02x03 - Episode 3

[bunniefuu]

So, the sewers have worked
with wool, with cotton,

they've even sewn with silk.

This week, is all about how
they deal with a totally new fabric.

To be completely frank, I wasn't
sure that there was another one.

Tell no-one.

At the last sewing bee...

Things aren't going very well.

Why is that, then?
I've just sewn my fly shut.

Tamara and Heather were beaten by
Lynda, who won garment of the week.

It's my pyjamas!

And Simon...was asked
to leave the sewing room.

Ahh, I'm not sure how to take that.

Now...

All I've got going in my head
at the moment is, "Arrgh!"

..the sewers face the fastest
pattern challenge so far...

Will I ever wear leggings? No.

..alterations that will
stretch them to the limit...

I'm making it up as I go along.

No, we can't do that. We can.

..and a made to measure dress...

Very stretchy. ..that clings.

I don't even want to look.
Does she know what I'm doing?

I want to drown in a bucket of gin.

The eight remaining sewers
are back in East London.

Last week, I won garment of the week.
I've had a little text off my oldest

daughter telling me to keep
up the good work.

Well, this morning, I've given
myself a good talking to.

I'm going to read the pattern
carefully and I'm going to try and
do

everything that it asks for, rather
than what I think I should be doing.

You learn from your other
competitors, how I can, perhaps,

get a bit quicker or
a little bit more creative.

I've been keeping my eye
on everybody.

Last man standing,

but I think this might be
the beginning of the end.

The sewers will have to make three
garments over the next two days,

and they have no idea what
their first challenge will involve.

Welcome back to the sewing room.
How are we all?

WOMAN: Terrific!

That's what we want to hear.

This week, the judges
would like to see

how you cope with stretch fabrics.

As usual, challenge number one,

you're given a pattern
that you have not seen before.

May, what is it?

We'd like you to make
a pair of leggings

and they must fit your mannequin.

LAUGHTER

You have an hour and a half.
Good luck.

Off you go.

The sewers are free to
make their leggings from any

of the stretch fabric in
the sewing room's haberdashery.

I've only practised once
with a stretch material, so,

"Aahh," is what I think of
that challenge at the moment.

If I get this to work I'll be making
everyone in school funky

Friday leggings for Christmas.

May, Patrick, why stretch?

Stretch fabrics handle completely
differently to woven fabrics.

You can sculpt them.

They can fit very
closely to the body.

Does that make them
easier to work with or harder?

They're mobile, they slip around.

There's an inherent instability
in the fabric itself that

they're going to have to deal with.

A standard woven fabric consists

of a stable grid of straight
threads,

whereas stretch fabric
is constructed from

a series of knitted loops,

whose shape allows the thread to
move in different directions.

The pattern is based on a relatively
slight amount of stretch.

If they are using a fabric
that is considerably stretchier,

they're going to have to
adjust the pattern

and adjust the fit to compensate.

We do not want to see twisted
waistbands, saggy bottoms,

ill-fitting legs.

We want to see a smashing
pair of leggings.

I'm looking at the way it stretches,

cos on the pattern it says
two-way stretch, which means

cos they're leggings, you want them
stretching across the legs,

not up and down.

Despite being a part-time
yoga instructor,

Tamara has never sewn herself
a stretchy outfit for work.

Knees onto the back of the elbows.

She's chosen a bold pattern
for the first challenge.

I'm not that confident.

I've never really had to make
anything that's that tightly fitted.

But you know what I'm going to do,
Claudia? I'm going to read
the pattern start to finish.

That's it, read it. Learn it off
by heart, in maybe four languages.

I'm going to come back and test you
in 30.

I've chosen a cat woman, wet look.

I quite like this.

Do you remember this, Gracie?

This was the first time
you danced with a boy.

The first clothes Julie ever made
featured stretch fabric -

she made ballroom
dancing outfits for

her youngest daughter Gracie.

Aw, happy days, eh?

PATRICK: This is slick.

It's a bit S&M, isn't it?

It does have a hint
of that about it!

Because it's a simple pattern, I
thought I'd pick a difficult fabric.

Cos I need to redeem myself,
don't I?

I see you haven't got
a tape measure out?

For...?

We do want them to fit.

I'm just going to check
the measurements of the hip

of the mannequin.

While the pattern for the leggings
is simple, there's a catch.

The sewers have to cut out just
two pieces of stretch fabric,

sew them together at the crotch,
the seat and the inside leg seams.

The waistband is created by
folding a ring of elastic

into the top edge of the leggings,

which is secured into place

with a row of twin-needle stretch
stitching.

I thought, "This is quite simple
stuff. Where's the issue?"

It's obviously in
that "must fit" bit.

The patterns feature lines,
marking options for the garment size

but as the stretchiness
of the fabric is variable,

the marks won't necessarily
be accurate.

So I measured the mannequin.

I'm going to cut it to fit nicely
without stretching it too much.

I do like this material.

If it comes out well, I'm going to
make myself some cycling shorts.

David keeps his haberdashery
in his garage.

So far, it hasn't included
any stretch fabric.

You're the only boy left

and you're making a pair of
camo pattern leggings.

Yeah.
I love the way this is happening.

I'm gutted Simon's gone, cos I can't
talk about man stuff any more.

And at the weekend I bought
an impact driver -

it's the best thing I've ever bought.

What is it?
It's like an impact wrench.

You bung it on wheel nuts
and it goes...

Like in Formula 1.

This is amazing.
I'm so pleased we had this chat.

Can he leave?

One hour left to make
a pair of stretch leggings.

And if they're confident

they've cut out their pattern pieces
correctly...

Nobody wants baggy leggings.

..construction can begin.

This is the first time
I've sat at an overlocker

and all I've got going in my head is,
"Arrgh!"

