Episode 8 The Great British Sewing Bee


Episode 8

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Transcript


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It's the final of The Great British Sewing Bee.

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We've gone from ten to three.

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They've had to climb a fabric mountain to get here

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and because it's the final,

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the judges want nothing less than couture. Oh la la!

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Last week, the semi-finalists created garments without a pattern.

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This is the scary part.

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Tamara triumphed with her impressive yoga outfit!

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SHE SCREAMS

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But it was Lynda who didn't make it to the final...

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They're going to be looking for perfection and this isn't it.

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..and bid a tearful goodbye to the sewing room.

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-I thought it was me.

-Oh!

-I'm sorry.

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Thank you so much.

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Now Chinelo, Heather and Tamara face the final three challenges.

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I'm going hell for leather.

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Each wanting to convince the judges that they are the best.

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I've given myself a lot to do, but it's the final.

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But will the pressure prove too much?

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I just want this to be over now, to be honest.

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And who will hold her nerve to win The Great British Sewing Bee?

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Such a stressful time.

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I can't not finish this one.

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Huh!

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After eight weeks, three very different home-sewers

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have made it to the Sewing Bee final.

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Tamara is a third-generation sewer

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whose bold fabric choices and determination to embellish

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has seen her win Garment of the Week

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more times than her fellow finalists.

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This is a jacket I would be very happy to wear myself.

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I'd never consider playing it safe.

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It would be like going against the grain.

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It'd be like the nap of the velvet going the wrong way!

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Chinelo is the least experienced of the finalists,

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but her natural ability with fabric

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and instinctive free-hand approach to cutting and shaping has seen her

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ranked in the top two of most challenges.

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The first thing I notice is the fit.

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It's a really lovely shape on her.

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And the skirt flutes beautifully.

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'I am feeling nervous, I'm feeling sick.'

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I feel like a fizzy drink that's been shaken up!

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That's how I feel right now.

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Heather's cautious precision, born of 30 years of sewing experience,

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has made her the most technically competent,

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but she's never won Garment of the Week.

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Very neat, very tidy.

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The most exquisite under-stitching. Well done.

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I have gone quite often for a safe option,

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I think it's time for life on the tightrope without a safety net.

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I'm going to do something that will make the judges go, "What?!"

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Huge congratulations for making it into the final.

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-Can you believe it?

-ALL: No.

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This week, I'm afraid they've stepped it up a notch,

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so over the next two days,

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you're going to be tested on your couture skills...

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-Huh...

-I know. ..for the final pattern challenge.

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Patrick, what do they have to do?

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We've tested you on all sorts of garments so far,

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but we haven't really had a good look at your hand sewing.

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So this week, we'd like you to make a tie.

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Oh, gosh, hand sewing...

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And this beautiful tie needs to be made of silk.

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How do you feel about that, girls?

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-Scary.

-Tell you in a couple of hours.

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You have three hours and 15 minutes.

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Enormous luck. Your time starts now.

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So...these are they.

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I quite like that.

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I'm just seeing what pattern I like.

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Obviously, pattern's quite important to me!

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I think I might go for the plain.

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Although that's probably not going to hold its shape as well.

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I've never made a tie before, no. Never.

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I've gone for something that's not too slippery,

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and I think would be nice as a tie.

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It's nice to do something completely different,

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and that's quite small.

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Because a tie, really, is just a long strip of fabric,

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so you can really take some time.

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Hopefully!

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Let's go with that and see what happens.

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Hand sewing is not really my thing.

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I'm going to go back and look at the instructions,

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and see how it goes.

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Patrick and May, why couture for the final?

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-What's it going to show you?

-Couture is the finest form of sewing.

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The most exquisite, the most accurate.

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A lot of the things we've tested so far

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are about basic assembly.

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What we're testing this week is the finishing skills

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that take a well-assembled garment

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and turn it into a beautiful piece of sewing.

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Good God, there's so many pieces!

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I just feel that I need to follow the instructions,

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cos that's the only way I'm going to survive this one.

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The tie is made up of two lengths of silk sewn together.

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At each end, a piece of lining,

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known as the tipping, is attached.

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Interfacing is added before

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the length of the tie is hand sewn

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with one long continuous stitch.

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Finally, a hand-worked bar tack is added.

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I've lain my pattern pieces diagonally

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across the grain of the fabric.

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We do that to get a bit more flexibility in the fabric.

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Also, the pattern says to do that!

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I was thinking, either to do, like, contrasting...

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I really like how this green is with this silver.

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'I'd always wanted to sew. I'd always designed things,

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'and done things with my clothes.

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'But sewing, I got into that two years ago.'

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And to still be in this competition

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with two women who've been sewing all their lives is really amazing!

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But for me, this just proves that

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you can really be dedicated to what you're doing

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and progress every day.

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So I really think I can win this.

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I pray I win it. I really, really do.

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-How many metres is this?

-It's supposed to be 15.

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Chinelo lives in Essex, with her husband, Tunde.

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Since joining the Sewing Bee,

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she's spent every spare minute behind her machine.

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'I'm so proud of Chinelo.'

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I've been neglected for the past eight weeks!

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She's been really busy practising.

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'She gets home tired,

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'and she still goes on again and keeps sewing. It's her passion.'

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It's what she loves doing.

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Chinelo, normally, when I come and see you...

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Let me do your normal face... "Hi, Claud!"

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-And this is your face today, like that...

-Yeah. It's a nervous face.

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-Is that the nervous Chinelo?

-Yeah.

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How proud of you is your husband?

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Oh, God. He's, like, so excited.

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Imagine he's saying to you right now, "Chinelo, you can do it!"

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-You're making it for him.

-I am. Yeah, yeah.

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You know what's the worst? I'm going to have to make it for him

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if this comes out well. He'll be putting his orders in.

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Let's have a look on the list of Things To Do.

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A cup of tea would be nice, if that was on the list of Things To Do.

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This is our perfect tie. So, if you look,

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all of these edges are still very, very soft.

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There is a line of stitching holding that central seam

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which you cannot see at all.

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-So what else are we looking for?

-This tip here,

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and the way in which this is handled at the end, is crucial

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to make that beautiful shape.

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Even down to the tiny little bar tack,

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which we want them to sew by hand.

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These final finishing flourishes

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are exactly what this week is all about.

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I'm lining up the bottom half of the tie to the top.

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It's cut at an angle

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so that when I sew it, it'll be one continuous straight line.

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I've just seen something.

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I'm going to alter it slightly,

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because I want my stripes to match up,

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and if you do this,

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you can see I'm just slightly out.

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-Heather?

-Mmm.

-Did you look at those dyes I got?

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'The house has been taken over,

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'with the final for

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'the competition coming up.'

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There's a dummy dressed up

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in different ways in the hallway,

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and the dining room's taken over with materials.

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'And after that, I anticipate

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'being able to sit around the dining table

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'without fighting off taffeta silk.

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'It would mean everything to me if she won!'

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Heather's invested so much into this

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and it would be very, very exciting, it would be wonderful!

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Sewing has always been Heather's secret hobby,

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while dressage riding has been her career.

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I've competed in things all my life

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and this is the last push.

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This is like doing the last canter pirouette,

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before turning up the centreline

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and coming down into the halt

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and saluting the judges.

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This is about finishing the job.

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-It's the final. You're here.

-I'm here.

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When you first started, did you think, "Do you know what,

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-"I'll probably be in the final"?

