The Great British Sewing Bee - The Final!

Two Sewing Bee posts in one week. I was going to hold off until Monday but after watching the final I couldn't wait to talk about it. It was a good one for lots of reasons. There was no clear winner right until the end. I think nerves got the better of all three of them but they were all there for each other. They clearly wanted to win but wanted each other to succeed too. For that reason this has been my favourite season to date.

The final episode was all about evening wear. A perfect choice for a final episode as the sewers can go all out. For the first challenge they had to sew a man's dress shirt. It had to include perfect pin tucks and of course those dreaded cuffs. Each of them started off nervous and as a result there wasn't a perfect sew among them. Joyce won this round as her only mistake was the button hole on the collar not being perfectly aligned. Poor Charlotte came last as she took too much of a seem allowance for her collar and so it didn't quite work out. She panicked after that and sadly it showed.

For the second round the sewers had to reconstruct a mans dinner suit into a little black dress. Joyce and Charlotte swapped round this time and Charlotte won. To be honest I think she was the clear winner here. Her dress was very well done and it was perfectly sewn. Joyce made the rookie error of using blue sequence in her little black dress.

Lastly the sewers had to make an evening dress for their model. This time their model was someone from home. Joyce stitched a dress for her granddaughter, Jade for her mum's best friend and Charlotte for her ex husbands wife (I kid you not, how nice is that). My favourite dress was actually Jade's. I thought the beaded train was a perfect choice and went very well with the orange fabric. I think she should have won it for that alone. I don't think the mistakes she made in the dress were quite as noticeable as the others. Although she did come second in all of the other rounds I think it was a good second.

The dress which won it was Charlotte's evening dress. I personally wasn't as excited about this. I also think the mistake with her zip was visible straight away. I did like the colour though but I thought the style was a little safe. As for Joyce, she once again had a problem with fitting as she once again made her dress a little too big.

Over all though I think that Charlotte did justly deserve to win. I may have had a soft spot for Jade but Charlotte has been consistent through out. I felt from that start that she would definitely be in the final if not the winner. I liked Charlotte too as she was always seen to be helping out her fellow sewers. Not to mention all the hand knits she wore. I spotted that hitchhiker scarf a mile off.

Most of the sewers this series have their own blog or website. I have linked them all on my blog list page but you can see them all below here too. As always these images do not belong to me but to the BBC. Now when does Bake Off start?

Angeline Murphy - http://www.angelinemurphy.com/ 
Charlotte Newland - http://www.charlottenewland.com/
Duncan Carter - http://www.duncancarter.co.uk/
Jamie - http://maledevonsewing.blogspot.co.uk/
Josh Barnett - http://www.treatmentclothing.co.uk/ 
Rumana - http://www.thelittlepomegranate.co.uk/
Tracey Symonds - http://www.polkadotdesigns.co.uk/ 

The Great British Sewing Bee - Week 7

Week 7 and the semi final was all about puzzles. Basically the sewers had to show their understanding of patterns and how they come together. Quite a hard one I think and the most challenging so far. On the other hand out of all the series I think this is the episode which has let the contestants free with their creativity (as free as they can be).

Just a reminder that these images came courtesy of the BBC. 

First up was the pattern challenge and the sewers were given a Japanese style skirt to stitch. The skirt was done in two pieces which were cut in a wave pattern which were then carefully fit together. One misstep could lead to an uneven stitch and a skirt that didn't flare in the right places. The winner was Charlotte with this lovely blue piece. I preferred Jade's choice in a grey wool material but this was by far the best finish.

For the reconstruction challenge the sewers were given a duvet cover which they had to reconstruct into a garment without wasting any of the fabric. They were given little mini manikins to practise on with the pillow covers. I loved this idea which is used a lot by designers (learn something new every day).

Charlotte won again with this dress she created. Patrick raved about it stating that it was his favourite garment to date and it even won garment of the week. I think best garment ever is pushing the boat a little but it was the best of the four. I quite liked her choice in duvet cover too.

For the final piece the sewers had to construct a dress. They were given a block pattern and from that they had to go away and design their own. I liked this idea and the three dresses were very different. Each of them took their own take on it. My favourite was Jade's skater dress. I love a skater dress and the fabric choice was lovely. It was even considered for garment of the week which guaranteed Jade's moving on to the final.

 

At the end it was a toss up between Tracey and Joyce as to who would be leaving. I don't think there was much between them really. Although I think in the end that Joyce is the better of the two sewers which is largely due to her experience. Tracey on the other hand is more able to let go and try new things. Tracey is the bubbly one of the group and I think she will be missed but at least she made it almost all of the way through.

Tonight you lucky lot will get to watch the final while I will have to wait and hope that I don't come across any spoilers. At this point my money is on Charlotte. While I would like Jade to win I think that her experience will let her down at this point. You never know though. It would be a shame to dismiss Joyce entirely but while she is brilliant at sewing I think she steers towards a more dated style which shows in her fittings as well as her fabric choices.