An overlocker creates neatened seams

by cutting the edge
of the fabric as it sews.

I'm just doing the crotches.

It uses three or four
threads at the same time

which wrap around the seam -

essential for leggings
as it creates a stitch

which stretches with the fabric.

Here we go...

But it's a piece of equipment
that isn't familiar to everyone.

I've obviously been missing
something all these years.

Ooh!

I'm sewing the leg seam, which goes
all the way up from the ankle

and to the crotch
and back down again.

I like it, cos it's quite quick.

I've got a lot of control
over the fabric.

I think overlockers
are a little bit scary

because they kind of
just eat the fabric.

And unless you're absolutely just
bang on where it needs to be,

I'm sure, actually, you could take
chunks out and not know.

When I'm at home sewing,
I spend ages - doing the seam,

zigzagging, cutting.

This does it in one.
I love the overlocker.

I need one.

Lynda bought
her first sewing machine

after her daughter Sarah was born.

She began making
clothes for all her children.

They were called pedal pushers

and her friend up the street
loved them.

So her mum popped up
to the shops straightaway,

got the material and they both
sat watching me making hers

because they both wanted
to dress the same.

You seem to be storming ahead here.

Do I? Really?

Yeah.

Lynda is the first sewer ready to
check the fit on her mannequin.

PATRICK: Yours is quite stretchy,
though.

Ssh, don't say that. Mine's perfect.

That's perfect, Patrick,
for leggings.

You know what? Voila. It's not bad.

You can't even see
the seam at the side, look.

Ha-ha!

There isn't one.

When I went and put them
on the dummy, you've to look inside

to see which is the bottom bit
and which is the other bit.

The judges will expect a fit
that hugs the body.

But one that still allows movement
and doesn't sag.

It'll be all right. Yeah.

It needs to go in a little
bit more, actually.

Chinelo has made dozens of outfits
for herself and her sister Chica.

It's like coming into a mall
every time I come to her house.

I go home with lots of goodies.

But almost always in a non-stretch,
woven fabric.

When I put it on my mannequin it was
a bit baggy at the crotch area,

so I thought,
"That doesn't look fitted."

So I just took it in
a little bit there.

It does stretch quite a bit
that way, doesn't it?

So you have got to make sure
it fits your mannequin.

Because it stretches that way,

it will cling round the line
of the body.

Whereas if you put the stretch
the other way,

it just pulls out
when you're wearing them -

they get longer and longer.

The stretch fabrics in
the sewing room's haberdashery all

contain Lycra, a fibre which gives
it varying degrees of springiness.

It was originally pioneered
in the late 1950s to make women's

girdles more comfortable.

Up until then, they were made of
rubber, which was stiff and sweaty.

American chemical company DuPont
decided to find an alternative.

What DuPont did was they asked women,

"If you could have anything
in the world, what would you like?"

And they said,
"A comfortable girdle."

So it took DuPont 20 years to
actually invent a comfortable fibre.

What exactly is Lycra?

It's bonded polyurethane, which is

two sorts of chemicals that
you put together to make fibres,

and depending on
what you put together,

the fibres are different -

some are resilient, some are firm,
some are stretchy.

And Lycra is made
out of a sort of straight one

and a corkscrew one that are
bonded together under high pressure

and that's what it looks like.

They call this
the fibre that loves you back.

It's like a hug, it's not
like a strangle,

which is what the old girdles were.

The new fabric transformed
the production of the girdle,

but in the 1960s
when girdles fell out of fashion,

it seemed that there was no further
use for this new fabric.

How did Lycra make its way back in?

DuPont spent a lot of time
trying to save the girdle,

but meanwhile, there were
these warehouses full of Lycra.

And, just about this time,
aerobics start,

and a few small seamstresses think,

"Why don't we use this underwear
stuff to make interesting workout
clothes?"

And that's how it happened.

Lycra leotards were soon seen
up and down the country

in aerobics and dance classes.

But it was the vision of one London
dance teacher that would see Lycra

make the leap from gym clothes to
clothes, and that was Debbie Moore.

In 1979, she decided that what
London needed was a dance studio,

and not just for dancers
but for ordinary men and women.

She bought an old pineapple
warehouse here in Covent Garden

and called it
Pineapple Dance Studios.

Hr clients were all wearing
Lycra dance wear,

but she spotted room
for improvement.

They had shiny nylon Lycra,
and it was very sweaty for them,

and the dance wear was like
school uniform dance wear.

I thought, "Wouldn't it be great
to have cotton with Lycra?"

And that's when I went to DuPont.

Working with DuPont, Debbie
developed cotton/Lycra leotards -

natural, comfortable
and breathable, with high-cut legs,

low-cut fronts and backs, it
was ideal for Debbie's dancers.

It wasn't long, really,
before I thought how great this

fabric would be for a pull-on skirt,
or for a strappy dress, or something.

From then on, with this wonderful
fabric, it was endless to make

wonderful long-sleeved, scoop-necked
dresses, beautiful necklines.

And we were the first people
to put Lycra into outerwear.

I mean, it was a total revolution
in the way people dressed, overnight.

It was amazing.

Debbie's determination to make comfy
clothes for her dancers resulted

in taking what people were wearing
in the studios out onto the street.

Soon, cotton Lycra was appearing
in all sorts of street wear,

from dresses to suits,

totally transforming
the clothes people wear.

You're halfway through, everybody -
45 minutes left.

Every pair of leggings should be

topped with an elasticated
waistband.

Pin the elastic around
side of waist, matching pins,

with the edge of elastic
even with the edge of the waist,

and the seam on the elastic
lined up at the centre legging.

Stitch on top of the elastic along

the outside edge
with the overlocker.