-No! I'd honed to perfection

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my leaving speech. Honed it, perfectly.

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-And here you are.

-And here I am.

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-Enormous luck.

-Thank you.

-I don't want to put too much on it,

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but everything's riding on this.

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Ha-ha-ha-ha! Go away!

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I'm just folding my tie in half, as per instructions.

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"Stitch ends from small dot..."

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To produce the classic mitred point on either end of the tie,

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the sewers need to work inside-out.

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They create a small pleat to form the point,

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then attach the lining fabric, known as tipping,

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by carefully securing it with a row of stitching

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so that when it's turned the right way round,

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the point is sharp and the lining isn't visible

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on the front of the tie.

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I'm just sewing the tip of the tie

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as it shows on the instructions.

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I'm really trying to follow these instructions

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as carefully as possible, because I have no clue what I'm doing.

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I'm just inserting my lining.

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I believe this is called tipping,

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which I heard Patrick and May mention.

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Never heard that word before,

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so I'm just trying not to show my ignorance by just nodding.

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"Oh, yes, tipping."

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Do you remember this birthday dress that you made for me,

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-many, many, many years ago?

-I do!

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'Tamara got'

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her influence for sewing from me

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and I got it from my grandma,

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who taught me how to sew when I was a little girl.

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Starting with dollies' clothes, then progressing

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to proper dresses, and it was the same for Tammy.

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She bought dolls and she wanted to sew for them,

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and it's progressed from there. So now she's at the stage where

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she's better than I am, I think.

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Tamara's job as a yoga instructor has had to take a back seat,

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in the run-up to the final.

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Which fabric do you like best -

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-purple or green? Charlie, what do you think?

-Green.

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'The past week, for me, has been getting up early,'

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going to the fabric shop, backwards and forwards.

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I'm almost in there on a daily basis.

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'I have a sketchbook by the bed.

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'If I wake up in the middle of the night, I'm making notes.'

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It really does take over your life.

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'I've been working really, really hard

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'because I really want to win it.'

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Yeah, man!

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What have you been doing this week?

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-I've been pulling all-nighters.

-Just practising?

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Just eating, breathing, living, sleeping...sewing.

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Who knew that on tie week,

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you'd be wearing a tie as a belt?!

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-I know!

-Did you make this?

-No. I wear lots of ties.

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-I don't make them.

-OK.

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(But I might wear this one.)

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There's that funny little pleat at the end. Isn't that cute?

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I'm just sewing the side-seams of the point.

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I don't know why there's a pleat there!

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I don't know anything about the construction of a tie.

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I'm really worried about Chinelo.

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She's had a great deal of difficulty

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in following the instructions.

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Throughout the competition, she's been doing garments

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that she's reasonably familiar with.

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This is something that's quite different for her

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and it's really revealed to us

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-how limited her pattern-following skills are.

-Mmm.

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Oh, God...

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-Right, how are you getting on?

-Not very well.

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I just don't know what I'm doing, to be honest. I'm just trying to...

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-Well...

-..stop myself from crying.

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..what you have to remember is that

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that is not the tip of your tie.

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THAT is the tip of your tie.

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And all of this sits back

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-from that edge, like that.

-OK.

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And then these roll around...

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and form the shape of the tie.

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-Does that help?

-Yeah, it does help. Thank you, Patrick.

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-Right.

-Oh!

-I know, it's incredibly hard.

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Sewers, you have had one hour, 37.5 minutes.

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That means you're halfway through.

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Maths genius!

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OK, we're on to the interfacing.

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It's asking me to baste along centre by hand,

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with very loose running stitch through all thickness.

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It's crucial the tie joins perfectly down the centre of the interfacing.

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Hmm, this is going to be tricky.

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A few millimetres out could make it twist out of shape.

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-Tamara?

-Yeah?

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-Do your edges meet?

-Erm, really, really narrow.

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I don't think they overlap an awful lot.

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-I think they might just be kissing each other.

-Right.

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-CHINELO:

-I think I've done this wrong.

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I'm pretty sure this is supposed to be on the inside somehow.

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I think I'm supposed to have... No, I've done it the right way.

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I just don't get it.

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This is difficult, to be honest.

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I think because I'm really panicky, as well,

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and I'm trying to just relax myself.

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I was going to ask somebody, but I'm going to let them get on, because...

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I don't know what I'm doing...

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Girls, you have half an hour left.

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I'm on the home stretch. I am galloping down the last furlong.

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I've still got a bit of wind left in me.

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The most crucial part of this challenge

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is the quality of the finalists' hand sewing.

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As a child, I used to hand stitch my dolls' clothes,

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so I have done it in the past.

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The slip stitch, which runs along the length of the tie,

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should be completely invisible from the outside.

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I've done quite a bit of hand sewing.

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It's a very important part of dressmaking.

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Without hand sewing, you're going to be up the creek a little bit.

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I just want this to be over now, to be honest.

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If they're looking for fancy hand stitching,

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I don't think they'll get it from me today!

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Guys, ten minutes! Ten minutes before you have to put your ties

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on your mannequins.

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I'm just going to have a little steamette of that.

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The judge is standing there - it's like the execution squad!

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While Heather and Tamara finish their ties with a gentle pressing,

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Chinelo has yet to start her slipstitch.

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Chinelo, sew it!

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-Sew it... Shall I sew it?

-Mm-hm.

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(Go on, go on. Don't worry about pressing, just sew it!)

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Do you know what? Sod the instructions.

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-OK. Got a needle and thread ready?

-Oh, gosh...

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Right, hand-sew it like the wind!

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Sewers, you have one minute! One minute left!

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A bar tack to finish.

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This is the last tie I'll ever make in my life.

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Sewers, that's it! Time's up!

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-Chinelo, Tamara, Heather-chops...

-Hallelujah!

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Finalists, with your tie...

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Is it just me who wants to break into song?

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# When I'm all upset, I never fret

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# I never sit around and cry... #

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Two and a half silk ties made by hand

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in just three and a quarter hours.

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Tamara, please bring your lovely tie forward.

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Pretty even.

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We've got the pattern running perfectly parallel

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with the corner of the tie.

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We've got some really good hand-stitching.

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Can I have a look at the tip in that end?

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Yes, your tipping is neat.

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You have made an attempt at the bar tack.

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It's not the neatest bar tack I've ever seen,

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-but at least it's a bar tack.

-Yes.

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So there we are,

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definitely a wearable piece of men's neckwear.

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I feel the hand stitching is quite untidy, I have to say.

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You can see rather a long stitch

0:18:040:18:07

and it's not completely even either, which is a shame.

0:18:070:18:11

Looking at the tipping,

0:18:110:18:13

you've got the body of the tie rolling over

0:18:130:18:15

and sitting back from the edge,

0:18:150:18:17

as it's supposed to be.

0:18:170:18:19

It's a little bumpy.

0:18:190:18:21

You've managed to give it a press.

0:18:210:18:23

You've not crushed the bounce out of the fold.

0:18:230:18:26

-You've managed that, actually, quite well. Not bad at all.

-Mmm.

0:18:260:18:30

- Thank you. - Thank you, Heather.

0:18:300:18:32

Sorry.

0:18:490:18:50

-I'm pretty disappointed.

-So am I.

0:18:500:18:54

We don't have an assembled tie.

0:18:540:18:57

Actually, you were getting there.

0:18:570:19:00

Shape-wise, it's pretty good.

