Episode 4 The Great British Sewing Bee

We are halfway through way through our search for Britain's best amateur sewers.

So far, we've had dresses that wrap, leggings that sag

and leotards for tap dancing babies -

you can't say we haven't covered everything.

'In the last Sewing Bee...'

Do I wear leggings? No, will I ever wear leggings? No.

'Chinelo won garment of the week for the first time.'

I'm very shocked.

'Jennie struggled with stretch...'

SHE STIFLES A SCREAM

'But it was Julie who had to leave the sewing room.'

THEY LAUGH

'This week, the sewers tackle kids' clothes.'

-So how does this work then?

-That's it.

This is why I need kids now.

'It's the fiddliest pattern yet.'

It's tiny.

'The alterations get more fancy...'

-What have you got?

-Never you mind.

'And whilst the sewers know what prom dresses they're making...'

That's not an easy sew.

'The biggest surprise...'

Let's bring them in

-'..is their models.'

-LAUGHTER AND GIGGLES

-Gin?

-I need a Valium.

The sewers have reached the halfway point in the Sewing Bee.

# Every morning, every evening

# Ain't we got fun?

I am excited to get back to my sewing table.

I never leave my table, actually. SHE GIGGLES

I'm sewing here or at home so I'm excited to get back here.

I think you're only as good as your last garment

and last week I had a particularly poor week.

I have no idea what Patrick and May have in store for us this week.

Hopefully it will be cowboy-themed. I'm already halfway there.

-Oh, wow.

-Uh-oh.

Every week they introduce something else,

I've come to the limits of my knowledge.

I don't like the small child.

I'm going to be much stricter with myself, pay attention more

and stop talking. SHE LAUGHS

-I'm nervously confident or confidentially nervous - either or.

-SHE LAUGHS

-Hello.

-ALL: Hello.

Now, as you'll have noticed, there are quite eerie children's

-mannequins on your sewing stations.

-Very creepy.

That's because this week the judges want to see how you cope

making children's clothes.

The first challenge, as always, is about following a pattern.

What have you got for them, May?

This week, we'd like you to make some dungarees for a toddler.

You have three hours, your time starts now.

We're going.

To make successful dungarees, the sewers should chose a hardwearing,

firm fabric like a cotton drill or corduroy from the haberdashery.

That's lovely. Jenni, I want to share that with you.

-You sharing the blue corduroy?

-Yeah. It's beautiful.

# Corduroy. #

OK, Patrick and May, why children's clothes?

Fundamentally, children's clothes need to be robust -

heavy fabrics, hefty seams.

These clothes have to go through the rough and tumble

of kid's lives and go through the washing machine 20 times a week.

Talk me through these dungarees, what you want to see.

We've got lots of surface stitching, we've got double rows of

top stitching here. And that has to be beautifully straight.

You've got more top stitching here.

Much more stitching in this garment, simply because you need

the strength in the rows of stitching.

The other thing they need to do on this garment are

some different fastening, so we've got snap-fastenings on the side,

which they'll have to insert correctly and align properly.

And dungaree clips, which they may not have had experience of working with before.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

I've gone for a needle cord and it's got little piggies on,

which I thought was rather cute.

Their first task is to carefully pin the small pattern pieces.

It's tiny.

The pattern requires nine pieces of fabric, four for the legs,

two for the bib, two more for the straps

and one more for the waistband.

The front of the legs, waistband and bib are sewn together.

The back of the legs are sewn to the straps and then the front

and back sections are sewn together. Dungaree clips are then added to the

straps and bib and snap fasteners to the side seams.

Now, you've got twin boys who are four,

you must be constantly making dungarees for them.

No, just repairing.

David is not the only sewer in the family.

I love sewing with my daughter, we make those little bags together

that go with her dresses. And my boys, there's no so sort of,

"That's a girly thing, you shouldn't be doing that."

It's just, "Oh, it's what my dad does."

I don't make clothes for them cos I spend

so much time looking after them, stopping them from killing

each other and the local wildlife, you don't have time to make clothes.

Me and Kurt are really looking forward to having kids just

so I can make them dungarees, so I'm getting some practice in.

Jenni doesn't have kids yet,

but she does have someone special she sews for.

I've made a dog coat for my dog, Renton.

He's got a bald belly so you've got to keep him warm in the winter.

He's my number one fan, obviously.

I've made sure that I'm pinning my fabric all in the same direction,

otherwise you're going to get shadows and things you don't want.

It's really important to get the nap right.

-Me and Jenni are using the same one.

-Oh, yeah.

CHINELO LAUGHS She stopped it first though.

You've got good taste.

One sewer has decided to cut out two different fabrics.

So this is your base fabric, a really good sturdy bit of corduroy,

-what is this?

-I quite like to decorate dungarees

so I'm making strips for my bias binding.

Given that we've under time pressure, why would you do

this at the beginning and not at the end?

It's better to do the fiddly bits first

cos by the end of the challenge, my hands are shaking so badly.

Tamara is mum to nine-year-old Lily and six-year-old Charlie.

At the moment, he's quite into his Ninja Turtles so he wants me

to make him a little shell for his back. And with Lilly, she's

often asked me to help her make dresses for her Sindy dolls.

And we'd literally be wrapping fabric around it and tying it with a bow.

Because I'm adding a little bit of colour to the seams,

I'm just re-reading the pattern

and making sure that what I want to do is actually physically possible.

I've sewn the front trousers together and I'm just going to top stitch now.

This is the first time the sewers have been required

to topstitch every single seam.

Err, OK.

It's a visible stitch, so it needs to be perfectly straight.

I'm just putting the bib onto the bottom parts,

so there you have the front of the trousers and this will be the bib.

I'd like to do all my top stitching in this slightly thicker thread so

it's a construction question. I'll give it a go, going down.

I think the first thing I sewed for my younger daughter was,

I was going to my sister's wedding and I cut up my own wedding dress

and made a little suit for her and she was only six months old.