Stretch elastic to fit,
if necessary.

That's easy.

What you do is you take your elastic

and you divide your elastic
up into sections.

Can you see I've got a pin there?
Yeah. A pin there.

So, into quarters?

Then what you do is
do exactly the same

on the top of your pair of leggings,
match a pin to a pin.

So what happens is,
you have it pinned at intervals,

and it's completely controlled.

So the fullness here goes into
the band. When you've sewn that,

wrapped that over and stitched it,

this will be completely flat.

You've distributed all
the fullness evenly onto the elastic.

And that's what you're after?
Absolutely.

Years ago, I think
I made a sort of tennis outfit

and I'm sure that had
a waistband like this.

You had to make 1970s
frilly knickers

to go with your tennis dress.

I seem to remember doing...

It's a long time ago.

Both of Cerina's daughters attended
dance classes since they were young,

But neither of them have ever asked
her to make any leggings.

My mum's very clever in that
she can make her own patterns,

so I can just draw a dress and say,
"I'd like that, please."

My friends are so jealous,
it's crazy,

because I always have a different
dress that nobody else will have.

I've got to pull the elastic to
match the length of the fabric,

but not over-pull it or else
you'd get a sort of fluting effect.

If the sewers don't maintain an even
tension as they stitch

their elastic to the stretch
fabric...

How is the stretch of your fabric
versus the stretch of your elastic?

The fabric needs to be pulled
slightly but not an awful lot.

..the waistband will pucker,
making it impossible to lie flat.

You stretch the elastic the same time

and you've got to get your fabric
aligned with the edge

so it doesn't all get
chewed up like this.

I don't know how to get
out of this now.

My job is, I train dressage riders.

There's a lot of similarities
between dressage and sewing.

The fact that you have to
have precision

and you've just got to go for it.

Heather's decided to cut away her
first attempt at sewing the elastic.

Fortunately this is actually
really easy to undo.

You have 30 minutes left, sewers.

Fold elastic and from the right edge
of leggings...

Stitch...

Stitch on inner edge...with a twin
stretch needle.

No idea what that means.

Well, that's where I sewed
the elastic with the overlocker.

Now we've got to turn it
over, like that,

and sew from the right side
with a twin needle.

So I'll have two rows of parallel
stitching along the waistband

and along the bottoms.

I never knew a twin needle existed.

Me neither, David -
this is a new world for all of us.

We've got two needles,
going into one socket

so you do two rows of stitching
and then the bottom thread

zigzags between
the two top rows of stitching.

It makes it slightly stretchy.

Here we go.

This twin row of stitching should
ensure the waistband is secure

and lies flat against the body.

You've got to feel for the elastic

and just run it around the edge
and then it secures the waistband.

And as it will be visible
on the outside of the leggings,

it must look perfectly straight.

Come on, come on.

This is better
than my wedding night, David.

But it's not proving
a pleasure for everyone.

The needle keeps chewing up the
fabric. It don't like the fabric.

I've finished my leggings

so I just thought I might put
a little cheeky pocket on.

I've just had a loud little
voice in my head going,

"What are you doing?"

Jenni began making
her own clothes a year ago.

One of her favourite creations
is a floral stretch leotard

to which she added tassels.

If I had to describe my sewing,
whether it's the fabric I'm using

or the patterns I'm choosing
or just, yeah, I'd say crazy.

Let's hope this works. Sewers,
you've got five minutes left.

Right.

Jenni shouldn't have
done the pocket.

It's asking for a two-centimetre
hem at the bottom.

I'm struggling to put pins
in the hem of this legging leg.

SHE WHISPERS

Hold your breath.

Keep going. Turn! Turn! Turn!

It's doing it again.

I don't think May's going
to like that, is she, in the crotch?

They look mangled,
but we have pocket.

Do I wear leggings? No.
Will I ever wear leggings?

No. Dave, I'll lend you these.

The shiny ones?
I'll lend you me S&M ones!

I tell you what, for a small fee
I'll wear them for you.

Sewers, you have one minute left.

Please put your leggings
on your mannequins.

I can't dress the thing.

It's like trying to dress
the biggest toddler ever.

Oh, my God.

Come on, girl, you're nearly there.

OK, everybody - that's it.

Look at these bad boys!

Eight pairs of stretch leggings
in just 90 minutes,

but what will the judges think?

Cerina, bring your legs forward.

I'm a little bit
worried about your girl

and the tightness of her leggings.

Well, the fabric's stretched out
and it's almost see-through.

Your waistband is well ex*cuted.

Sits very flatly to the waist and a
nice even row of double stitching.

How's Mrs Shiny Legs round the back?

What we've got here, unfortunately,
is a bit of a saggy bottom.

It's in complete contrast to the
front, which looks great, doesn't it?

You did pick a particularly
tricky fabric.

The waistband, again,
a little bit of bagginess.

We've got some twisting
where the elastic isn't flat.

I love this fabric,
I could see it on the dance floor.

You've done a really good job
of making it run round the body.

A little bit of bagging round there,
but minor detail.

There's a little bit of excess just
sitting on the top of that elastic.

There are fit issues
but a very good use of pattern.

She's got one cheek that fits
and the other one doesn't.

Looking at this side, it's perfect,
and the other side...

And it wasn't too bad until
I started fiddling with it as well.

Interesting.

The waistband is
nowhere near horizontal.

It's running right up at the back.

If we do push it down
so it's sitting horizontal,

we end up with a great big
gather at the back.

And she's also got a saggy bottom.

She has.

Not the best thing we've seen from
you so far, I'm afraid. No. No.

I think, overall, the fit is good.
The right amount of give.

The waistband is very flat

and the twin-needle stitching
is very even.

The seams, the seams look very neat.

And the twin-needle hem
is looking good.