0:19:000:19:03

It's nice and balanced.

0:19:030:19:04

You've got the construction of this tipping right, here.

0:19:040:19:09

You've got this little mitred tip absolutely spot-on.

0:19:090:19:13

But it just took you forever to get there.

0:19:130:19:16

So, sadly, we've got no hand stitching, which is a shame.

0:19:160:19:18

I did start the slip stitch on that side.

0:19:180:19:21

-You did start it, did you?

-I did, yeah.

0:19:210:19:23

Yes, we have got sort of...

0:19:230:19:25

We have got a few stitches. Um, yes.

0:19:250:19:28

So which tie will win the last pattern challenge of the Sewing Bee?

0:19:350:19:39

Very marginal.

0:19:400:19:42

OK, who's in third place?

0:19:470:19:49

Sadly, Chinelo, it's you, because we haven't got a completed tie.

0:19:490:19:54

In second place...

0:19:550:19:57

..Heather. Very close to call, but I think

0:20:010:20:05

a little bit more finesse required on the hand stitching.

0:20:050:20:08

And in first place - Tamara. APPLAUSE

0:20:080:20:14

-We loved your really beautiful hand stitching.

-Thank you.

0:20:140:20:18

Huge congratulations. Well done, Tamara. Go and have a break.

0:20:180:20:21

When you come back, we will give you

0:20:210:20:23

your second challenge - my particular favourite. Off you go.

0:20:230:20:26

I just lost the plot a little bit. It was just so confusing.

0:20:290:20:33

'I just really wanted to stay true to the instructions'

0:20:330:20:36

and I got lost.

0:20:360:20:39

Just so frustrating, though, isn't it?

0:20:390:20:41

'Of course I would have loved to have come first,'

0:20:410:20:44

but just visualising it was just a tiny bit tricky.

0:20:440:20:46

'I feel a little bit closer to winning'

0:20:480:20:49

the overall Sewing Bee.

0:20:490:20:51

'And now I've learnt all those different skills,'

0:20:510:20:54

it's all coming together right at the end,

0:20:540:20:56

just when it needs to happen.

0:20:560:20:58

Well, that tie was incredibly tricky to make,

0:21:000:21:03

so what would be lovely is if the judges now set the sewers

0:21:030:21:06

a gentle, sort of easy alteration challenge.

0:21:060:21:10

Oh, it's the final.

0:21:100:21:12

This week...

0:21:120:21:13

HEATHER LAUGHS

0:21:150:21:16

..we would like each of you

0:21:160:21:17

to breathe new life into an old wedding dress.

0:21:170:21:21

We would like you to make an outfit for a child -

0:21:210:21:23

a dress for a special occasion, a christening, a bridesmaid.

0:21:230:21:28

So there are six wedding dresses next door. Choose one.

0:21:280:21:31

You have two hours for this. Your time starts...now!

0:21:310:21:35

Come on, girls, let's go!

0:21:350:21:37

-Ooh!

-Wow!

-Dresses!

0:21:370:21:40

The second-hand wedding dresses are all made from

0:21:400:21:43

-different luxury fabrics.

-I think I quite like this one.

0:21:430:21:46

The sewers can use everything for their couture alterations.

0:21:460:21:49

Gosh, she's a tall bird, this one is!

0:21:490:21:52

It's really hard. You may have some idea in your head

0:21:520:21:55

of what you would make, until you see the dresses,

0:21:550:21:59

and they kind of determine how you design your dress.

0:21:590:22:02

This one is going to be quite interesting

0:22:020:22:06

cos there's plenty of fabric to do things with,

0:22:060:22:09

and the idea of making a little frilly child's dress

0:22:090:22:11

-is actually rather nice.

-My wedding dress was rented,

0:22:110:22:14

actually, so I don't have it any more.

0:22:140:22:17

-I do like the idea of this.

-In this challenge, for me,

0:22:170:22:21

I don't want to see just a kind of cut-and-shut job.

0:22:210:22:24

I want to see some finesse. I'd like to see a complete

0:22:240:22:27

-re-imagining of this garment.

-We want them to demonstrate

0:22:270:22:30

an understanding of the different fabrics, the different textures,

0:22:300:22:34

how they gather, how they move, how they shape

0:22:340:22:36

-on a smaller garment.

-These are important to people. I mean,

0:22:360:22:39

this is a big part of a lot of people's lives,

0:22:390:22:42

and any alteration that they do

0:22:420:22:43

needs to do credit to the original garment.

0:22:430:22:45

It needs to almost pay respect to all the work

0:22:450:22:47

-that went into it in the first place.

-I think

0:22:470:22:49

-it needs to be handled sympathetically.

-Yes.

0:22:490:22:51

There's something quite cathartic about

0:22:520:22:55

cutting into a wedding dress, isn't there?

0:22:550:22:57

I feel awful for doing this. This is someone's wedding dress.

0:22:570:23:01

Isn't it funny? I feel quite guilty about doing this.

0:23:010:23:05

Just cutting into a wedding dress feels really...

0:23:050:23:07

not the sort of thing you should be doing.

0:23:070:23:10

I've done a little sketch, and that's the basis of my dress.

0:23:100:23:14

To make it a little bit more couture,

0:23:140:23:16

I'm going to do some hand sewing.

0:23:160:23:18

So I think she might be a bridesmaid, with this little frock.

0:23:180:23:21

I'm just going to run up a little skirt...

0:23:210:23:25

just to start with, before I make the top.

0:23:250:23:28

What are you making?

0:23:290:23:31

I'm making the skirt of my very classic bridesmaid's dress.

0:23:310:23:34

Is that the waist?

0:23:340:23:36

Yes, that's the waist seam, and that's the end of the skirt.

0:23:360:23:39

-So it's like a "poof"?

-Yeah.

0:23:390:23:40

Do you feel under immense pressure to do well in this next challenge?

0:23:400:23:43

-I definitely do.

-You've got to come first, is what you're saying.

0:23:430:23:47

Well, as you were... Bye.

0:23:470:23:48

90 minutes remaining.

0:23:500:23:52

I'm just getting my gathering stitches

0:23:520:23:55

to go round the waist of the dress.

0:23:550:23:58

Pulling through two layers of loose stitching to use as my gathering.

0:23:580:24:03

Just attaching some elastic to the tulle here,

0:24:030:24:06

just to make the petticoat.

0:24:060:24:08

Chinelo plans to make three new separate skirts

0:24:080:24:11

to lie on top of each other.

0:24:110:24:13

But to save time, Tamara has opted to cut down the original.

0:24:150:24:18

I really need to make a dress that's very radically different.

0:24:180:24:22

-That's divine!

-It could be a party dress, I suppose,

0:24:220:24:25

but I definitely want to have this on the shoulder...

0:24:250:24:28

That's so pretty!

0:24:280:24:30

..to match the skirt, but it's what I do in-between those two things.

0:24:300:24:34

Sewers, you have one hour left. One hour!

0:24:350:24:39

-Come on!

-I'm always wondering where time goes.

0:24:390:24:41

It certainly doesn't seem to be going in my direction, anyway.

0:24:410:24:44

This is my top bodice. I was going to clip around the neck hole,

0:24:440:24:48

but I won't do that because it's all cut on the bias anyway,

0:24:480:24:51

so it should stretch.

0:24:510:24:52

So, I'm going to make the top out of two pieces.