I'm really experienced at making children's clothes,

that's how I got back into sewing after I'd done sewing at school.

So I'm definitely in my comfort zone.

Once the front of the dungarees is constructed...

It says press the seams open at the front.

The sewers need to complete the finish on the waistband.

I'm just making sure that all my pieces are sorted out

because when I turn this over, I want to make sure that

everything is going to be tucked in to the waist band nice and neat.

I've gone for camouflage.

I see quite a lot of this at home - familiar territory.

Heather's husband is a lieutenant colonel in the Royal Medical Corps.

He keeps asking me to make stuff for him.

I haven't got round to it yet, but I will do.

He's quite tall and the shirts are so big you could hang-glide in them.

I mean, it's like masses of fabric.

Does he sleep in camo?

No, but he brings me a cup of tea when he's fully dressed.

-Does he, does he?

-In camo. Yeah.

Does he? Does he stand straight and everything?

No, he goes, "I'm really tired.

"I'd really like to get back into bed, actually."

But he's wearing camo and he's brought you tea,

so quite frankly, it's win-win.

-It's win-win.

-It's better than what I'm getting.

# Love me in the day time

# Love me in the night-time... #

One hour has gone, sewers, you have two hours left.

The time is worrying me.

Lynda, read your pattern.

I'm reading my pattern, don't worry.

The next stage requires a technique that is unfamiliar to some.

Snap felt seams are the only way forward

because they don't tear, which is what it's about.

The dungaree straps must be attached to the back leg sections

using a flat-fell seam.

These are what you usually have on jeans. I've never done one before.

What we've done is, I've joined these two pieces of fabric together

so that the wrong side is on the back and I've got the right side here.

-OK.

-I've ironed them

so that they are both pressed in the same direction.

And then you take the top layer back

and you trim the underneath layer away.

It feels so weird cos this is the right side. Normally...

It is. Absolutely. And then we turn under the edge

so it's beautifully flat.

-So we now put it underneath the sewing machine.

-Right at the edge.

So you get this beautiful double stitch seam.

And that's a flat-felled seam, that is dead flat.

I've finished the one, which I'm really pleased with.

I'm just about to do the second.

It's a bit tricky with the thicker material,

cos it gets a bit bulky.

You don't want a massive about of bulk in the seams cos

they're only little, tiny people.

And what feels like a like a little bit of a stiff seam to us

is probably going to rub and be quite uncomfortable.

I'm just adding a little bit of colour to the seams.

They are looking all right.

All right. I'm hoping all right's going to be good enough.

Lynda's halfway through, her first ever flat-felled seam.

I thought the flat-fell seam went that way.

But looking, it comes down.

But she's sewn it pointing upwards

rather than downwards as the pattern demands.

So I'm going to undo the whole seam because that's something

the judges will definitely pick up on.

-Pink and purple, was it?

-Yeah.

-OK.

I think it's really important to teach my grandchildren to sew.

It's a very important life-skill.

And everything is so much better when you've put love into something

you've made than buying it, in my opinion.

I made dungarees for my girls, years and years ago.

I didn't have much money

so sewing was a great way of clothing the children.

The seam I've just done is ever so slightly bigger than it should be,

so I've just done it again.

If this goes wrong, it could mess up the fit of the clothes.

So I'm just making sure that it's all perfect.

Oh, that's nice.

Yeah, but I've made a couple of mistakes

so I need to take out some stitches now.

Chinelo lives with very own quality controller - her husband Tunde.

Careful, careful.

He is like my biggest fan.

He is my biggest critic as well, cos he picks at everything I make.

But it's not symmetrical, if you look at this bit...

But he is my biggest supporter.

I couldn't ask for better, to be honest.

Do you want me to do it for you whilst you do something else?

No, thanks.

I think it's such a simple garment.

The beauty of it is in those little details.

And I think the judges will be looking at those little details.

Sewers, you have one hour and 20 minutes left.

I'm just doing the rolled hems on my straps.

I've just slightly cut those

so it falls a little bit neater on the back.

How fiddly is this? Right, next step.

Each dungaree strap should be finished with

two parallel rows of topstitching.

It's very difficult to keep it straight when you go over the bumps.

These are horrend...er, not nice.

These are horrendous, you were about to say.

Well I didn't want to be too dramatic.

The danger of a contrasting top stitch is that everything shows.

Yeah.

I need to sew this part of the pattern up,

so I need right sides together like so.

I need all of this to match up. I'm just going to be sewing there.

When joining the back pieces together, the curved top edge

must line up exactly. As should the two flat felled seams.

I'm just taking it slowly.

Because they've been double topstitched

any errors will be twice as obvious.

Bob's your uncle. No.

It's only slightly out by a couple of mm,

but it's really lovely matched here.

This is ever so slightly off, but it's done and

I can't do about it now, so I'll just stick with it like that.

What I'm going to do is unpick that section and re-stitch it.

I want to come first today.

I really, really, really am enjoying this challenge.

The seams aren't perfectly lined up.

May and Patrick would pick up on that straightaway so it's coming out.

-Go on.

-Do you want a go?

-Yes!

If you break the material, Claudia, I'm going to find it very

difficult to forgive you.

CLAUDIA LAUGHS

Dungarees for children became popular in the 1970s -

but children's fashion is a relatively new phenomenon.

One of the first big trends was kick-started nearly 170 years ago

when a young prince stepped out onto the deck of the Royal Yacht.

During a family holiday, all eyes were on Queen Victoria's

four-year-old son Prince Albert who was dressed

head to toe in a scaled-down version of a low ranking sailor's uniform.

The original suit is kept in storage

at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.

This is it - this is Prince Albert's outfit.

This is the sailor suit

that launched the fashion for children wearing them.

It was made by the man who made the sailor uniforms for sailors

on the Royal Yacht, so it's exactly what they were wearing in 1846.

