen, turned to Amies because he understood exactly what she required as a working Royal: coats and dresses that were both comfortable and appropriate, in colours that made her visible to crowds clamouring for a glimpse.

Their relationship began in 1951 when Elizabeth, then a 25-year-old princess, asked Amies to provide clothing for her Canadian tour.

She rewarded Amies' skills with nearly five decades of custom, a Royal Warrant and a knighthood.

"I think his ... strength with his couture clients was that they had great confidence in him because he knew that he would make them look great and feel great," said Edwina Ehrman, curator in the department of textiles and fashion at London's Victoria and Albert Museum.

"They wanted to look striking and elegant and they wanted to be wearing the right thing for the right event," she said, adding that Amies also made beautiful evening and wedding gowns. "He understood the British social calendar very well."

But those sorts of clients are becoming increasingly scarce.

Along with his couture for women, Hardy Amies had a successful menswear range. The designer created the uniforms for England's World Cup-winning football team in 1966, the Olympic uniforms for the British team in 1972 and even the costumes for the film 2001: A Space Odyssey -- and it's likely the suits and tailoring for men carried the firm for the past few years, O'Neill said.