0:24:520:24:55

To make her bodice, Heather is using a technique

0:24:550:24:58

known as draping on the stand.

0:24:580:25:01

-Ow.

-Pinning and cutting her silk directly onto the mannequin.

0:25:010:25:04

I can feel where the shoulders are,

0:25:040:25:07

so cutting isn't too much of a difficulty.

0:25:070:25:11

Tamara has decided to be a little more cautious.

0:25:110:25:14

So I'm just roughly tracing around the shape of the mannequin,

0:25:140:25:18

and then I've got an idea of how big my arm holes need to be.

0:25:180:25:23

I'll then cut it out of fabric

0:25:230:25:24

and then I'll put darts in it, so it fits.

0:25:240:25:26

45 minutes to go.

0:25:280:25:30

I'm just attaching my skirt to my bodice.

0:25:320:25:34

So I'm just going to stitch my bodice together now.

0:25:350:25:38

Oh.

0:25:430:25:44

I've just sewn my dart the wrong way round.

0:25:440:25:46

SHE SIGHS This isn't going well.

0:25:460:25:49

Draping on the stand hasn't saved Heather any time.

0:25:490:25:53

You know what?

0:25:530:25:54

The front and back pieces of her bodice don't line up.

0:25:540:25:58

Everything's in the wrong place,

0:25:580:26:00

so it might just be easier to start again.

0:26:000:26:03

I'm now going to do something completely different. This is Plan B.

0:26:030:26:07

Girls, you have half an hour left...

0:26:110:26:14

on your bride-to-bridesmaid challenge!

0:26:140:26:17

I'm just trying to make sure the waistline of the skirt isn't tilted.

0:26:190:26:23

Sorry, I've just... Now I've said that...

0:26:260:26:30

I've gone off track.

0:26:310:26:32

This is going to be for a bit of bias binding.

0:26:350:26:39

For a couture finish,

0:26:390:26:40

the raw edges of the silk should be neatly encased.

0:26:400:26:43

I'm going to bias bind the neck and see where I am.

0:26:430:26:46

I don't want to use a bias binding around the neck,

0:26:470:26:51

so I decided to face it,

0:26:510:26:53

because I think it's cleaner.

0:26:530:26:56

HEATHER: You want them to be delicate, not lumpy and nasty.

0:26:560:27:01

I just hate this fabric.

0:27:010:27:03

Give me some denim or some furnishing fabric, then I'm fine.

0:27:030:27:08

Ooh, I love that. That's going on there immediately.

0:27:080:27:11

Sewers, you have 15 minutes left!

0:27:160:27:18

15! Everyone all right?

0:27:180:27:21

-No.

-Not really.

0:27:210:27:23

I'm just making my sleeves. I'm just freestyling this bit.

0:27:230:27:27

I don't usually use a pattern for it, so why start now?

0:27:270:27:30

Let's just tidy these edges up.

0:27:300:27:33

This is the hand sewing that will hopefully give it a better finish,

0:27:330:27:37

but I've just run out of time, so it's going to be so roughly done.

0:27:370:27:40

I've decided to use the overlocker for the edge of the sleeves,

0:27:400:27:43

as I won't have time to actually do the rolled hem on the machine -

0:27:430:27:46

-that's quite tricky.

-Oh...

0:27:460:27:49

My stitching has come undone.

0:27:490:27:52

Everyone, you have two minutes left!

0:27:530:27:55

This is awful. Absolutely awful.

0:27:550:27:59

I can't not finish this one.

0:28:000:28:02

Heather, good, the skirt's on.

0:28:040:28:06

(Oh, it's divine!)

0:28:060:28:08

-Chinelo, are you done?

-Yeah. I'm just ironing.

-Just pressing?

0:28:110:28:13

How are you, my hand-sewing queen? You don't have long

0:28:130:28:16

-and I'm in a panic.

-I just want to get

0:28:160:28:17

-these shoulder straps on.

-Oh, no!

0:28:170:28:20

Is it not supposed to be attached?

0:28:200:28:22

-I haven't been helpful, have I, saying that?

-No.

0:28:220:28:24

This is definitely my chance to come back in the competition,

0:28:240:28:27

so I'm just hoping that the judges are impressed.

0:28:270:28:30

One minute!

0:28:300:28:31

Give it a tug, Clauds.

0:28:340:28:37

Go on.

0:28:370:28:38

Time is up!

0:28:420:28:44

Huge well done on these gorgeous dresses.

0:28:440:28:47

Let's bring them to the front, and then we'll bring the judges in.

0:28:470:28:50

# Tweedlie, tweedlie, tweedlie, dee

0:28:500:28:54

# I'm as happy as can be... #

0:28:540:28:57

May and Patrick have no idea who has re-engineered which dress.

0:28:570:29:02

-Fantastic.

-They are beautiful.

0:29:020:29:04

We've got this beautifully fine hem.

0:29:100:29:12

We've got exactly the same on the skirt.

0:29:120:29:15

We've got a roll hem done

0:29:150:29:16

on the overlocker there. Beautiful little set-in sleeves.

0:29:160:29:19

These are about the cutest things I think I've ever seen!

0:29:190:29:22

THEY BOTH LAUGH Also, a facing around the neck.

0:29:220:29:25

There's no puckering or poking there.

0:29:250:29:27

It's sitting very smoothly around the neck line.

0:29:270:29:29

This was original, I suspect...

0:29:290:29:31

I'd imagine that was part of the dress, but what a lovely touch!

0:29:310:29:34

We've also got netting underneath.

0:29:340:29:35

-That would have had to have been scaled down...

-Yep.

-..amazingly.

0:29:350:29:39

I think that's a really well-executed little dress.

0:29:390:29:42

Got no edge finishes on this one.

0:29:500:29:52

This has just been cut, so we haven't got any rolled hems or anything.

0:29:520:29:57

These shoulder straps in the net,

0:29:570:30:00

all hand stitched onto the bodice.

0:30:000:30:03

This is a really nice shape round here.

0:30:030:30:05

Again, I think that's been extremely well handled.

0:30:050:30:08

It's a nicely balanced shape altogether.

0:30:080:30:11

-And then this little bow that's been tied at the front.

-Really pretty.

0:30:110:30:14

Sweet little silk skirt.

0:30:220:30:24

No fastening. Obviously ran out of time for the fastening.

0:30:240:30:27

This gathering is fabulous. I mean, all the way round.

0:30:270:30:30

There's an awful lot of fullness that's been put in there,

0:30:300:30:34

and this waistband is sitting very neatly.

0:30:340:30:36

We've got binding round the neck...

0:30:360:30:38

beautifully top stitched.

0:30:380:30:40

For me, this neckline is just a little square.

0:30:400:30:42

It just looks like it would catch a little bit up on the throat.

0:30:420:30:46

The way that this sleeve head has been left soft

0:30:460:30:49

is a lovely understanding of how

0:30:490:30:51

this bouncy, lovely plump silk works.

0:30:510:30:55

It's very simple, but actually, it's incredibly effective.

0:30:550:30:58

But whose final couture alteration has impressed May and Patrick?

0:30:590:31:03

It feels more like it's come out of the world of couture.

0:31:030:31:06

-There's a softness to it.

-Mmm. Quality of finish

0:31:060:31:09

-isn't quite so good, is it?

-Yeah.

-No.

0:31:090:31:11

It relies a little bit on the bells and whistles.

0:31:110:31:15

All right. In third place is...