There are a few little personal quirks to it,

which are really lovely.

If you see these little stripes here and here,

sailors on the Yacht would only have one stripe and that

would indicate that they were either on the port or starboard watch.

For Bertie, what they had done was to have both stripes put on

so he's not showing any favouritism.

And then if you open this up, you've got this little fob pocket.

He's not putting his pocket watch in,

but probably his sweets and his little bits and pieces.

What was the queen trying to show by putting him in this?

It's quite a humble association because she's going with the

common sailor and not with an officer,

which people found really charming.

That the Royal Family is associating themselves with Jack Tar

who's seen as this honest, loyal and patriotic character.

The trend did take a while to take off but it did become

one of the most popular children's outfits of the 19th century.

And, in fact, Bertie had his own five children photographed

wearing sailor suits in 1875.

And that's when the outfit's popularity soared.

Until then, children would wear miniature versions of what their

parents wore, which were dictated by class and status.

But the sailor suit was a democratic little outfit

that was worn by every class of child.

It was robust too - made from canvas or wool serge.

Seaside holidays were massively popular,

but saltwater and the wet sand is going to wreck your clothes.

So families wanted something that the kids could wear that

wouldn't get ruined. And sailor suits fitted that bill.

Sailor suits weren't just for the holidays -

soon they were being worn on a daily basis.

Tailors all made them, but by the 1870s

they were being mass-produced in factories.

The great thing about the sailor suit is it's really simple to make.

They'd cut out the basic garment pieces and then they'd make

it in different fabrics, they'd make it in different colours.

A catalogue like this from 1897...

You've got one with short trousers,

one with long trousers in dark blue wool.

This one in the middle, which is a bit more formal.

And then for Sunday best you've got velvet sailor suits.

And, of course, it does cost more. This one starts at five shillings

and the velvet one starts at ten shillings.

So, basically, the UK was wearing a sailor suit?

Absolutely. If you went to a primary school

anywhere in Britain, nine out of ten boys would be wearing a sailor suit.

I am pinning the back of my dungarees to the front of my

dungarees and I'm about to sew down the side seams.

Once the dungarees are fully constructed and hemmed...

Where have you got to, Dave?

The front and back have been sewn on.

-This is divine.

-Thank you.

-I'm coming off the pill.

TAMARA LAUGHS

The sewers need to add the fasteners.

So how does this work then?

-That's it.

-This is why I need kids now.

'First, each strap must be fitted with a dungaree clip.'

I'm just trying to work out how it works.

So that button goes snap on top and then that hooks over.

The sewers need to be sure that as they position

the button and fastener.

That's how it's going to be.

The dungarees will fit the mannequin when the strap

and the bib are joined.

18 minutes. Dix-huit for those of you who have been to France.

He's lost his head.

Is that right? No, it's wrong. My God.

I'm no parenting expert...

CHINELO LAUGHS

That should not happen.

Hello...what? Yeah, OK. It wants its body back.

I'm just trying to make you laugh,

which is unfair cos you don't have long.

-I feel like crying now, actually.

-Don't cry. What?

He doesn't want you to cry.

I just thought of something.

These are the top ones, they should be up there.

SHE SIGHS

I hope they come off. Silly me.

SHE GROANS

So, I've finished that.

My hands have started shaking again cos we're running out of time.

I can't get it off.

I'm going to go for my hero.

Uh-uh, don't do that.

HE SIGHS

Come on, Dave, you can do it.

-Yes! No.

-No.

Oh! Do you know what, I love you.

Ten minutes left on the toddler dungaree challenge.

The side seams should be closed by using child-friendly snap fasteners.

-That must be B.

-You sure?

-No.

Interlocking the disks of metal are attached by using

a special pair of pliers.

This is probably where I lose a finger on telly.

-My reckoning...

-Are you sure you've got this the right way?

No, but I'm willing to take a risk.

I'm still having trouble. I'm just really stupid. I can't do it.

SHE LAUGHS

I need somebody strong. Is Patrick strong?

-Get that bit on.

-What way?

-One on these.

-SHE GROANS

Don't worry, don't worry.

When I'm at home, I use a rubber glove to open a bottle cos

I can't even open a bottle.

Here you go, David, I'm absolutely thick as...

Here, take this. This bit goes in there.

This bit goes through your hole, then you line that up there.

And then it goes in there.

Give it a good squeeze and you end up with that.

-Cool.

-OK?

-David, you're the hero of the room.

-Oh, I don't know about that.

We're all going to cuddle you in a minute.

Well that's one done, because the other one is back to front.

Good team work. That's what I keep telling my kids, it's

all about the team work. You don't have to fight each other. Please.

SHE SIGHS

Everyone, that's five minutes.

Come here, Fred.

Thank you. His head just fell off.

As for this person...

Chinelo, I really don't want you to have children.

This is how I dress my kids, Heather.

Oh, my God. Nightmare.

HE CHUCKLES

Oh!

As you were, Chinelo. Don't panic.

How do I do this?

Right, 60 seconds left

and your dungarees have to be on your mannequins.

SHE LAUGHS

LAUGHTER

Don't come off.

OK, that's it, end of the challenge.

Let's get your mannequins and take them

through to the haberdashery. David, I'm coming to help you.

# 20 tiny fingers

# 20 tiny toes... #

Seven pairs of toddler's dungarees made in just three hours,

but which ones will impress the judges?

Jenni, please bring your little creature.

# ..exactly like his pop, pop, pop... #

I think, overall, I'd say they look very good.

I think they hang very well. The bottom hem sits nice and even.

I really like the double top stitching.

The same separation throughout,

all the way round and on the bottom hem.

I think it looks really effective, especially in this contrast red.

Really beautifully flat well-executed flat felled seams.

And also, you've actually matched your seams at the back.

-Ignoring that fastening...

-That's unfortunate.

