Press

Fiona is currently the Sewing Producer of BBC's The Great British Sewing Bee and ITV's M&S: Dress the Nation. She also works in the theatre industry as a Costume Supervisor and teaches sewing at workshops and from her home studio in Somerset.




Sewing Partnerships



From January 2014 until 2017 Fiona worked in partnership with US based Mood Fabrics, writing regular posts for the Mood Sewing Network and was the first and only UK sewing blogger to join. She is regularly invited to promote sewing in a variety of creative ways by participating in and leading events such as the John Lewis Sewing Bee in 2014, Offset Warehouse's 2017 Eco Sewing Party and the McCall Pattern Company Cocktail Hour and Big Vintage Sew-alongs in aid of the Eve Appeal.


In early 2017 Fiona was invited to represent UK sewing bloggers on a visit to the Stoff & Stil headquarters in Herning, Denmark and in the spring the Parker Collection sewing pattern was released, which Fiona designed in collaboration with The Fold Line for Tribe Patterns. Fiona is regularly featured on The Fold Line website and was invited to speak at their 2017 Sewing Weekender.


Fiona has long been a champion of the flourishing community of independent sewing pattern designers and in 2018 Closet Core Patterns named their Fiona Sundress pattern after her. From 2019-2022 she was a fabric ambassador for The Fabric Store in New Zealand, regularly showcasing their fabrics here on the blog.

Fiona has led a number of Fabric Masterclasses at The New Craft House in East London, teaching home sewers about fabric and how to make great choices for their sewing projects. She has taught one-to-one sewing classes at the Fluffatorium in Surrey and continues to teach at a variety of workshops and from her home studio in Somerset. 

Alongside writing Diary of a Chain Stitcher Fiona has created content for many major UK sewing magazines including Sew Now, Sewing Made Simple, Love Sewing and Make magazine. She has also written the articles for IndyBest (The Independent) reviewing sewing machines and dressmaking scissors.





If you are interested in working with or interviewing Fiona please contact diaryofachainstitcher@outlook.com.

Comments

Post a Comment

I love hearing from readers of my blog so please feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you thought about this post/make! Any hints or tips to improve my sewing are always much appreciated too!

Popular posts from this blog

Tablecloth to Top Refashion

Image
This top would have been my contribution to The Refashioners 2020 which has unfortunately but understandably been cancelled this year. I had already completed my project and wanted to share it with you all as (despite not being the most dramatic refashion ever) it really pushed me outside my sewing comfort zone and I'm hoping it might inspire some of you to give it a try too!
Read more

Pattern Testing: Sew Over It Joan Dress (and a giveaway!)

Image
I have been super excited about sharing this dress with you since I made it a couple of months ago! When Sew Over It got in touch about testing their next pattern I said yes straight away. The Joan Dress (inspired by Mad Men's infamous Joan Holloway and her wiggle dresses) is an absolute stunner. It has some lovely design details like the elbow length sleeves, shoulder darts and neck tie; it nails that balance between vintage and wearable for me. Despite being a slight departure from my usual day to day style I'd had great previous experiences testing for them and just with their patterns in general so I decided it would be a great way to give a new look a whirl! The garment you see today is sewn up from the test version of the pattern so comments I make are based on that rather than the finished product. I feel like it's important to say that I think Sew Over It value and use the feedback that they get from their testers in a great way. I've often seen changes to ...
Read more

Showerproof Waver Jacket

Image
I made this jacket back in about April. I didn't expect it to be getting quite as much wear during this very wet summer here in the UK! I was in need of a practical jacket for walking the dog when it was wet but not that chilly. I absolutely adore my Kelly Anorak for winter but I lined the whole thing in cosy wool flannel so for damp spring walkies it gets a bit too warm. While I'm on the subject, I just realised I made my Kelly over 5 years and after a lot of wear it's still going strong. It must be one of my most worn garments so definitely worth all the effort I put into making it. 
Read more