I was going to add some links at the end here but I have night shift to prepare for. Something for you to look forward to when I blog about the final.

The Great British Sewing Bee - Week 3, 4, 5 & 6

This is difficult. I thought that writing about four episodes of The Great British Sewing Bee would be simple. It's not. I work better reviewing this on a week to week basis. I have been putting it off as a result and I it is becoming a real possibility that I will have five episodes to review together.

The biggest problem was actually finding images of all the garments that won each round. I have given up on that and so here is a quick review of the four episodes I missed here on the blog.

We started off with lingerie week. I thought this would be quite a dull one. How exciting can it be? Actually it was pretty good and we got to see the contestants making bras. They seemed so footery and they all managed to make one (even if a few weren't wearable) but still they managed. I was impressed. I can't even remember what they did for the reconstruction challenge. However, they made dressing gowns for the final. The winner was this beautiful kimono by Charlotte. However, my favourite was a rather dramatic 5o's inspired gown by Angeline. 

We had 60's week which I new I was going to love. This art inspired panel dress was the first piece. While my favourite was by Rumana (I liked her colour choices). Joyce was actually the winner here. They also got to reconstruct outfits from PVC which was a 60's favourite. They ended with a 60's inspired coat. Sadly I couldn't find an image of the beautiful jacket made by Jade. It was a simple design but she went to town on making sure it was perfect in every detail.

Before 60's week there was actually international week. Sadly this image from the reconstruction round was the only one I could find. The contestants got to work with sari's. That would have been fun working with such beautiful fabrics (although footery). For the first they had to make beautiful silk Japanese inspired tops. I loved this round because of the vibrant colours. The final round involved making those famous African dresses. Again sadly, no image. Just about all of them were wonderfully bright. I was impressed.

Last week we had active wear. Again this was the only image that I could find. This was from the reconstruction round. The sewers had to make children's jackets from the most hideous 70's ski suits. Although this jacket was not the winner for this round it was by far my favourite. I thought it was quite inventive and I would have probably wanted on when I was little. The first round involved making a mans cycle top. I actually thought just about everyone did well there. They had to work with a very stretchy fabric and had to retain that stretch as well as create shape. I also loved the bright colour choices that most made. The final involved making a full yoga outfit. Again I was impressed as the sewers had to make leggings as well as a top. My favourite was actually Charlotte who was the only one who didn't go with the skin tight.

So we have the winners. As already mentioned, Charlotte won the lingerie with her kimono. I actually like Charlotte. She is quite a methodical sewer and she likes blues as I do.

Joyce won International week with her African dress. It was impressive but I wasn't a fan of the colours. I think Joyce is quite a fun person but I don't think it shows in her sewing much. She tends to go for traditional colours and her choices almost feel a little dated.

Jade is one of my favourite sewers. I like most of her choices and her style. She didn't seem to have much confidence in herself at the beginning of the show but that seems to have grown over time. I suppose winning garment of the week twice in a row would do that to you. She won for her 60's inspired jacket which I already mentioned was a favourite of mine. She also won last week for her yoga outfit which was pretty impressive.

Of course four contestants also left the show. The first was actually a big surprise. Jamie had won garment of the week twice in a row and then left after a disastrous week during the lingerie challenges. He just didn't manage his time well through out and his dressing gown didn't quite work out the way he wanted. I actually had him pegged as winning the entire competition.

During international week we said goodbye to the last male sewer, Josh. I liked him too but he was actually struggling to stay in for a few weeks. I actually liked his go for it attitude and I think we will be hearing from him in the future.

During 60's week we said goodbye to Angeline. Someone else who had previously won garment of the week. I was a little sad that Angeline didn't make it. I thought she was quite skilled but then her 60's coat did not turn out well and so I think the judges had no choice.

Last week it was Rumana's turn. Like Josh she had been struggling for a few weeks and like Jade she started out with little confidence in herself. Sadly she didn't really gain much although I quite liked some of her makes. She lost with her yoga outfit which sadly was out of shape.

Well, that's me all caught up. Friday I will provide some links for you after watching it this weeks. We are approaching the end and there are very competent sewers in there. For now I have no idea who might be a possible contender for winning.

The Great British Sewing Bee - Week 1

At last! The Great British Sewing Bee is back and thus my Friday posts are once again dedicated to viewing other peoples creations. It was a little over due me thinks but they say good things come to those who wait and so the first episode was a good one. Before I go on I would like to point out that all of these images do not belong to me but belong to The Great British Sewing Bee itself. I highly recommend you follow their twitter account, particularly when viewing the show.

I was sad to hear that the show would be losing May Martin as a judge. I thought she complimented Patrick Grant very well and often played good cop to his bad cop. Not that she couldn't be a strict judge but I think I would have withered under Patrick's scrutiny more than May's (or maybe that has something to do with the fact that Patrick is the hottie of the sewing world).