-..then I think, overall, that's a pretty good job.

-Thank you.

-First thing I have to say is that you haven't finished.

-Yeah.

One trouser leg not at all hemmed and the other one looks

-a little bit like you've sewn it with your feet.

-I know...

You've put this popper on back to front.

We have a flat felled seam that is really beautifully flat

and matching on the back.

Oh, your seam is escaping.

I undid it once because I wasn't happy.

Your seam isn't trapped, so your turning isn't turned under enough, so

you haven't caught it in. So, at the back, you've got seams escaping.

-Right, right.

-You've got no stitching here.

I didn't realise that was supposed to be done.

I must not have read the pattern properly. I'm sorry.

Oops!

Whoops!

I had a bit of drama with my poppers.

Some of your topstitching is good.

-I improved as I went on.

-And some of it is a bit wayward.

The early stuff is wayward.

I'm a little concerned, I've just found a little hole or

something in the back of your fell seam.

You've had neater sews in this competition, I think.

I think with this challenge, it was all about precision.

And I don't think you've shown us enough of that on this one.

We've got two pairs of dungarees both in the same fabric.

The fabric has been used in a different way -

the nap goes up one garment and down the other.

Either is absolutely fine

-providing the whole garment goes in the same direction.

-Yeah.

They are sitting nicely, they're nice and even.

Your poppers appear to be well-secured.

Well-executed flat felled seams, but they don't quite match

at the bottom of the V at the back, which is a shame.

-The bottom one was just a bit...

-Yeah.

Also...your stitching here has slipped off the edge of the seam.

Your seams at the back, your V matches.

Well done. They are beautifully aligned.

-The sides are even on this one, aren't they?

-Yep.

The poppers are well positioned, well-anchored. It's very solid.

Good finishing on the inside as well.

Your turning under on your machine, on all your hems.

Good top stitching around the crutch.

I mean, that looks like a good, solid, robust sew,

-which is exactly what we were looking for.

-Thank you.

I think it's a nice combination, I'm just not sure the machine's got

enough guts to go through what's going to be one, two, three, four,

five layers of fabric. And you've just lost a few stitches there.

-We've just sadly lost a popper.

-Naughty popper.

-Naughty popper!

Your dungaree clips are on back to front.

It may have been that,

because you're trying to control this piping,

your stitching's just run off the edge in the back here.

I really like the idea of putting this piece of trim in here,

but I think it's given you a problem that you didn't need to have.

And the time that it took you to do all of this

could have been spent ensuring

that everything else was just that fraction neater.

Patrick and May will now rank the dungarees from worst to best.

In seventh place was Cerina.

The overall tidiness of those seams just wasn't up to standard.

Sixth place is Lynda. A lot of finishing off didn't happen.

Tamara is fifth, Heather is fourth.

In third place...

Chinelo. It's very difficult to judge between yourself

and the next one up.

In second place is...Jenni.

Some well-executed stitching, a really good effort.

Thank you so much, I'm really pleased with that.

And that means that this week's winner is David.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

-LYNDA:

-Good man!

Who knew? One for Team Gentleman. Really solid, robust -

exactly what we were looking for in a pair of kid's dungarees.

Thank you .

# Talk about a moon

# Floating in the sky... #

Definitely looking forward to telling my wife.

She's going to go, "Really?!"

16 stone of hairy-bottomed copper

and I'm winning a sewing competition.

Or at least that bit of it anyway.

I am so pleased! I knew I'd really enjoy that challenge anyway.

I was completely brooding through the whole of it.

I am never - for the record -

ever going to make dungarees for anybody ever again -

child, adult, whatever.

Oh, the result was sad, I came last.

I don't get a gold, silver or bronze medal today.

So that's how they cope with instructions,

and now it's time for challenge two - when they don't have any.

The judges would like you to make a children's outfit

from the following...

I have a pillow case.

GROANS

You'll be pleased to hear that's not all.

You also have these two items.

And what we'd like you to do is make a child's fancy dress outfit.

-Chinelo, you look horrified.

-I am horrified.

You have an hour and a half. Off you go. Good luck.

The sewers can use anything they find in the haberdashery,

but their finished outfit must feature the three items

they've been given.

-I haven't got a clue.

-Oh, come on, you've got three kids.

-And they love dressing up.

-Come on then.

You're kidding me, it's red and blue!

And it must fit their mannequin.

What have you got?

-Never you mind!

-I love this challenge.

I think I'm going to do Super Girl.

So I need some cape material.

I think I'm going to make a little girl's dress.

I can't quite recall whatever her name is.

Over The Rainbow job.

This might seems like a fairly frivolous challenge,

but it's actually going to be quite testing for them.

And it's something that a lot of home sewers will do.

Everybody has things in their cupboards that they do not use,

that they could chop up and reinvent.

They are going to have to come up with a good idea,

create a pattern, dissemble, reassemble - different materials.

So actually, it's going to test their technical skills as well.

Lynda is hoping to transform the old tracksuit

and pillowcase into the Queen of Hearts.

I've never made one for my daughter or granddaughter.

I did tell a lie!

I made Princess Jasmine for Tash when she was little.

She's 26 now, so that was quite a while ago.

I used to be involved with school plays, making costumes,

-painting scenery.

-What are you going to make?

I'm going to make a pirate outfit.

Look, there you are. The trousers sorted already.

And this will become a waistcoat.

How adorable!

-And this, I'll make this into a little kind of flouncy shirt.

-Yeah.

I'm making a big meringue-y something.

Something big and meringue-y, that's what I'm making.

So it could be either a princess or a ballerina. Or something like that.

Lots of people, when we announced that that challenge, were like that.

-And you were like, let me go!

-I want to go now!

What are you making?

I'm going to make a dinosaur. I'm going to do zigzags,

-so he has scales on his back, and stuff it.

-Nice!

And I'm going to make a tail.

I haven't got any thoughts at the moment.

