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Let’s start at the root. When fabric is woven on a loom there are two threads. The WARP thread which travels along the length of the fabric and the WEFT thread which travels from side to side – this is the moving thread on the bobbin. As the bobbin moves it creates loops at the…
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Mrs Bowden’s top tip – avoid twisting! An indication that a skirt doesn’t fit you correctly or is off centre when you put it on is a twisted feeling with the side seams sneaking around. This week’s top tip is to help you sort this out without awkwardly having to contort in a mirror to…
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Mrs Bowden’s top tip – a few charming ideas It’s World Cancer Day today (Thursday 4th February 2016). As you may know St Elizabeth Hospice are running a very splendid event based on the popular BBC programme ‘The Great British Sewing Bee’. You are being encouraged to purchase a garment from one of their wonderful…
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Mrs Bowden’s top tip – making a tailor’s ham Having the right equipment when dressmaking will help produce better quality work and make the process more enjoyable. A Tailor’s Ham is such a useful item as it allows you to press curved seams and retain the shape you have created. It is an easy item…
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Pressing is such an important part of sewing that learning to do it as you go along is really helpful. Having the correct equipment is terribly important too. Ironing board – get a stable board with plenty of wadding underneath the cover to protect seams when pressing. Sleeve board – a great asset to ironing…
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In the run up to Christmas I was overtaken by festive enthusiasm and bought 3 lengths of fabric suitable for Christmas frocks.  The one featured here is a 100% viscose with a bit of a 30’s vibe showing almost Disneyish bambi’s set amongst pastel geometric shapes and grids.  Having always admired the novelty prints used…
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Some of the best tips are the simplest. This week’s top tip is about pinning for woven fabrics and knit fabrics. It’s pretty self-explanatory but here goes.   For woven fabrics; pin at right angles to the cut edge so that the head of the pin is sticking out at the right hand side. This…
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January, for me, conjures up romantic notions of snow ball fights and skating rinks……so inspiring the first top tip of 2016.   In order to avoid the foot pedal on your sewing machine skating about on your floor, use a rectangle of non-slip matting (available from shops where everything costs only £1.00 good British pound).…
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Whilst considering the Christmas decoration of my home I realised that storage of long stringey items (tinsel) can be problematic.  Hence this week’s top tip – to do with embroidery floss management. I feel sad when I see this… It doesn’t have to be like that…   Grab a trusted cereal box and cut out little rectangles…
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A point lacking in crispness is to be avoided! When creating a point – for example if one is making bunting, trim the end of the point and a little from the sides making sure you leave 2 or 3 mm seam allowance to prevent the point popping through.  Then turn your pendant the right…
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