And the pattern is running
quite nicely straight,

it's not twisting
around the leg at all.

Um... Yes...

LAUGHTER

Yeah, we don't need to say it,
do we? We had a chat.

We had a chat with the model
and she wanted more room, so...

She was hoping to carry her
sandwiches down the back

of her trousers.

You've also added a pocket for us.

It's really not at all neat.
It really doesn't add anything.

I like a cheeky pocket myself.

Well, you don't need one
with all this!

Just a tiny bit of give behind here,
but on the whole, a good fit.

A nice flat band around the waist

and your twin-needle stitching
is nice and flat.

My only comment is that
the waist is a bit low down.

It's fashion! Yes, I wouldn't want
to wear mine that low down.

May favours the Simon Cowell
approach to leggings.

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

Eighth place, sadly, Jenni.
Not a great fit,

and I think you struggled with
one or two of the techniques there.

Seventh place, it's Heather.
A few issues with wobbly waistbands.

Julie's sixth, Chinelo's fifth,

Tamara's fourth,
and Cerina is third.

In second place, David!

Very well ex*cuted, good fit,
nice and neat overall.

In first place, Lynda!

Your waistband is lovely and flat,
no ripples, really good fit!

Well done!

So well done to all of you,
especially Lynda!

Go, lie down, maybe put
the leggings on! If you want to!

I had a text off both
of my daughters, telling me

they wanted me to come first today.

So I think they're both going to be
very, very pleased and proud of me.

My confidence has grown. Yeah,
I'm hopefully climbing that ladder!

Quite disappointed finishing sixth
because the fabric I used was

probably ten times more difficult
than anybody else's fabric.

Cheeky pocket didn't work. Hey,
but I got some mustard slacks.

Slack being the operative word,
but, hey, I like a good baggy bum!

Now it's time for
our alteration challenge.

This is when Patrick and May
want to see what the sewers can do

with something they could have
found on the high street.

It's pretty basic,
but I can tell you, it stretches.

This week, we've given you...

..a big, baggy, stretchy T-shirt.

Change the armholes, change
the necks, change the sleeves.

Just make this really boring
garment really exciting.

You have an hour and a half.
Good luck! Go!

A stretch T-shirt like this
can be found on any high street.

I'm going to try
and do something dramatic

cos normally I'm quite boring.

For the next 90 minutes, the sewers
are completely on their own.

Excuse me,
I'm just coming back for that.

No! That's mine! Get off!

You can have some of it,
if you want. No.

There are no rules,

but so they can surprise the judges
with their creativity,

the judges won't be in the sewing
room to see them work.

Oh, God, here we go.
I'm rubbish at this.

This is a huge expanse
of material, here. Mm.

The most obvious thing to do
is to chop it right down,

and sort of drastically reshape it.
We can do a lot with the shoulders,

we can do a lot with
the shape of this neck.

You know, you could extend it
and actually make a dress
out of what we've got here.

If they're taking fabrics
from the haberdashery,

they've got to be careful that
when we combine two fabrics...

I mean, this one's really
stretchy, isn't it?

And this one is really firm.

Immediately we put those two
together, you've got completely
different mobility, there.

So therefore, if they're
embellishing, edging, applying,

they need to make sure
that this fabric doesn't
stretch this one out of shape.

I'm going to make it
into a ladies' top

and put a bit of ruching
around the neck.

I'll make it a low back,
where that V is there.

And then I'll make a ruffle
out of that.

It's lovely, this!

They've only had two minutes.

You've already turned this into
the best top I've ever seen.

This is the sleeve. This is the neck.

Is that what you're going to do?!

Yes, either top or dress.
I haven't decided yet.

I'm making a halter neck,
plunge backline, draped through
the back, with a frilly collar.

I'm going to do a crazy V neck,
and it's going to be a big zip.

Get rid of the sleeves,
don't need those.

Another zip. Ooh, good idea.

I'm going to slash the back
and plait it,

and then finish the armhole
and neckline with...

Ooh! ..open zipped.

Look, I have a zip trim!
Going with your theme, see. Come on.

I'm going to make
a child's dancing dress.

So I'm going to have some pink on it.

And some more pink.
It might be over ambitious

cos I'm doing a lot of re-cutting,

but I was really surprised how easy
the overlocker was to use,

and the double needle, as well,

so I'm hoping I can just
make the most of that.

I'm making an asymmetric maxi dress.
Are you?! Yeah.

This is the skirt of my maxi dress.
This is the top of it.

You have done so well
on these challenges.

But you know, when they're going
"Ah, one and two,
they're about the same..."

I know. You must want to be number
one. Yeah, my eye's on Tamara today.

Yes!

Sewers, you have one hour left.

It's not that I dislike
the challenge,

it's that I dislike
the amount of time.

I got the inspiration from the collar

because it just slips
over your head nicely,

so I can use it as an anchor point
for the garment.

What are you doing? Pass.
I was hoping you could tell me!

Do you not know?

I've put it back to front,
and fitted it.

I'm making it up as I go along.

No! We can't do that! We can!

OK, this is the tricky bit now -
this is where I'm going to slash it.

I've not done this before,
but I've seen it,

so I think I know
how it's going to work.

Pull. That would go there.

That would go there.

That would go there.

And finally, that would go there.

And that's the back.

Don't want a baggy bottom.
SHE LAUGHS

Can't be showing your knickers,
can you?

I'm using stretch bias binding
because the fabric is stretchy,

so then you need one
that's going to sit with it.

I'm making some binding, and then
I'm going to trim the neck with it.

They always say I'm not dramatic
enough, so I want to be
more dramatic.

That's going to look nice.

Everyone, you have half an hour
left for your transformations.

Basically popping some binding into
the sleeve hole which I cut out.