0:31:160:31:20

the middle one.

0:31:200:31:22

Tamara.

0:31:220:31:23

You know what? There's a lot of really excellent work in there.

0:31:230:31:26

- The finish let you down. - Thank you.

0:31:260:31:29

Number two is this little lady over here.

0:31:290:31:32

There was an awful lot of edge finishing in this one,

0:31:340:31:37

lots of top stitching, binding. We congratulate you

0:31:370:31:40

- on your finishing off. - Thank you.

0:31:400:31:42

Which means, of course, that our winner

0:31:420:31:44

on the alteration challenge is Chinelo.

0:31:440:31:46

-Yay!

-APPLAUSE

0:31:460:31:48

There was so much in this dress.

0:31:500:31:52

Your set-in sleeves, your layering,

0:31:520:31:54

your beautiful waistline.

0:31:540:31:55

There was a lot of really lovely processes.

0:31:550:31:59

Well, a huge well done to the three of you

0:31:590:32:02

and we'll see you back here tomorrow,

0:32:020:32:04

when the winner of The Great British Sewing Bee will be announced.

0:32:040:32:07

Sleep well, if you can.

0:32:080:32:11

'Erm, definitely nicer to go home'

0:32:130:32:15

coming first in the second challenge, especially after having

0:32:150:32:19

such a...nightmare in the first challenge.

0:32:190:32:21

'Divine inspiration is borne out of sheer desperation.'

0:32:210:32:25

There had to be something on the model and it just went clunk, click,

0:32:250:32:28

do this, do that, give it little puffy turn-ins

0:32:280:32:32

on the sleeves. Job done.

0:32:320:32:33

'Had I not done well in the first challenge,'

0:32:330:32:37

I would have felt that my chances

0:32:370:32:39

were pretty slim of winning the competition.

0:32:390:32:42

But, you know, I won one, came last at the next one...

0:32:420:32:45

You just never know what's going to happen tomorrow.

0:32:450:32:47

Oh, I'm glad that is over!

0:32:470:32:49

At the end of today, you're going to have your winner.

0:32:560:32:59

-I mean, it feels very level.

-Yeah. For me, I think Heather and Tamara

0:32:590:33:02

-are very, very evenly matched.

-We need to see Chinelo delivering

0:33:020:33:07

beautiful hand-finishing techniques. We know she can create

0:33:070:33:11

-a beautiful dress.

-There is ample opportunity

0:33:110:33:15

for anybody to steal this competition.

0:33:150:33:18

For their last ever challenge...

0:33:200:33:22

Are our models going to be in here?

0:33:220:33:24

..there is one final surprise.

0:33:240:33:26

They have no idea who their models are,

0:33:260:33:30

who happily are their best friends in the whole world!

0:33:300:33:33

Welcome, girls.

0:33:330:33:35

Let me introduce you. Rose, Chinelo's best friend.

0:33:350:33:38

-Natalie, Tamara's sister-in-law and best friend.

-Yes.

0:33:380:33:40

-You introduced her to her husband.

-That's right.

-Very clever girl.

0:33:400:33:43

And, Kate, you're Heather's best friend.

0:33:430:33:45

You ride together. You've known her forever.

0:33:450:33:47

Thank you so much for coming in.

0:33:470:33:49

OK. So, girls, you stay where you are.

0:33:490:33:52

-Hello!

-Good morning.

-Hello.

0:33:520:33:55

-How are we all?

-Good.

-Nervous.

0:33:550:33:59

All right. For your final challenge, the judges would love you to make

0:33:590:34:04

a beautiful gown, showcasing stunning couture skills.

0:34:040:34:09

All we need is your models. Shall we get them in?

0:34:090:34:12

-Yes, please.

-OK.

0:34:120:34:14

Models, in you come!

0:34:140:34:15

# Oops

0:34:150:34:17

# My heart went oops... #

0:34:170:34:19

-Rose!

-LAUGHTER

0:34:190:34:22

Oh, my God!

0:34:220:34:23

You are such... Oh, my God!

0:34:270:34:30

LAUGHTER

0:34:300:34:33

THEY CHATTER

0:34:330:34:39

So you've got your very, very best friends here.

0:34:410:34:44

This is it, for the very final time...

0:34:440:34:47

in this year's Great British Sewing Bee,

0:34:470:34:50

you have seven hours, and your time starts now.

0:34:500:34:54

Fabulous, fabulous surprise.

0:34:570:34:58

I've never made clothes for Kate, never.

0:34:580:35:01

She's borrowed the odd bits and pieces

0:35:010:35:03

because we used to be the same size,

0:35:030:35:05

but she's beaten me on the stakes of slimming these days, so...

0:35:050:35:10

It makes you even more apprehensive and anxious

0:35:100:35:13

because you want to make something nice for them.

0:35:130:35:15

Do you know what's funny? I actually used her measurements whilst

0:35:150:35:18

I was trying to cut out the dress. It was so similar and I thought,

0:35:180:35:21

"I'll just go with Rose's measurements."

0:35:210:35:23

And it didn't even cross my mind

0:35:230:35:24

because she would never do anything like this.

0:35:240:35:27

She shies away from a phone camera.

0:35:270:35:28

I can't believe she's doing this!

0:35:280:35:30

The finalists have been asked to design their own dresses

0:35:300:35:32

and cut out their fabric pieces at home.

0:35:320:35:35

Ultimately, we're testing them here

0:35:350:35:37

on everything that we've seen throughout this competition.

0:35:370:35:40

We're also looking for flair in the design,

0:35:400:35:43

and we want them to show us how well they can finish a garment.

0:35:430:35:46

It's about the expression of the person through the clothes.

0:35:460:35:50

I mean, that's really what couture is.

0:35:500:35:52

We're going to see their personality come out in these pieces

0:35:520:35:54

and we're going to see every ounce of their skill.

0:35:540:35:57

This is going to be like a corset. Well, this is actually corset fabric.

0:36:000:36:04

It's going to have a sunray pleated top. Very elegant, very ladylike!

0:36:040:36:09

SHE LAUGHS

0:36:090:36:10

Heather's bodice will be fastened

0:36:100:36:12

with a horse tack chain

0:36:120:36:14

and will be attached with

0:36:140:36:15

a full-length glazed chiffon skirt,

0:36:150:36:18

with a detachable taffeta bustle.

0:36:180:36:20

Here's my taffeta that I screwed up last night and stuck it in a tube.

0:36:200:36:24

-Brilliant. So it's already got that shape built into it.

-Yeah.

0:36:240:36:28

-And that's starting from...

-That is going to start from the centre...

0:36:280:36:30

-Right in the centre.

-..and then it's going to come out. Now, the back...

0:36:300:36:34

-..is going to be chained.

-So there's a hint of the punk.

-Yeah.

0:36:350:36:38

And then I've got ten metres of chiffon

0:36:380:36:41

to make two totally circular skirts to go over the top.

0:36:410:36:44

And then on the back will be six metres of red taffeta and...

0:36:440:36:51

Did we approve this budget?

0:36:510:36:52

This sounds like about £8,000-worth of material!

0:36:520:36:56

We'll all be eating gruel for lunch.

0:36:560:36:58

If I don't talk to you, I'm not being rude, I'm just concentrating.

0:37:010:37:05

Don't talk to me, just win. Win!

0:37:050:37:07

I'm just not a real traditional couture kind of girl,

0:37:070:37:11

so I'm not making one of these massive ball gowns.

