A thousand I withheld from lousier clothes-maker? (7)
I believe the answer is:
knitter
'clothes-maker?' is the definition.
(someone knitting clothing)
'a thousand i withheld from lousier' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'thousand' could be 'k' (synonyms) and 'k' is located in the answer.
'i' is present in the answer.
'from' could be 'e' (I've seen this in other clues) and 'e' is found within the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for knitter that I've seen before include "construction worker" , "Trinket for worker in wool" , "Purser maybe" , "one on way to Jersey?" , "One uses needles and wool" .)