Just to try and neaten it,
and give it a bit of finish.

I'm just going to bind
round the armholes.

I'm attaching the skirt
to the bodice.

This is a stretch fabric
as well, actually.

I don't even want to look.
Does she know what I'm doing?

CHINELO LAUGHS

I'm going to make a tube skirt.

So it's going to have quite a blouson
effect on the top half of the skirt.

On the bottom it'll be like
a little tube mini-skirt.

Flouncy! What is that?

That's going to be a ruche
with a little, a little...

A ruche? You are pure filth,
and I mean that in a brilliant way.

I love ya!

I'm just in the process of doing a
double layer of stitching on my hems

so my zip doesn't roll.

As you can see, my hem's sitting
flat now against the garment,

whereas if I didn't do that
it would kick out.

Let me just have a look
at that specimen.

It's a dress, and depending on
how risque you wish to be...

I think, instead of doing darts,

I might put some zips in the back,

which can be zipped up... Yeah.
..And then turned into darts.

OK. Brilliant.

Sewers, you've got
five minutes left,

and then I'm bringing
the scary people in.

Oh, look at that!

I'm just trying to put a bit
of embellishment on it,

just to finish it off.

I wanted to put shoulder pads in,
but we don't have those.

So I'm just giving it a little lift
with a pleat in the sleeve.

I'm fairly happy.
I've got some drapery.

Hopefully it shows
a bit of imagination.

It's going to be very glamorous
with all these sequins on.

Might make a little belt
out of that, as well.

It might not do up!

Will that go? Yes, it will.

Breathe in!

Yes, it does!

You have 40 seconds.

Aw!

OK, that's it! Time!
David, don't touch it!

This is very sexy stuff, isn't it?

This is my inner secret woman
coming out.
JULIE LAUGHS

Please bring your mannequins to the
front and then we'll jumble them up.

# I can't tell a waltz from a tango

# I never know what my feet
Are gonna do... #

May and Patrick will now have
absolutely no idea whose
alterations are whose.

These poor people started with this.

Once again, I think you've pulled
something spectacular out of the bag.

May? I'm speechless.

It's a very dramatic change.

Pleats, gathers, darts.

It's stretched.
She's got one area which is... Ooh!

Trying to climb out.

This is like somebody's
shrunken Madonna

and thrown her on a mannequin.

I'd want to go out in that.

And it's a really great use
of a couple of simple bits of trim.

I think it's just a really good
understanding of what you can do

with a piece of clothing. Yes.

Huge scoop taken out of the back.

And combining different fabrics.

Lovely colour combination.
Very fresh.

It's just drooped out of shape.

This V at the front needed to have
been a little more cleanly ex*cuted.

Nice simple combination of colours,
well chosen.

A really good transformation,
isn't it? Yep.

The fit is really good, and
we've got contrasting fabric

going round these edges,
and it would've been

so easy to have stretched them
completely out of shape.

And I love the ruching
at the sides. Yep.

This one, outwardly,
looks one of the simpler ones,

but actually, only because I think
it's just been ex*cuted so very well.

The skirt looks even.
It's falling well.

I mean, we've got a transformation
of the neckline.

The shoulders have been reduced,
the sleeves have been re-introduced.

Look how well that has been joined.

Absolutely. Two fabrics, we could've
had this completely stretched out of
shape.

If we look at the side seam,

I mean, it's absolutely
perfectly lined up.

And it's straight.

An interesting idea
to use zips to give shape.

Sadly, the zip has stretched
the front of the jersey.

It's ambitious, but I think
it's just let down in the execution.

A very interesting idea. Yes.

However, we've got a bit of
stretching on the armholes.

It would've been nicer to see these
a little more evenly distributed.

All of this fullness here,
it's very dramatic,

it's just slightly let down
by a few areas

where it's not sewn
quite as well as it could be.

Very dramatic, both front and back.

For it to work and hold together
and still hold the shape

is a good effect. Yep.

We've also got our rigid zip
and our stretchy fabric,

but the actual T-shirt part of this
isn't stretched out of shape.

May and Patrick will now rearrange
the transformed T-shirts

into order, and reveal which has
shown the most creative ambition

and the best technical execution.

So, you're happy with this order.
Yes.

Please could the creator
of number eight come up?

Love the idea of using zips, David,

however, in putting it on your top,
you stretched it out of shape.

Could the creator of
this one come up?

Sadly, the armholes are
stretched right out of shape.

Lynda is sixth, Tamara fifth,

Jenni fourth, and Heather is third.

All right, we're down to
the last two.

OK, the maxi dress creator,
please come forward.

Chinelo! Ah, once again -
so near, but yet so far.

Very close-run thing. The only
reason that you didn't come first

was because that was a much more
dramatic transformation.

Therefore, well done, Cerina!
APPLAUSE

On sheer, kind of, joyous
transformation,

good old mini-Madge has definitely
brought a smile to all of our faces.

That just goes to show what
you can do with a big T-shirt.

Thank you so much for today.

Go home, put on stretchy fabric,
do stretchy dance moves

and we'll see you tomorrow
for the big stretch challenge.

I can't believe it!

But when I saw Patrick said
he'd quite like to wear it himself,

I thought, "Ooh,
maybe it's a winner!"

When Patrick said "nearly", I was
like, "Oh, my gosh!" The curse
of the second.

I need to really break through
that second barrier

and get to the first!

I thought the judges were
a little bit harsh.

I thought I'd do better than I did.

It is official that I am rubbish
in the alteration challenge!

If I'd had the option to
take it out and not present it,

I think I would've done.

# If I had a needle and thread
Tell you what I'd do... #

There's one challenge remaining
before one sewer will be
awarded garment of the week,

and another will be asked
to leave the Sewing Bee.