How do you start with that? Come up with a children's thing...?

It's the wrong colour for anything.

Have we got any big black spots on red fabric or anything like that?

Spots. Spots. Anything for spots? Where's the spots?

Right, let's make a ladybird.

Sewers, you have an hour left on this challenge.

I feel like I'm in work and they've said to me,

"We're doing a play, can you quickly make something to wear?"

I just have in my mind that a pirate's waistcoat has little

black straps across it with gold buttons.

So I think I'm going to resort to the felt.

I'm going to use the pillow case to cut out two big D-shapes,

fill them with a bit of wadding and make wings.

So that's the spikes. They'll be stuffed, and nice and pointy.

I'm going to make a little ruffle to go round the neck.

So once I've done the neck here, I'll line it a little bit with gold

and then I'm going to do a little orange tutu.

Any child would want to wear this. Good luck. You'll be fine.

-Do you need tea?

-Oh, God.

-Gin?

-I need a Valium.

THEY LAUGH

You're halfway through - you have 45 minutes left on your outfit.

David, you may begin.

It's a good job I came first this morning, because

I'm going to come last in this!

I've never rushed this much before really, apart from the time when

my husband asked me to make two canoe suits for him to take

on his canoeing expedition, and I needed to do them in half an hour.

-Jenni, have you made fancy dress before?

-For myself, yeah!

-What did you make?

-I think the last one was

a zombie? What about you?

-Never, ever, ever.

-You've not succumbed

-to a fancy dress night out?

-Never.

Right, I'm taking you out, girl.

I did go down the pub one New Year's Eve for a fancy dress, but I did

go as Jane, so I wore three chamois leathers

and carried a stuffed monkey.

Not much of a costume. Certainly wasn't when it got wet.

Ha-ha. That's what I'm after.

I'm making the pillow case...

a little sort of flamboyant little shirt

to go underneath the waistcoat.

So, with slightly puffy sleeves.

This is going to be the key.

Then I'm putting hearts on it.

Nearly all of the alterations will feature applique...

Just doing my scales on the front of the jersey.

..a technique where shapes are cut out of fabric

and then sewn on to the front of the garment.

I'm making it for my goddaughter. Her name's Alice.

The bodice of the dress is the pillow case.

And I've used the tracksuit to make like a little heart.

Do ladybugs have eyes?

Ha!

They must have eyes, mustn't they? My daughter would say,

"Just chuck it in the bin, Dad. Not wearing that."

I'm using some blue binding with my red sleeves.

If this stitching is not straight, then it's going to look awful.

I don't like kids' clothes - I don't like kids!

Ah...!

Sewers, you have five minutes.

And those outfits HAVE to be on the mannequins.

Oh. Oh, OK.

But I can't get the dress onto the mannequin.

Actually, I've just let the zip down a bit more. That might help.

Oh, g...!

-Nope.

-Ha-ha-ha-ha!

Pity she hasn't got a head.

I could make a crown!

It can't go on.

OK, three, two, one...

That is it.

Please bring your mannequins forward, we'll jumble them up,

and then I'll invite the judges in.

# Tweedlee, tweedlee, tweedlee dee

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

Patrick and May will have no idea who's made each fancy dress outfit.

Bravo, sewers.

-Wow!

-Yep, that is pretty genius.

I think this one's the Queen of Hearts.

A lovely little collar here,

and there's a bit of trim that's holding the collar on.

The skirt's been gathered onto the bodice.

-A little net petticoat underneath.

-A petticoat!

-Just to give it a bit more...

-Oomph.

-..fullness.

There's an awful lot going on there.

So, this is a...

-Oh, my goodness, on the back...

-Ladybird!

Ah! It feels like there's a bit of padding in there as well.

Has that been sewn together? No, it's just sitting on the top.

Some rough applique where the circles have been applied.

-So, this is a superhero.

-So...

-Who's A?

-Don't know. I'm not up-to-date with my superheroes.

Layers of applique on the front, big net skirt...

Oh, we've got trim round the arm holes, and some binding.

So we've got rickrack round the back and a bit a lace round the front.

-Ha-ha!

-Did we run out of rickrack?

-Again...

-Applique.

-Applique on the front...

I mean, this is brilliant.

Just a wadded row of scales down his back,

and this brilliant little tail.

-And we've got some scales on the sleeves as well.

-Yeah.

I mean, it's quite simple, but it's really, really effective, isn't it?

Our little pirate. So, he's got a waistcoat,

with little appliques to look like braid.

-Oh, look!

-And a strap-and-button at the back.

-Yeah!

-Is the sash pleated, or is it just...?

-Well, I think...

-Yes, look!

-Yeah, it is, yep.

The pillow case has become a little tunic top,

-with gathered, elasticated sleeves.

-..sleeves.

-This is quite brilliant.

We've got our Sugar Plum Fairy -

not quite on the mannequin.

A little cat sleeve with a bound edge.

That one is absolutely beautiful, but it doesn't fit

the little chap, or... the little girl!

-Could be a little chap.

-It could be a little chap, yes!

I'm not really sure what we call this little creation.

-I think it's a princess.

-Some sort of princess. Do you have insight

-into this, Winkleman?

-I do.

-I think it's an autumnal flower fairy.

-Oh, OK!

-Oh, right!

Meets princess.

I think this is probably an autumnal flower fairy meets princess.

Oh!

We've got our pillow case, which has been gathered in with a piece of gold

-and a bit of...

-What have we done on the edge here?

Just a bit of zigzagging. And we've got a bit of binding round the neck,

and this wonderful gold layer to the cape.

No autumnal flower fairy/princess should go out

-without a gold cape.

-Absolutely!

May and Patrick will now attempt to rank the outfits

in order of creativity and technical execution.

-There we are.

-I think we'll stop there.

Would the creator of number seven come and take

this beautiful swan...ballerina... heart...princess?

-Chinelo!