0:37:110:37:13

I'm going to make something modern, funky. Definitely a gamble,

0:37:130:37:17

but then again, that's what I do.

0:37:170:37:20

Tamara's layered bodice

0:37:200:37:22

will be slashed

0:37:220:37:23

and decorated with silk flowers.

0:37:230:37:25

Her skirt will feature

0:37:250:37:26

a central inverted pleat,

0:37:260:37:28

topped with a crystal

0:37:280:37:29

organza overskirt.

0:37:290:37:31

I'm loving this already. It's like candyfloss...

0:37:320:37:34

and The Kids from "Fame", and a Wham! video.

0:37:340:37:38

It's like my childhood, all on one table! It's brilliant.

0:37:380:37:41

-Good.

-So you're using crystal organza.

0:37:410:37:43

It has a life of its own. It's really bouncy, isn't it?

0:37:430:37:46

I know, but that's why I've chosen it,

0:37:460:37:49

because I want to master it.

0:37:490:37:50

-Yes. You're not going to let it beat you.

-No!

0:37:500:37:53

You're going to tame it.

0:37:530:37:54

-You're fearless.

-Yes.

0:37:540:37:55

I'm just doing a pleated bodice.

0:37:580:38:01

A lot of hand stitching here.

0:38:010:38:03

As I'm going round here, I'm trying to make sure that my sunray pleats

0:38:030:38:07

are fairly evenly distributed across the bodice.

0:38:070:38:10

I mean, I've given myself a lot of work to do,

0:38:100:38:13

but it's the final. What else to do?

0:38:130:38:16

Chinelo is making her bodice from illusion net...

0:38:210:38:24

I really don't want to rush that.

0:38:240:38:26

..an extremely fine stretch fabric that can appear invisible

0:38:260:38:30

when worn against the skin.

0:38:300:38:32

Those are my seam lines for my shoulders.

0:38:320:38:34

I'm just going to stitch over that,

0:38:340:38:35

create a couple of folds, then zigzag over the top of that,

0:38:350:38:38

and then clip off the excess.

0:38:380:38:40

So it just looks like a flat...sort of seam.

0:38:400:38:44

And it gives the sheer fabric a good strong seam.

0:38:440:38:47

Chinelo will complete

0:38:470:38:49

her floor-length satin dress

0:38:490:38:51

by hand sewing flowers to her bodice,

0:38:510:38:53

and her close-fitting skirt

0:38:530:38:55

will feature a nine-layer tulle fishtail.

0:38:550:38:58

You're going to look amazing in this.

0:38:580:39:00

I'm already so jealous of your fringe.

0:39:000:39:02

I'm now going to be even more jealous.

0:39:020:39:04

Chinelo, I imagine on that dress...

0:39:040:39:07

-fit is key!

-It is.

0:39:070:39:09

-Definitely.

-Even if it's slightly baggy, it will be bad!

0:39:090:39:13

It seems really, really, really quiet in here.

0:39:210:39:23

I think it's sheer concentration.

0:39:230:39:25

Everyone is just really, really, really getting their heads down.

0:39:250:39:29

Huh! Just making a little facing

0:39:290:39:32

to run down the side.

0:39:320:39:35

What I want to make sure is that they're the same size.

0:39:350:39:39

It's the sort of thing that Patrick's always after - symmetry.

0:39:390:39:41

And if it ain't symmetrical, he doesn't like it!

0:39:410:39:46

I'm just checking that my side seams are going to be equal.

0:39:500:39:55

I'm acting as a couture house. It's Tamara's Couture House.

0:39:550:39:58

I'm making sure that all my measurements are correct.

0:39:580:40:00

I'm measuring, re-measuring.

0:40:000:40:02

So I could probably do with coming in a little bit more there.

0:40:020:40:06

I'm just trying to get some shape into the top

0:40:110:40:13

and get rid of any wrinkles.

0:40:130:40:16

I want it to sit perfectly flat,

0:40:160:40:18

so there's no shadows of this tulle.

0:40:180:40:19

I want it to look totally invisible, like there's nothing there.

0:40:190:40:22

So...

0:40:280:40:29

Yeah?

0:40:300:40:31

Pretty happy with that.

0:40:310:40:33

With bodices completed...

0:40:370:40:39

OK, turn around.

0:40:390:40:41

..the finalists need to move onto their skirts.

0:40:430:40:47

I'm just measuring out my pleats at the moment.

0:40:470:40:50

Got a box pleat in the centre,

0:40:500:40:52

and then either side, we have knife pleats.

0:40:520:40:55

Trying not to get too panicky about it,

0:40:550:40:58

because when I get panicky, I make mistakes.

0:40:580:41:01

Heather's skirt requires six metres of fine chiffon.

0:41:050:41:09

I've got quite a lot to overlock here.

0:41:090:41:11

By carefully stretching it as it goes through the overlocker,

0:41:110:41:14

the skirt hem will have a fluted finish, known as a lettuce edge.

0:41:140:41:18

I'm going to make two overskirts.

0:41:180:41:20

It's just layers of the very soft fabrics.

0:41:200:41:23

It gives a beautiful slow movement when you walk.

0:41:230:41:27

This is the first level of the fishtail of my dress.

0:41:270:41:32

Chinelo is planning to attach nine layers of fine tulle

0:41:320:41:35

to the bottom of her skirt.

0:41:350:41:37

Initially, I was just going to go with this tulle,

0:41:370:41:39

but it's just too soft. I've tried everything

0:41:390:41:42

to make it bounce out a bit more - I pulled it, stretched it,

0:41:420:41:44

creased it, crunched it, everything.

0:41:440:41:46

It's just far too soft.

0:41:460:41:48

So what I'm going to do is sandwich this harder tulle in-between it,

0:41:480:41:52

machine right along the edge here,

0:41:520:41:55

and then I'm going to gather them.

0:41:550:41:56

I'm going to attach the skirt now.

0:41:560:42:01

There's acres of the stuff!

0:42:010:42:03

I'm just hoping that I've measured correctly,

0:42:040:42:07

so it's all going to come together.

0:42:070:42:09

It's such a stressful time.

0:42:090:42:12

Sewers, you have one hour left, one hour!

0:42:130:42:16

It has to be perfect for an haute-couture dress.

0:42:160:42:19

I don't have a lot left, but it's fiddly.

0:42:240:42:26

So, erm, let's hope we've got a dress at the end of it.

0:42:270:42:32

This has been gathered, so it's now literally just to...

0:42:320:42:35

..sew it on.

0:42:370:42:38

It's looking good.

0:42:450:42:47

But then I've said that before

0:42:470:42:48

and then I've hit a complete disaster.

0:42:480:42:50

I just want to get this done, so I can start putting my flowers on.

0:42:500:42:55

I really don't want to rush that.

0:42:550:42:57

I'm just trying to get my chain sorted

0:43:010:43:04

so I can get it into the links.

0:43:040:43:06

This would go on a dressage double bridle,

0:43:060:43:08

just under the chin of the horse.

0:43:080:43:10

I need a screwdriver, or a bit of leverage with something.

0:43:100:43:13

She's quite strong!

0:43:170:43:19

45 minutes remaining.

0:43:210:43:25

This is a tulle fight!

0:43:250:43:26

I'm going hell for leather.

0:43:310:43:33

Fitting's good, but now I need to hurry

0:43:400:43:42

because I need to make the next skirt.