I'm really worried about
Julie, Jenni and David.

Jenni didn't really have a clue
how to deal with jersey

because she did not fit her
leggings.

In Julie's alteration
it was a poor choice of fabrics

and it was pretty tattily ex*cuted.

Both of her garments didn't show
the best use of a stretch fabric.

David managed the leggings better
than most, I think.

But then his alteration
was disappointing.

Hopefully, with my boy hat on,

he's going to pull something decent
out the bag.

In this final challenge,
the mannequins are gone

and the models have returned.

Lovely to see you again!

Good morning, everybody.
Are we feeling stretchy?

ALL: Yes! Excellent.

The judges would love you to make
a beautiful stretch wrap dress.

You've got five hours. Good luck.
Your time starts now.

This is the one challenge the sewers
have been allowed to practise.

They're already chosen their pattern
and stretch fabric.

Now they have to fit the wrap dress
that they've practised to the model
for the first time.

I want to see them making
the best use of a stretch fabric

to create something that's elegant
and figure hugging.

Beautifully balanced, well fitted.

I would like to see
some wonderful edges.

It's so easy in a wrap,
because it's across the body,

to stretch it completely
out of the shape.

They've got to be really careful.

I like to think of this competition
as extreme sewing,

like you've been thrown out of a
plane, skydiving, with a sewing
machine.

I'm going for big '70s flare.

With the big wizard sleeves.

Yeah. It's a nice firm jersey,
though, isn't it? It's not too
slippery.

No, no - it's nice to work with.

If you fit it nicely and execute it
well, all should be marvellous.

Fingers crossed.

I chose this because it's very loud.

It's just a bit bolshie,
I suppose. I like it.

Have you made this before?
I made it once for my wife.

And how did it go?

Not too great - she complained
about the fact it made her look fat,

because I should have taken into
consideration her larger hips.

OK, you know she might be
watching this?

When I show her this,
I'll hide all the scissors.

Yeah, I would!

The fabric's really stretchy,
so, um...

Yeah, it's stretchier than the
fabric I used for the leggings.

I've already measured my model,
I've just got to make sure

I get the pattern placed in the
right places, so that you don't

suddenly find you've not got
enough fabric for a sleeve.

So, that's why it's quite important
to follow the plans they set out.

As usual,
Chinelo's making her own plans.

You have your model
glued to the side.

I have to take all the measurements,

I need every little contour
so I can't just do

the waist, bust, hips -
it has to be every little thing.

I get a good fit that way.

I just absolutely love velvet,

and I thought it would show a bit
of skill working with the pile.

What have you to consider when
working with the pile on velvet?

I'm using it in one direction,

so, basically, it's all going to
shine the same way.

Brilliant. Brilliant.

I haven't done very well this week,
so I can't really relax.

I would love my mum to be here now,
with a nice cup of tea.

The only thing I'm concerned about
is, because it's very stretchy
fabric,

the dress will pull the bodice down
and stretch it that way.

This is the pin dog.

What's he called? Hasn't he got
a name? Lancelot? Percival?

Horatio! Horatio!

About ten pieces in the wrap
dress to make.

They're all cut out and ready to go.

Construction begins with
the bodice of the wrap dress.

I'm just threading my machine up and
then I'll sew a little bit of fabric

to make sure it's the right needle,
to see if it's sewing nice.

It's an area of the dress where the
stretch fabric must hug the body...

You need to make sure you're not
falling out everywhere,

so hopefully I've got that one
covered.

..and mustn't sag.
That looks all right.

I actually don't like wrap dresses.

I hate them even more now!

Heather's playing it safe...

It's quite a nice hefty
jersey, isn't it?

And this has got a lovely
drape on it.

It's going to be more classically
tailored. A simpler line, basically.

Yeah, it's just more to my taste.

Most of the sewers have
chosen to begin construction

on their sewing machines.

But some have chosen the overlocker.

With this machine,

it should mean I'm only going up
each seam the once.

Whereas if I was using
a sewing machine,

I'd have to do three lots on each
seam,

I'd have to do the seam,

and then neatening either side.
So this should save me time.

I'm most worried about the fit,

because that actually chops off
the excess as you're sewing it.

So if it doesn't fit,
if it's too small, that's it.

Lynda is making a classic
wrap-fronted dress...

I've just found out
that I'm a coward.

Because I've erred
on the side of caution

and gone back to using the stretched
stitch on the normal sewing machine

rather than the overlocker,

because I think if I cut the seam
off and it's too small, I've had it.

Mmm! That's OK!

How long have we had?

9.30, 10.30...
So we've had two hours. OK.

A wrap dress has particularly long
exposed edges.

So it goes that way, does it?
Usually, yeah.

Along the wrap itself,

as it stretches across
the front of the body...

The front, right in your face,

so it's worth undoing
and doing it again.

..and around the neckline.

With stretch fabric,
the longer an exposed edge,

the more unstable the fabric
can become...

SHE WINCES

..ruining the shape of the dress.

Stabilising is when
you put a slightly firmer fabric

behind a stretchy fabric to
stop it from pulling out of shape.

On a shoulder line, if you don't
have a stabiliser,

it'll stretch and stretch
and stretch.

Whereas if you put a little bit
of tape in it,

it'll stop it from going
right out of shape.

David's attempting to stabilise
his neck line with facing -

a supporting fabric that's sewn
onto the reverse of the garment.

We're doing a facing that goes round
the neck. This is the neck bit here,

and you don't want to stretch that
because it sits comfortably on the
neck,

whereas if it was stretched,
it would pull all the time.

Tamara aims to stabilise her
edges with her own bias binding.

What I'll do is, I'll fold it
back on itself,

so we've got a nice red line that
goes along the outside of the dress.