-Chinelo!

-Ha-ha!

Simply, at the end of the day, yours didn't fit the mannequin...

OK, the creator of the autumnal flower-fairy-meets-princess...?

-Heather! You're up against stiff competition...

-Yes.

-..and, you know, you were beaten by a ladybird.

-Ha-ha!

-No shame in that whatsoever.

-No.

David is fifth,

Tamara fourth, and Jenni is third.

Now, you're flummoxed!

-No idea!

-Completely. Cerina or Lynda...?

Let's find out. Could the creator

of the Queen of Hearts costume please come forward?

-Yeah!

-Oh!

-Oh!

Seeing the Queen of Hearts

out of a pillow case, a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a sweatshirt -

-amazing.

-Thank you very much.

So, the winner...is Cerina!

APPLAUSE

It's really, really lovely, your pirate.

Just brilliant attention to detail, the little buckle,

the gold buttons, the imitation braid, the gathered sleeve,

the sash - there's so much going on.

And all of that in an hour-and- a-half is swashbucklingly good.

Thank you.

A huge well done. Thank you so much for today.

Go home, have a nice rest, we'll see you tomorrow

for the next bit challenge. Thank you very much.

Night-night.

I came first - again - for a small person's outfit!

And I just... I'd like to win a big person's outfit,

but hey, never mind!

I'm delighted to have come second, because the afternoon challenge

is the one I absolutely dread the most.

My day has been pretty rubbish.

I just feel like I'm coming up average.

I'm just not on the same wavelength as the judges,

so I'm really dreading tomorrow.

Tomorrow's going to be a big day for me,

now that I've come last in this challenge. I have to really

pull out all the stops tomorrow, make sure that...

fitting is perfect, it looks beautiful...

That challenge was horrible!

Horrible!!

'The sewers have one more garment to make.'

What's extraordinary is that at the end of today,

somebody's going to have to leave the sewing room.

Sometimes you have an inkling about two or three people,

-but you have no idea...

-Absolutely no idea.

Tamara has hovered in the middle ground, we've seen David

winning a challenge for the first time,

we've had Cerina going from the bottom all the way to the very top.

It's completely mixed-up, and it's absolutely wide open.

For their final challenge, something's missing...

Right, it's time for the next challenge, you know the one -

where they have to fit something perfectly to a model's body.

It's Children's Week so they're going to make prom dresses.

Here's the thing - the models

aren't the usual models.

Instead, let me introduce you to...

their daughters, nieces, best friends, neighbours.

They have no idea you're here!

Girls, thank you for being here. Be very quiet,

because they don't know you're here. I'm about to send you in.

Stay where you are, OK?

Hello, everybody, how are we?

Let us start the next challenge.

The judges would love you to make a prom dress

for a teenager. You're probably wondering where your models are,

so let's bring them in.

# For once in my life... #

-Ah!

-Agh! GASPS

# ..someone who needs me... # SHOCKED LAUGHS AND GASPS

# Someone I've needed so long

# For once, I'm afraid

# I can go where life leads me

# And somehow I know I'll be strong

# For once I can touch... #

Excited? Going to make you a prom dress!

Good! You can help me!

-You didn't know?

-No, I didn't have a clue!

So, I hope you're happy...

-Yes!

-Very, very happy.

-..with your models.

You have seven hours. Your time starts...

now.

The sewers have been allowed to practise this challenge at home.

Well, why don't you do it a 30 and then you can take it in?

Yeah, good idea.

But until now they have had no idea who

they were making the dresses for.

-Are you going to wear heels?

-Yeah.

-Is it that long though? That high?

There are just so many elements in a prom dress -

the fit, layering.

So, if we've got a full skirt we'll be seeing some net petticoats.

Also, with prom dresses, very often you take away the straps,

so therefore how do you support those bodices?

Do you want simple or do you want complex, high impact?

I don't mind whether we see a simple or a complicated dress,

as long as it's well-handled and well fitted.

They just need to give themselves not too much to do.

It's a very big challenge and we need to see them finished.

And the best one Patrick will wear.

Totally pleased that we OK'd that in the meeting. Well done, May.

BOTH LAUGH

Jenni, who's your model?

My second cousin.

Oh, wow! That's lovely.

-This is my daughter's best friend.

-Oh, no way!

When I read the measurements of the model,

I thought, "She sounds like she's like Emma. She's tall and slim."

Honestly, I didn't for one second imagine

that it would actually be Emma!

Linda's making Emma a dress with a short, circular flared skirt,

fitted sweetheart bodice and a sheer overlay.

I'm using two fabrics, the Georgette on top of the silk,

because I think this is beautiful material.

But obviously you can't have a top like that,

so I'm putting the fabric underneath.

This is the worst idea ever. I can't concentrate.

My second cousin's just sat right there and this is just mental.

Jenni's vintage inspired prom dress for Becky has a gathered

halter neck bodice and gathered skirt.

I have a tremendous amount of fabric, six metres in total.

Even when I was making my wedding dress,

I didn't have this much material.

Heather's model Annie is one of her dressage students.

-She's responsible for the pin dog.

-No!

-Yeah!

The pin dog has developed quite his own character.

Heather's making Annie a shot silk strapless dress with

a layered organza overskirt.

Having Annie here is just a joy.

I can...put her to work, like I normally do.

SHE LAUGHS

They don't call me Cruella for nothing.

This is Ellie, my neighbour, and we've been very close.

She used to babysit the kids. It brought a tear to my eye.

Tamara's prom dress for Ellie features a strapless satin bodice

to which a pleated paper bag-style skirt made in neoprene is

attached over a net petticoat.

I just like the mixture of a really modern and unusual fabric

alongside a traditional fabric.

It's nice cos you get a very clean edge,

but it's really hard to put a crease into.

Once again, you've given yourself a different and unusual challenge.

-I hope you do it tremendous justice.

-No pressure(!)