May is replaced as a judge by Esme Young who is famous for costume design and has her own label. I think I am going to like her and she seems to be more of a perfectionist than Patrick (if that was at all possible). Maybe presumption based on her costume design background but I think she will appreciate the imaginative and adventurous design.

The show started with a simple top. Well, simple looking. They had to create a chevron top using striped fabric and this of course meant the judges were watching for pattern matching. Angeline's top was by far my favourite due to the fabric choice. However, Jamie's red top won it which I actually quite liked too. I think this would have been my mum's favourite.

For the alteration challenge the contestants were given the most hideous maternity dress I have ever seen. It basically looked like an oversized t-shirt. There was no limit to the things that could be done with it since it had no shape to it to begin with. Yet, the results were rather lacking in imagination. In fact the judges commented straight away on how disappointed they were. I would have made some kind of top I think but there were a whole array of skirts. The winner was Jamie's dress right at the end there. Not my favourite but I can see why it won. It had so many different skills within including the use of a lovely contrasting fabric. I just hope that my favourite challenge is stepped up a little as of next week.

For the final challenge the contestants had to create a shirt. My favourite skirt was a dark 50's inspired skirt by Jade. The winner though was a peplum pencil skirt by Angeline. I can see why she won. It was very well constructed. The fabric was lovely and as you can see above, the judges loved the fit (swearing on sewing bee - who would have thought it). Having said all that I HATE peplum skirts with a passion. I always have. I just do not find them attractive in the slightest. I remember watching old films and admiring the costumes when I was little and I would switch off at the slightest hint of a peplum.

While there is always a winner there is always a loser too. Poor Duncan was the first to leave. The only Scottish accent in the bunch. He did make the rookie error of cutting the hem of his skirt while the model was wearing it. Funnily enough it didn't work.

Normally I would end with some links of some kind like I did with Bake Off last year. At the end of this weeks show the above image was put on the screen. Sadly, Lorna Monje, one of the three finalists from last year has since passed away after losing her battle to Aplastic Anaemia. She was one of my favourite contestants last year and I very much remember those vibrant red poppies. I think my mum loved the skirt she made from it. There is a Just Giving page in her name raising money for Aplastic Anaemia which I have linked for you.

Next week the contestants will be making children's clothes. Never my favourite theme but I still look forward to it. I won't be live tweeting though as I will be away and will catch up on iPlayer later in the week.

The Year Ahead - 2016

 Happy New Year everyone! I hope 2016 will be a good one for all of you. Remember to follow your dreams and hug your loved ones close. Oh, and I hope it's a craftastic year too. So here is my look at 2016.

 A few years ago I did a bucket list for the year ahead. I don't know if many of you remember it. I did actually manage to do one or two things from that list. Most of it still stands. There are still things there that I want to do. I'm not so much creating a bucket list this time but I thought I would share some plans with you.

First of I plan to kick start January with a whole theme of getting organised. Sounds boring I know but what else is January for? I also hope that it won't quite be as dull as it sounds. I'm using this as an opportunity to get out all those WIP's and actually get some projects finished. Along the way I hope to share some tips for other crafters. I also want other bloggers and crafters to share their experiences through showing off their craft space. Show me a crafter who doesn't like to ooh and ahh over something like that. The good news is that I already have one volunteer. I'm still looking for others though.

You will recognise this from the bucket list. Known as operation sock drawer. I'm back to that again.  Way back in 2011 I decided that I was going to knit myself a pair of socks each month. I never did finish that years challenge. So I am challenging myself to that again. I want a whole drawer of socks and not just a basket. Guess what? The first pair will be a WIP which fits in with January's theme.

 

The Next theme will be The Great British Sewing Bee. I think it's due to start mid February. I am going to do the same thing I did with Bake Off last year and review it once a week. While I won't be attempting to join in sew-a-long I might still dust off the old sewing machine. I have a knicker kit that I have still to try out.

Which brings me to the summer and Bake Off! I quite enjoyed reviewing the episodes on a weekly basis and I plan on doing that again. If all goes to plan I will be safely ensconced into my own wee flat by then. Which means I might even be able to take part in the bake a-long. No promises though.

The above image actually has two purposes and that is I hope to do some more book reviews. I am way behind on them and my Craft books page is looking a little sad in comparison to my other two pages. I plan to go through and reorganise my books this year and see which ones I have used and which ones I haven't.

These squares are for a blanket I am almost finished for my new bedroom in my new flat (when I get it). Which brings me to another project which will be ongoing. A lot of the crafts that I will be doing for myself over the next year or two will be to kit out my new home. Think I will call it Project New Home.

Lastly I have plans for next years Christmas posts. This is very much still a work in progress and I don't want to reveal too much yet. What I will say is that I hope that next years Christmas countdown will be more about makes and tutorials from myself rather than creating a list of those found on the net.

My plans are always evolving so I hope that there will be more of that this year. The last 6 months I have truly enjoyed my blog and I hope to make it a place that people can use for their own creativity.

No matter what you do I hope that 2016 is your best year. Life is too short so make sure you are working towards whatever makes you happy.