Ooh!

As well as trying to stabilise
her edges,

Julie is the only sewer attaching
a separate collar.

Quite a different stretch
to your garment.

Yeah, it's not a really heavy
jersey.

Will it have enough substance to
take the weight of that collar? Yeah.

Julie's adapted a pattern
for a vintage dressing gown...

She's got six layers where
the collar joins the garment

with the facings.

So therefore, there's a lot
of bulk around the neckline

which could stretch things
out of shape.

It takes a bit of concentration
cos it's stretching all the time,

so you've got to really concentrate.

90 minutes remaining.

So, I'm going to go for
little cap sleeves,

cos I think it just
jazzes it up a little bit.

I'm just setting in my sleeves.

There is an ease stitch on the top
to give me a little bit of gather
on the shoulders.

That might just give it
a little bit of detail.

I'm just attaching the skirt
to the top, the bodice.

Because it's so stretchy
it could lose some of the shape
on the waistband.

So I think I might use
some bias binding inside,

just to make it a little bit more
rigid, less stretchy.

(Where is it? Where is it?)

Both Cerina...
All looks spotty!

..and Chinelo are planning to
gather their dresses at the waist.

Usually I wouldn't pin, I'd just go,
but I'm having to pin so that

it doesn't stretch out of place and
look twisted when she's got it on.

I'm sure May and Patrick are going
to be looking for that.

I'm just trimming the seam line

that goes between the bodice
and the skirt.

Heather's hoping to keep the
waistline of her dress a little
simpler.

Oh, my God!

I have just made
a massive, massive mistake.

This is going to be a total disaster.

Heather has sewn her skirt on
inside out

I'm basically stuffed now, that's it.

Heather did her waist seam
on the outside.

So the skirt was attached
the wrong way round. Oh, I see.

She's used the stretched stitch,
which is a really intense stitch,

and it takes forever to take out.

This is just a nightmare.

Why isn't this coming apart?

Exactly, why isn't this coming apart?
Because it's triple stitch.

I don't know what to do.

Sewers, you've got one hour left.

Really?!

I'm just making a slight
adjustment in the back.

I'm not quite happy with how
it's falling.

She's got a bit of a hollow back,
so what I'm doing is taking some
pleats,

so that it'll just
make it fit nicer.

There's absolutely no way
you're going to unpick that in time.
No, there isn't.

Just take a deep breath and don't
panic, Captain Mainwaring. No, sir!

It's not sitting right
at the back, look.

I need to make it like that.

Yeah? Yes.

I need to take more in here.
Just in the waist.

Oh, my God! It feels
so nice and snug.

When I first started I took
all the measurements I needed,

translated that onto my fabric so
I knew it would fit perfectly.

Heather has made a decision
about her waist seam.

I am chopping right. Right side,

Right bloody side! OK.

Now I'm going to redo it
and let's see if

we can get this show on the road
again. Disaster!

I got this fabric and I liked
the little patterns that they
had on it,

so I've trimmed that out and I'm
just using it to decorate the
shoulder.

The hardest thing were the collar,
and I've got that in, so that is a
relief.

All I've got to do now
is decide what type of hem.

I'm just going to do a basic,
overlock the hem and turn it up.

I have no idea how much time
we have left.

20 minutes... 20 minutes?!
..I think.

Jesus! Proper panic.

OK, I'm going to attach that
all the way round, right now.

I'm not even going to bother to pin.

I just need to make
an adjustment at the neckline.

Cos I've put binding around
the neck, it's come quite loose.

I'm using a twin needle,
the same as we used yesterday,

to get a double row of stitching on
the bottom of the hem and the cuff.

I've got to get one more
of the ribbons on.

That, in effect, makes it possible
to wrap the dress.

I feel much happier with that now,
much better now.

I just want to take it in
a little bit more because

although it's a loose jersey fabric,
I want it to be nice and fitted

and snug and, you know,
look like it was made for her

and not somebody else.

I'm now attaching the bias binding
round the curve of the neck,

so now I need to concentrate a bit.

You've got five minutes everyone,
five minutes. Ahhh!

I'm finished.

I'm just putting the bias binding
on the sleeve just to finish
the garment off.

Are you all right, Heather, darling?
I want to drown in a bucket of gin!

OK, I can organise that for you.
I'll get you a snorkel.

I'm quite pleased with
the way they're sitting,

considering I haven't used
any bias binding or anything.

Just doing a little bit round the
back now and it's actually finished.

One minute left, 60 seconds!

Ooh! Might be long enough!

David, I'm not one to panic,
but I tell you - the time is now.

Go get naked behind the thing.

Is that your usual....
That's my normal chat-up line!

I'll just turn my back for a minute,

hurry up!

I've got no idea whether it's enough
to impress the judges.

Come on, Heidi!

Just grateful that I've actually
got something to put on my model,
to be fair.

Shoulders, seam, seam.

OK.

OK, here we go, here we go!

All right, that's it!
Time is absolutely up.

Have a lie down, definitely. God!

Unbelievable. That was too close.

Can I just wipe the mascara and
sweat from under my eyes, please?

# Hold me close
And hold me tight... #

Eight made-to-measure wrap dresses
in just five hours.

But which ones will impress
May and Patrick?

Well, the first thing we notice
is the fit's good.

It's hugging the body, which is what
we want from a stretch garment.

The cross is sitting in
exactly the right place -

right in the centre of the sternum

You've bound the edges and you've
not stretched them out of shape.

This seam is sitting very flat.

The bottom hem is very even and flat.

I think overall there's a nice
balance, it moves very well.

So I'd say it's a very, very
good effort. Thank you!

Sadly you've stretched
your edges with your binding.

The sleeves have worked well,
the sash is nice.