0:43:420:43:45

I've really got a race against time. I won't be able to do

0:43:450:43:48

the blanket stitch around the edges like I planned to.

0:43:480:43:50

There's a lot to do in that room.

0:43:500:43:53

Chinelo is actually still pinning all those flowers on the bodice.

0:43:530:43:57

Heather, I'm really not sure where she is.

0:44:000:44:02

She's got that bustle, all those layers and that ruchey bit,

0:44:040:44:07

-which there's no evidence of.

-Yeah. And that's what makes the dress.

0:44:070:44:11

The problem with Tamara's dress is...

0:44:110:44:14

she's being really ambitious, if she doesn't get all the extra stuff,

0:44:140:44:18

the overlayer on and the flowers,

0:44:180:44:20

it just ends up as an ordinary day dress.

0:44:200:44:23

-I mean, that's really disappointing, isn't it?

-Yeah.

0:44:230:44:25

I think the impact of that dress is all of those

0:44:250:44:28

different elements together.

0:44:280:44:29

This is a glue gun. It's a brilliant invention. This is my 3-D flowers

0:44:300:44:35

that almost look like they're sprouting from the dress.

0:44:350:44:38

(Ow, that's hot.)

0:44:400:44:41

15 minutes left, sewers, 15!

0:44:430:44:46

We should have more hours for a couture dress!

0:44:460:44:48

-OK, I'm going to make the skirt now.

-OK.

0:44:480:44:50

This is going to be a sort of bustle.

0:44:500:44:53

I'm going to catch all of these

0:44:530:44:54

and make sure they're all caught in there and secure.

0:44:540:44:56

I've never used this crystal organza before.

0:44:560:44:59

We'll see what happens!

0:44:590:45:01

Literally not thinking, just doing!

0:45:050:45:07

It's not very easy piercing through.

0:45:100:45:12

This makes you look too wide.

0:45:160:45:19

-How many minutes?

-Sewers, you have five minutes left.

0:45:190:45:21

Only by God's grace...

0:45:230:45:25

I just need to find out where to put this.

0:45:250:45:27

I may actually ditch the whole net skirt.

0:45:270:45:30

I think it's just making it too fussy.

0:45:300:45:32

-Still very scared.

-I'm just putting tiny

0:45:320:45:35

catch stitches into the silk,

0:45:350:45:36

just to give it a bit of body and shape.

0:45:360:45:38

Like anything in couture, you have to adjust the original design

0:45:380:45:42

to fit your client.

0:45:420:45:44

Oh, gosh! That was your skin.

0:45:440:45:46

-Sorry!

-I think I definitely... Ooh.

0:45:460:45:49

..made the right decision.

0:45:490:45:50

In three seconds, it's over!

0:45:500:45:52

One... Doing it slowly.

0:45:520:45:55

..two...

0:45:550:45:57

Just getting her shoes on. Hang on a second,

0:45:570:45:59

-you're in the dress.

-..three, that's it!

0:45:590:46:02

That is it. Well done, all of you!

0:46:020:46:06

Exhausted, I'm feeling totally exhausted.

0:46:100:46:13

Oh, dear, I could have done, really, with another hour on that.

0:46:130:46:17

Gosh, look at Heather's. It's amazing!

0:46:170:46:19

And...Tamara. Only Tamara, seriously.

0:46:190:46:23

You know, my heart sinks a little bit, cos I think,

0:46:230:46:26

"Wow, mine is completely out there, compared to theirs."

0:46:260:46:29

# If you can't make your mind up

0:46:290:46:33

# We'll never

0:46:330:46:35

# Get started

0:46:350:46:36

# And I don't wanna wind up

0:46:390:46:42

# Being parted

0:46:420:46:44

# Broken-hearted... #

0:46:440:46:46

Seven hours, and three made-to-measure dresses.

0:46:490:46:53

And being couture, it's all about the detail.

0:46:530:46:55

# ..Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps... #

0:46:590:47:03

Perhaps you can just hand Heather the whip,

0:47:060:47:09

-just partly for my own safety.

-Be nice.

0:47:090:47:12

Starting at the most obvious point - the bodice, that sunray fan.

0:47:120:47:17

Every little point of that is secured, I can't see a stitch...

0:47:170:47:21

Oh, no, I can see one or two little stitches in there.

0:47:210:47:24

We've got lots and lots of roll hemming on the overlocker,

0:47:240:47:27

which has given you this lovely

0:47:270:47:29

- fluted effect. - I love that.

0:47:290:47:31

You stretched it as you sewed it.

0:47:310:47:32

This is the hook and bar that releases that,

0:47:320:47:35

so as the evening goes on and the dancing begins...

0:47:350:47:37

- Exactly. - ..the bustle can come off.

0:47:370:47:40

I mean, this bustle creates such a terrific effect.

0:47:400:47:43

What I love about it is the kind of plumpness of it.

0:47:430:47:48

It's using every bit of the bounce in this silk,

0:47:480:47:50

and it looks so organic.

0:47:500:47:53

It's got a life of its own.

0:47:530:47:54

I think when we're looking at couture work,

0:47:540:47:57

it's that liveliness that you want to keep in the material.

0:47:570:48:00

There's a lot of hand sewing and a lot of gathering going on

0:48:000:48:03

to give it that beautiful shape.

0:48:030:48:06

Initially, we were quite concerned about how this chain might look.

0:48:060:48:09

There was the potential that it might have overpowered

0:48:090:48:11

but, actually, what I think it does is...

0:48:110:48:13

it just adds a little edge to quite a soft finish,

0:48:130:48:15

and I think it works really well.

0:48:150:48:17

Thank you.

0:48:170:48:18

That dress is amazing.

0:48:200:48:21

A very beautiful dress.

0:48:340:48:36

It fits your model beautifully.

0:48:360:48:37

I mean, round the back...

0:48:370:48:39

Can I swivel you round?

0:48:390:48:41

It's really sculptured well over the body.

0:48:410:48:44

We've just got a little bit of

0:48:440:48:46

-a ripple there.

-Yeah.

0:48:460:48:47

I think it's a really successful execution.

0:48:470:48:50

If I'm going to be really nitpicky,

0:48:500:48:52

I think that fishtail

0:48:520:48:53

is a little overpowering.

0:48:530:48:55

I think all of this is

0:48:550:48:56

so delicate and lovely,

0:48:560:48:58

and that's just a little bit

0:48:580:48:59

big for me, but I'm being really nitpicky.

0:48:590:49:02

These seams on the shoulder are a little bit too robust.

0:49:020:49:06

It does detract from these beautiful flowers

0:49:060:49:09

and this wonderful bodice.

0:49:090:49:10

But it is a really beautiful looking dress,

0:49:100:49:12

and you should be really proud of yourself.

0:49:120:49:15

It's a lot of work, in a very short space of time.

0:49:150:49:18

Thank you.

0:49:180:49:20

Can I congratulate you on your zip?

0:49:340:49:37

I think it's probably one of the best zips you've put in.

0:49:370:49:40

If we look at it across the back...

0:49:400:49:42

I mean, that fits terrifically.

0:49:420:49:44

Actually, that racing back needs to sit inside the shoulder blades.

0:49:440:49:48

It's absolutely doing that.

0:49:480:49:49

It's hugging the back really nicely.

0:49:490:49:51

The overall fit is really very well done.

