Please feel free to get in touch if you know of any other venue's that might be interested in joining the #sewingrevolution and having me come to visit! I would love to come and see you all! Hi!!! I got into sewing by chance really, I have always loved fashion and always added my own twist on things; the main catalyst was the fact that I couldn’t find tops that made me think wow! So in Jan 2011 I told my husband that I wanted a sewing machine, I’m sure he wasn’t surprised because I’m always finding new things to do with my hands.

Now that Jenny is not with us anymore, I am the least experienced sewer of the group, winning would prove to me that experience isn’t always what counts, but dedication and real passion can excel a person. What made you apply for The Sewing Bee? Could you pass on any advice to anyone else who is considering it? Tilly has been one of the big success stories from the show. Several years after her appearance she now has her own sewing studio in London where she runs regular workshops, a successful range of sewing patterns plus she has written two sewing books.It’s been a while since my last post, but all for good reasons. I have been hard at work setting up my studio!!!! It has been quite difficult working from home; as a devout sewist you will identify with my plight; fabric everywhere, pins all over the house and the sewing equipment’s over spilling their allocated boundaries, oh and not forgetting a patient husband smiling his encouragement through gritted teeth lol. The move out of home was due and very welcomed.

I have also had loads of interest from readers and viewers outside the UK and I am working on ways to get you free-handing so once things have been confirmed I will put up a post to update everyone, but there are loads of exciting things happening so expect some good stuff 😉 Customising existing garments, or upcycling, is how I started my sewing journey. Before I learnt how to sew, I upcycled everything. My advice is, if you don’t know how to sew, see the garment as a blank canvas, and use your thread, needle and embellishments to bring it to life. However, if you already have some sewing experience, then look at the garment as a piece of fabric and really go for it. This was what I did with the Alteration Challenge whilst I was on the Sewing Bee. Step 18: attach the skirt to the bodice making sure the centre folds line up (I often start sewing from the centre) Lol my earrings seem to be quite famous, I actually offered my large plate pair as a gong for time on the show. I don’t even know how many earrings I have, I buy them from all over the place mainly markets and whenever my friends and family travel abroad I always ask for a big pair of earrings, I wear my hair low so I balance it with the big earrings lol During thecompetition, you demonstrated a real flair for design and your garments have a strongidentity - flattering shapes and figure-hugging lines are prevalent. Have you always been interested in clothing/fashion? Who has inspired yourstyle? Are there any designers that youparticularly like?

Cut this out and use the pieces as templates for cutting the matching fusible interfacing. Fuse the interfacing to the facing, snip along the bottom edge with pinging sheers, turn up a single 3/8″ hem and sew. divide your bust measurement by 4 and mark this along the bust line from the centre of the top, like the picture below. so this for the underbust and waist also Invert the dart lines that are outwards facing on the right side of the fabric, now you are ready to draw your darts Ann Rowley won the first series of Sewing Bee at the impressive age of 81, having been a keen seamstress for 75 years.

Step 14: Minus the length of the bodice from the shoulder to hem measurement then add the length of the reference to this, (this is now your skirt length)I love making dresses, especially going out dresses, evening gowns, really glamorous stuff. I love to feel feminine and I love my curves so I love making clothes that celebrate these things. When I make clothes for my customers I want them to feel like a new woman. The machine sat idle for a few months after failed attempts at cutting a top and a skirt (freehand). I finally decided to go to my aunty who is a dressmaker and I sat watching her work for 3 months, taking notes and doodling what she was doing; I still refer to my little sketches sometimes. Don’t be afraid to try your hands at new fabrics and even if you don’t do very well with it first time round, don’t give it up, the more you handle a specific fabric the more you understand how it works. As we all settled down to watch the final of The Great British Sewing Bee, a little melancholy came over me. Tuesday nights have become quite a ritual in our and so many other households. Chinelo, Heather and Tamara looked so nervous on this episode. More than I had ever seen them beforeI thought. I think the reality of the final began to ring loud and clearin their heads. Everything they/wehad worked so hardfor over the last seven weeks comesdown to this episode. No pressure then! :)

Unfold the piece and use your iron to invert the right side facing crease. these are your dart lines (the centre of your darts), use your tape to measure a dart that is 1″ deep and 5.5″ long, draw this with chalk:Ann had been sewing for 75 years when she won The Great British Sewing Bee. She describes sewing as a private passion and said she entered the show to help raise the profile of home sewing, which is has certainly done. Now well into her 80s hopefully Ann is still enjoying sewing. I am sure you have a very bright future ahead, and that the GBSB will be a great springboard for future projects. What are youworking on at the moment, and what do you have planned for the future? I have added only 5 dates for this workshop so spaces are very limited; get booking guys!!! Here’s the link https://www.kazoova.com/activity/454/ Hope you enjoyed the bee. This week I will be showing you how to make a little girl’s summer dress with a full skirt (no pattern of course). This is truly a deviation from my usual escapade so I feel the need to explain why: there are two reasons really, 1. its juniors week on the sewing bee so in honour of that and 2. one of my god-daughters watched the preview for this weeks show last week and was traumatised by the JOKE!!! I made about me not liking kids, this 7 year old sweetheart actually refused to go to sleep that night until she understood what I meant by that comment (which was a joke)! so I have decided to dedicate this weeks post to my little rug-rats. I have made them these cute little summer dresses, now these little divas are ready for some sunshine I must admit I was really pleased with myself while I was cleaning up the workspace. I had achieved everything that I had set out to. The ladies had enjoyed themselves. All had finished items and enthusiasm to create more. Learned how to design and create their own items from recycled material and think outside the box! Job done, it was a rewarding pint for me and a curry!