It's just lost its shape a little
bit, which is really unfortunate.

I feel we've got quite a lot
of fabric on the top here.

Yes, it's been a bit of
a tuck-in job, hasn't it?

We've got all this excess here.

We've got gathers on
the back shoulder here,

and this one's flat.

It's not bad, but it's not brilliant.

The first thing I see is this lovely
neckline that hugs the model.

It's really flat, it's really
hugging the back neck really nicely,

it sits smooth across the top of the
chest, and it looks well balanced.

And this faux wrap is sitting
beautifully over her tummy.

I think overall it's very good.
Thank you.

It really needs to hug the body,
and it's not.

You've attempted something quite
difficult in putting this collar on.

It's quite a substantially
different material,

and it just hasn't allowed that
jersey to do what it does best,

which is hug the figure.

And it's just sitting too far
off the body.

You could have made it in any fabric.

We're not seeing anything
from the jersey in this at all.

I love the way
it's sculpting the body.

I would like to say
how relieved I am

that the nap seems to be going
in the same direction.

I think it's incredibly impactful.

You've cut this pattern
yourself, haven't you?

The fitting on the shoulder
is exceptional.

I wouldn't have chosen bright
emerald green on purple,

but anything less bold
would not have done it justice.

And also, when I was watching
you cut that curve,

I was thinking, would it work?

And it's brilliant.
You've done a really good job.

This is what we wanted from
stretch fabric week. Thank you.

The first thing I notice
is the neckline.

The right-hand side is sitting
beautifully, and the left-hand side

is misbehaving itself, so a little
stretching issue there, I think.

This is the narrowest point
on your model here,

and your waistline is sitting
a good two inches lower than that.

It's trying to find that true waist
and using that as a guide.

This sleeve is inserted slightly
better than the other one.

Can I just swivel you around?

We've just got a few pleats
in this one.

The sleeves trouble me a bit.

They just feel slightly overpowering.

I think without them the dress
becomes a completely different
animal.

I really prefer
the kimono-style sleeves,

but I do appreciate the comments,
thank you.

Thank you. Yes
- thank you, kimono style!

I'd like to mention how well
the skirt drapes on this.

It's falling beautifully.

It isn't sitting quite flush
on the back of the neck,

which is a shame, but actually,

the end of these darts,
here, the centre,

it's actually beautifully balanced
and really well positioned.

The front neckline is sitting well.

That front edge is fitting
very nicely both ways,

and it's very cleanly
and very evenly stitched.

Given that it was panic stations
an hour ago,

with the exception of that collar,
I think it's very good. Thank you.

It's going to be so tough for the
judges to make a decision on this
one.

I just hope that
I'm the one that's staying.

I needed a good day today,
and it just turned out to be
a bit of a car crash.

I just didn't have time
to perfect it on the model.

So I don't think I've done enough.

I think... I'm very much
in the firing line.

Let me ask you about
who you're thinking should leave
the sewing room.

For me, I think David has done
enough.

I think his wrap dress was
pretty well ex*cuted, so I think it's
a decision between Jenni and Julie.

If we compare the dresses
they made today, we've got this one,

and then we've got this one.

It wasn't great across the chest,

it was tight across the seat,

but overall it wasn't too badly sewn.

But it was simple. This was
a much more ambitious project,

but it just didn't fulfil the brief.

I mean, there are plusses
and minuses in both of these. Yes.

But it think, on the whole, we both
agree... On who we think needs to go.

..On who we should think
has to go home. Yeah.

Let's start with the brilliant news,

which is these guys, their
favourite garment of the week.

This week's
garment of the week is...

this one!
APPLAUSE

Are you happy? Very happy!
I'm very shocked, as well.

Are you? Incredibly well merited.

I think it stands out as a really
fantastic piece of sewing.

And just what we were hoping for
with this challenge this week.

Thank you, thank you so much!
It's amazing. Thank you.

In our dream world we would
all just stay here together.

But that is not to be,
somebody has to leave.

And the person that is leaving is...

It's Julie. I'm sorry.

No, don't be.
SHE LAUGHS

No, but you're so hilarious,
I want you just to stay anyway.

Pack it in! OK.

LAUGHTER

Well done, Julie!
APPLAUSE

Julie has tried to impress us
the last couple of days.

She's really worked had
at challenging herself.

She has done nothing but push
herself to the absolute limit.

And she's brought a real joy
to everything we've done.

We know she's a good sewer,

but all we can do is judge on
what was put in front of us,

and, unfortunately,
today was not her day.

I would have been upset if
somebody else went instead of me.

Cos that wouldn't have been right.

I'm sorry, Julie.

The best part about being on
the Sewing Bee has been meeting
the other contestants.

We've had such a laugh.
It's been great.

MUFFLED: Pack it in!

I'm going to miss Julie.

She has made me laugh
SO much, I can't tell you.

I won't even look in my sewing
room for a couple of weeks

cos I'm all sewed out
at the moment, I'll be honest!

I've put everything in today,
and it paid off, and...

Yeah, pinch me. Punch me. Anything.

HE LAUGHS
I've been surprised
every week so far

that my name hasn't been read out.

You never know -
might happen again next week.

Who do you think is going to
come through and win?

Chinelo.

Guess what?

MAN ON PHONE: 'What?'
I won garment of the week!

'Whoa!'

BOTH LAUGH

At the next Sewing Bee...

I don't like kids' clothes.
I don't like kids.

..the smallest pattern challenge
yet...

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

..the fanciest alteration so far...

My daughter would say, "Chuck it
in a bin, Dad. Not wearing that."

..and made-to-measure
prom dresses...

Let's bring them in!

'..for someone
completely unexpected.'

LAUGHTER

Hello... Oh, my God!
I didn't recognise you!