0:49:510:49:53

I was really sad that I didn't see the crystal organza

0:49:530:49:56

-incorporated into it.

-Well, I did make it and I put it on,

0:49:560:50:00

and I just thought it didn't need it. It was just too, too much.

0:50:000:50:03

-PATRICK:

-I think what was, for me, the great thing about this

0:50:030:50:06

was the sheer mass exuberance of it.

0:50:060:50:09

I think without it, it lost a little.

0:50:090:50:12

I was a little bit disappointed that

0:50:120:50:14

I didn't see any flowers sewn on.

0:50:140:50:16

I'm not sure about using the glue gun on a dress.

0:50:160:50:18

If every one had been absolutely hand sewn on,

0:50:180:50:20

and every slash had been controlled and the edges were perfectly done,

0:50:200:50:24

it could have been quite magical.

0:50:240:50:26

It was just too much to do by hand in the time that you had.

0:50:260:50:30

Huge congratulations for three extraordinary dresses.

0:50:380:50:43

Go to the cafe, have an enormous cake or...cocktail.

0:50:430:50:47

I don't know if they do them there, probably not.

0:50:470:50:50

When you come back in, the judges will announce the winner

0:50:500:50:54

of The Great British Sewing Bee.

0:50:540:50:56

Whilst the finalists wait for the judges' decision,

0:51:040:51:06

the sewing room opens its doors to their families

0:51:060:51:09

and a few familiar faces.

0:51:090:51:12

I was quite nervous coming in,

0:51:120:51:13

back into the sewing room.

0:51:130:51:15

It's quite nice being back in the sewing room

0:51:150:51:17

and not having to sew.

0:51:170:51:18

I will say that!

0:51:180:51:20

I can't tell you how nice it is to see everyone,

0:51:200:51:23

catching up on everything everyone's doing,

0:51:230:51:25

it's really, really lovely!

0:51:250:51:26

I've had a little look at the clothes

0:51:260:51:28

that everybody's made,

0:51:280:51:30

it's astounding.

0:51:300:51:32

I don't think there's a standout winner at all.

0:51:320:51:34

It's going to be really tricky for the judges.

0:51:340:51:36

I really wouldn't want to be one of them!

0:51:360:51:37

I would say Chinelo.

0:51:370:51:39

She can just whip up a pattern by measuring you out

0:51:390:51:42

and getting a bit of chalk and...

0:51:420:51:44

sketching it onto a piece of fabric.

0:51:440:51:46

She just fascinates me.

0:51:460:51:48

I can't possibly pick one.

0:51:480:51:50

Tamara has an amazing sense of style and colour.

0:51:510:51:55

Heather has got a spark that might just swing the balance for her.

0:51:560:52:01

Oh... Am I going to take my words back,

0:52:010:52:03

is it going to be Heather? I don't know. I don't know!

0:52:030:52:06

Have I got to pick someone?

0:52:060:52:08

Come on, Tamara!

0:52:080:52:10

At this point, do you think you know who the winner is?

0:52:120:52:15

We started off with the tie. Tamara and Heather

0:52:150:52:17

did a pretty good job of following that pattern.

0:52:170:52:20

And then we went to the alteration.

0:52:200:52:22

We had three really good dresses,

0:52:220:52:23

but Chinelo just pipped them to the post.

0:52:230:52:25

And then on our final challenge, if we start with Tamara,

0:52:250:52:28

I think all of the idea was there,

0:52:280:52:31

it had the makings of something really fantastic.

0:52:310:52:33

But actually, in its execution,

0:52:330:52:34

it was very disappointing.

0:52:340:52:36

Things like gluing the flowers on was a shame.

0:52:360:52:38

We didn't see any fantastic hand-sewing skills.

0:52:380:52:40

Chinelo's... Full of beautiful flair

0:52:400:52:43

and all of that natural elegance

0:52:430:52:45

that we see every week from Chinelo.

0:52:450:52:47

Brilliant fit, beautiful execution.

0:52:470:52:49

And it looked stunning on her model.

0:52:490:52:50

Then finally, after weeks of

0:52:500:52:53

not really showing us

0:52:530:52:54

exactly what she's made of,

0:52:540:52:56

Heather has gone for it in a big way

0:52:560:52:58

and has delivered something that is really pretty spectacular.

0:52:580:53:01

-Jenni!

-CHEERING

0:53:030:53:06

Hello!

0:53:130:53:16

Hello.

0:53:290:53:30

Hello, lovely friends and family.

0:53:320:53:34

Brilliant to see all our sewers back in the room.

0:53:340:53:39

Please could the three finalists come and join us right up here?

0:53:390:53:42

So the good news is, you've got the people who you love the most

0:53:550:53:57

right behind you for this moment,

0:53:570:53:59

because look what I've got in my hand.

0:53:590:54:01

The winner of The Great British Sewing Bee is...

0:54:060:54:11

-..Heather.

-CHEERING

0:54:220:54:26

-I don't believe it!

-Congratulations.

-Thank you.

0:54:470:54:52

-Very well done.

-Thank you so much!

0:54:560:55:00

Can we have a round of applause? Put this over your head!

0:55:020:55:05

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

0:55:050:55:07

'I was so, so certain'

0:55:150:55:18

in my mind that it wasn't me, for sure.

0:55:180:55:22

So I was quite calm, standing there.

0:55:220:55:24

I thought, "This is OK. It's not me, it's fine. It's absolutely fine."

0:55:240:55:27

I'm...

0:55:270:55:30

I think throughout the weeks, Heather's just been

0:55:300:55:33

quietly biding her time. She's always shown competence,

0:55:330:55:37

but finally, this week, she's absolutely pushed the boat out.

0:55:370:55:42

We wanted something worthy of the name couture

0:55:420:55:45

and, of everything we've seen,

0:55:450:55:48

really, that final dress was absolutely the epitome of that.

0:55:480:55:52

Well done, lady!

0:55:520:55:54

She showed us how well she could handle fabric,

0:55:550:55:58

how well she could fit to the body,

0:55:580:56:00

and some beautiful hand-sewing skills.

0:56:000:56:02

'No regrets.'

0:56:050:56:06

Obviously, I'm a little disappointed,

0:56:060:56:08

but then looking at the garments that I've made

0:56:080:56:10

over the last eight weeks, I'm actually quite pleased,

0:56:100:56:13

cos I think I did a really good job. I'm actually quite proud of myself.

0:56:130:56:17

'Well, losing out to Heather is not a bad thing.'

0:56:190:56:21

She is phenomenal! I'm going to treasure this sewing room forever,

0:56:210:56:25

all the memories it holds for me,

0:56:250:56:27

all the pressure, the tears, the happiness, the smiles.

0:56:270:56:31

Patrick's comments, May's comments. I'm going to treasure

0:56:310:56:34

every single moment of it. I can't believe I've made

0:56:340:56:37

24 garments in eight weeks. That's amazing.

0:56:370:56:40

Your dress looked amazing. Absolutely amazing.

0:56:410:56:44

It's been an incredible experience. I have learnt so much,

0:56:450:56:49

not least from my other competitors.

0:56:490:56:53

And I thank them to the bottom of my heart for that.

0:56:530:56:57

MUSIC: "I'll Never Fall In Love Again" by Johnny Ray

0:57:020:57:04

If you'd like to take up sewing projects inspired by the series,

0:58:380:58:41

please go to...

0:58:410:58:43

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