The sewer's first concern should be constructing the bodice.

Where is my upper bodice.

It's the section of the prom dress where fit will be most visible.

I think it's going to have to go in a bit.

I made it slightly larger so I could reduce it.

Cerina's making a strapless shift dress with a double layered

bustled overskirt for her youngest daughter Katty.

Your reaction, by the way, might have been my favourite because...

Can I just do a full Cerina? Stand up for me, darling.

You stood here and you watched everybody walk in,

and you went, "They know these people - how marvellous."

And your daughter literally stood like that, and you went, "Arg!"

Holly is my niece. The daughter of a big, burly soldier,

so this better be good, otherwise he might be having words with me!

David's strapless panelled princess seemed dress for Holly is

fitted at the waist, all constructed in a fine satin.

Goodness me, it's a slippery bit of old stuff, isn't it?

It's a pain in the bum, it really is.

I'm trying to use as many pins...

These long visible seems all the way through the front, I mean,

that's not an easy sew.

Er... Yes, now I feel like I've worried you, but I'm going to....

-You have.

-..leave you to crack on.

Chinelo is using two fabrics in her bodice...

It's got to go over.

A duchess satin and organza, which will be attached to the

bottom of the bodice and tied in a bow at the shoulder.

Lizzie, we've been going to the same church for about seven years?

So I've known her since she was quite young.

I taught her how to sew. She's like my little baby girl, really.

Chinelo's freehand cutting the dress for Lizzie,

which will be fitted in at the waist and hips with a

flared fishtail skirt.

My system usually, when I'm going to do my fitting,

is just put her in the dress and it fits.

If it doesn't fit then I should really just need to take

it in a little bit in the side seems,

so not having to fidget with anything else in the middle.

When it comes to fitting the bodice...

SHE MUMBLES

..some sewers are being a little more cautious.

With it being vintage the pattern size is always a bit tricky,

so when you are normally a size 12, for instance,

you'll probably be more like a 16 in a vintage pattern.

Not that you're big or anything.

What you can see here is that I've created all the suedes of fabric,

and all these pieces of red cotton are called 'tailor tags'

and they get transposed from the pattern onto the fabric,

and they guide me as to where the pleats need to go.

No fittings have taken place just yet

because my model is the perfect size for this pattern.

SEWING MACHINE HUMS

Sewers, you have three and a half hours left.

You are halfway through.

It's a shame you haven't got a sewing oven you can just put things in

and...come back 25 minutes later and it's done.

-As prom dresses are traditionally strapless...

-OK.

..they need to be supported using a technique called boning.

This is my first time boning, yes.

Never used boning before, but I have watched this on YouTube,

like, a million times to make sure I get it right!

I've worked with boning once before when I made a ball

dress for a work's Christmas do,

but this is a long time ago...

and it wasn't very good.

The strips of plastic are sewn into the seems around the bust.

You've got to get it in the right place,

otherwise it makes everything look wonky.

They give it structure and help to create shape within the dress.

Cos the boning's got a curve already, I'm making sure I layer it

so that it's curling around the body it's going to lay.

With the boning in, everything sort of...

It's like having straight arms on everything.

So you go to move something round and you can't get at it cos it's...

It's like a child who won't be put in its pram,

you know, it goes rigid.

With their bodice completed...

-Ah! Job done.

-So, out tonight.

-Cocktail. You with me?

-Why not?

-Why wouldn't we?

..the sewers should move on to constructing their skirts.

I'm slightly concerned about when I get started on the skirt.

These are skirt overlays.

I'm going to do an orange layer and a magenta layer.

Tamara is the only sewer creating pleats

where the skirt meets the waistband.

Can I have your tape measure?

That's at least a quarter of an inch less deep than that one.

Fair enough, yes.

Sewers, you have one hour left.

-Is anyone going to finish early?

-SHE LAUGHS

With skirts attached, the sewers needs to insert a zip.

I'm using an invisible zip because I don't want to see it.

Here it is! Look, it's invisible.

Having a concealed zip, it's almost like

it's just one flowing piece of fabric.

Definitely gets more Brownie points.

I've got my zip seems folded in already,

so it makes life a lot easier for me already.

I've made a decision.

If it was a zip down the back of the dress,

it would be really important for it to be an invisible zip.

But this is down the side of the dress,

so it's tucked underneath the arm.

So because it's a little easier than an invisible zip, I'm going

to go with the dress zip.

Oh, gosh. What's going on?

My zipper's not going up. It's getting caught in the lining.

I've done it far too close to the teeth of the zipper.

I'm going to have to redo that.

If I can pull of a concealed zip, it will be my first one ever

and I'll be really chuffed.

It's better that I checked this now than when I had finished the dress.

That would have been a real disaster.

That's not bad for a first ever concealed zip.

Oh, Lord. This zip...

SHE SIGHS

Oh...

Jesus, please help me.

SHE SIGHS

Oh, thank God for that.

Five minutes remaining.

I've made a decision that it's better just to have a dress...

-and no skirt.

-What?!

-Yeah.

-So...overlay gone.

-SHE LAUGHS

-Linda's finished.

Seriously?

Really?

-On the table.

-That's not safe!

-Don't worry about safety.

-You're a policeman!

-I can't believe this is young uncle and a policeman.

-Turn around!

Stop shouting at a teenager!

It's not illegal. When they make it illegal, I'll stop.

Oh, my God. What am I doing?

Come on...

We've got a flower.

DAVID: Oh, this is terrible.

Sewers, you have one minute left.

Put your dresses on your models.

-That's it.

-Arg!

This is definitely not a conventional way of ironing.

OK, that's it. Time's up. Step away from your models.

I'm just so upset. I've really done a bad job.

# Mama, teach me to dance

# Mama, teach me to dance.. #

Seven made-to-measure prom dresses in just seven hours,

but whose will impress the judges?

# Mama show me the way... #

Initial impression, really effective.

All those layers work really well together and the shape's lovely.

This sharp silk has two colours, and to pick both of them out

and use them in the overskirts is a really nice touch.

Yes, it's not brilliantly fitted across the front of the bodice,

but there's quite a lot of work in here.

There's a lot of tucks and pleats.

Whereas the back of the bodice is a really good fit.

Your boning has been really well used

and it's a really structural supported bodice.

You've got an invisible zip in there.

It's not completely level, but it was a very difficult thing to do

with all those different layers of fabric.

There's a thin line between well-fitted

and just a little bit too tight.

Some of those seems are just stretching a little bit.

That hem on that underskirt is certainly not your finest work.

I'm fairly certain the manual for sewing that does not include

the technique that we saw you demonstrating

-just a few moments ago.

-And one last point.

It is a prom dress, and therefore Holly should be able to

-dance in it without bursting out of it.

-Hopefully not like that.

SHE LAUGHS

Well, the first thing I'm noticing...

I can see a row of stitching showing around the hem, which spoils it.

You got the zip in, not quite as neat as it ought to be.

It isn't quite sitting flat.

The sad thing for me is I didn't make the overskirt,

which was going to be the spectacular bit.

I cut my losses and thought,

"I better concentrate just on the dress."

It's sitting really nicely round the waist,

and this band fits her well.

You've got a lovely effect down the back

with these rouleau loops and buttons.

To me, it just looks slightly overpowering.

-Fabric or...?

-Just the amount of it.

It looks a little bit clumsy.

The first thing I notice is the fit - it's a really lovely shape on her -

and the skirt flutes beautifully

For me...the bow's just a bit overpowering,

and I think what it's doing is actually twisting the whole

dress a little bit.

This back seem is being thrown just out of kilter by it.

You've put in an invisible zip -

quite difficult to do on such a slippery fabric -

you've done it really well.

It's a really lovely fit. It's a very effective dress.

I think you've done very well.

I think we might need to get a box for May to adjudicate this one.

-Imagine how I feel.

-Yes, exactly.

I think there's a really nice balance to it.

The waist is nice. The shape in the skirt is good.

This bodice fits beautifully. It really does hug the figure.

And you've got boning in here, haven't you?

-I have got boning in all the seems.

-It's really well-supported.

This is a really nice finish on this bottom

because it brings out a little bit of the black

and a bit of the red in that shot silk.

And you've had a little bit of time left over

and you've done a little corsage for the wrist.

I think you should be very pleased with it.

Those colours look fabulous - really lovely combination.

The back fits beautifully,

but the front could do with being a bit snugger.

The way you've put the zip in, if those had just been tucked in...

That just looks a lot neater, doesn't it?

I love all this binding all the way round the hem.

Not caught in every place.

I think it's really effective. You look really worried.

I think it's really good.

You took those pleats out and put them back in again.

They now sit really evenly.

It's got a really nice shape to it.

I'd have done without the belt.

I think it's a strong-looking garment.

I don't think it needs the additional embellishment.

I think it looks great.

Having not completed the task,

and not to the quality it should have been,

could well be my downfall.

I wouldn't be the least bit surprise if I was the one to go tonight.

I'm gobsmacked to be here in week four,

but I don't want to go. I don't want to go.

I've done everything I can,

and I think there's a line in the sand and it's coming up...

very shortly.

Now we get to the horrible decision about who's going to be

leaving the sewing room.

Cerina gave us a fantastic little pirate suit,

but then really let us down with dungarees and, unfortunately,

not a terrific prom dress.

So she went from bottom to top to bottom again.

Fairly near the bottom again.

David's dress, there was various issues with this.

But his dungarees...were pretty faultless.

Anybody else?

No. I think it was really just those two that I think

we need to make a decision from,

and I don't know that it's easy to separate them.

First, the good news.

Our favourite piece this week is...

..that one.

APPLAUSE

It was a really, really close run thing, actually,

-between about four of you, so congratulations.

-Thank you.

Well, I tell you, the next bit hasn't made anyone happy

because it was not an easy decision.

The person leaving the Sewing Bee is...

..Cerina.

I'm sorry!

-I'm sorry!

-It's all right. I can stay cheerful.

You don't have to stay cheerful.

No. You can't be too nice to me cos I'll cry then.

-ALL: Aw...

-Oh, dear.

Really, really well done.

It really was, honestly, just a horrible decision.

It's been such an experience.

It's such a tough decision this week.

We really, really didn't want to lose anybody, and it really came

down to a kind of forensic unpicking of everything that they'd done.

-I'm so sorry.

-Not at all. Not at all.

Sadly, the dress making skills that she demonstrated in both

the first challenge and the third challenge were not particularly good.

She will be a great loss to the sewing room.

We just loved having her around.

I really had a lovely time and I've met a great bunch of people.

Once of the best aspects of being in Sewing Bee

has been meeting other sewers.

I don't have any other sewing friends,

so to meet a whole bunch of people,

who all know what they're talking about, it's been really good.

Delighted to win amateur of the week, but I still feel really sad.

I was really shocked when my name wasn't called out.

I've got some long and hard thinking to do,

have a good chat with myself,

and hopefully a hug from Kirk will make it all better.

-I will miss you all.

-We'll miss you.

I did think it was going to be me and I think I could have handled that.

I feel really, really, really gutted. Every week...

you take one of my friends away.

At the next Sewing Bee...

HE SIGHS

..the most challenging fabrics yet.

Oh, are you serious?

They tackle leather for the first time.

I love a bit of leather.

And in a brand-new twist...

I'm not going to go right underneath.

..make trousers for themselves.

Oh.... Careful!

SHE WOLF WHISTLES

Control yourself, Heather.

Applications for the next series of Sewing Bee will be closing soon.

So if you, or someone you know, would like to apply, please go to...

You'll also find ideas there for sewing projects

inspired by the series.