06x10 - Episode 10

[bunniefuu]

The biggest-ever Sewing Bee
started with 12.

Now...

Good luck, chaps.

Good luck.

..just three remain.

I can now reveal

that the winner of
the Great British Sewing Bee is...

I'm quite done sewing today.

Yeah!

Just three garments...

..stand between the finalists...

Oh!

Oh, where is everything?

..and the title of
Britain's Best Amateur Sewer.

Whether Nicole's taking on
tricky fabrics...

God! There's just a bit of
manhandling that needs to happen.

..or flamboyant designs...

You're seeing all of Nicole,
all in one skirt.

..her ambition can sometimes
be her undoing.

Eurgh...

But when she succeeds,
the results are spectacular.

Yes! Yes! Nicole!

It had drama, it was powerful,

it was fantastic sewing.

She's very exuberant.

She likes a bit of sparkle.

You know, in fact, she's had
three Garments of the Week.

I knew there were going to be
ups and downs along the way,

but I did always have faith
I would get here.

I think you kind of have to, because
if you don't believe in yourself,

how could you expect anyone else
to believe in you?

Good luck, all.

Always meticulous and precise,

it's Clare's creativity
that's flourished,

taking her 1940s wardrobe
into uncharted territory...

Oh! That's very Madonna!

..and winning the last three
Transformations.

This is an absolute stunner.

I agree.

Over the weeks, Clare has emerged,
and it's been fantastic to see,

but Clare has never been top
in the Made to Measure.

This week, she has to
absolutely get that spot-on,

if she's going to win
this competition.

It's the final. It's astonishing.

It's, erm...

Argh!

Gloves are off.

Winner of the most
Pattern Challenges...

The whole dress looks gorgeous.

Well done.

..Matt's technical skill, along
with his experience making drag...

You make quite a few dresses,
don't you?

Look at my photos -
all drag queens.

LAUGHTER

..has seen his dresses
win high praise...

There's a lot of very precise
sewing going on.

..even if his Transformations
haven't.

There we go.

Look at the state of it!

Matt has delivered some
extraordinary garments.

He clearly has a great
creative streak in him.

Sometimes when it gets tough,

Matt has a tendency
to crumble a little bit.

It's been a disaster.

He just needs to take a deep breath,

and carry on.

Let's get sewing and, er,

try and win it.

It's final time!

Come forward!

You're through to the final! Yay!

How'd you feel? Awesome.

Slightly deranged.

What a, what a mixture of emotions.

Well, someone in this room
is going to be crowned the winner

of the Great British Sewing Bee.

It could be me. What a twist.

The theme this week is Celebration.

Esme, tell us about
the Pattern Challenge. Right.

Here you are. Thank you.

ALL: Oh...

Right, this is a traditional
child's kilt,

with a frayed edge,
leather strap and buckle.

And because it's the final,

we'll be paying close attention
to the quality of your pleating,

and the accuracy
of the repeats of the sets.

Good luck.

You have three and three-quarter
hours for this challenge.

Your time starts now!

Let's do this.

The classic Scottish kilt is a firm
fashion favourite for weddings,

parties, and any good old knees-up.

I just started reading
the instructions

to work out how complicated
it's going to be.

Oh, gawd.

But making one is certainly
no jolly...

HE EXHALES NOISILY

..and before the sewers can
even choose their fabric,

they must digest
a mammoth set of instructions.

God. A tartan puzzle.

The final,

it's here.

All right. Kilts.

Keep you nice and warm, but a bit
of breeze for the lads downstairs.

Why have you chosen this?

Er, I think this is a very
appropriate challenge for the final,

because it requires
an incredible level of precision.

A tartan is a series of
repeating regular squares.

So, for example,
look at the yellow square

that's all the way round.

We want that yellow square
to be repeated all the way through

the pleated section at the back.

Also, one of the things
we've asked them to do,

and we have provided them
with a formula for doing this,

is take this depth here
and reduce it at the waist.

So that's quite a tricky
little calculation to do.

It could be quite mind-blowing,

if you're not very good
at mathematics.

Have either of you ever worn a kilt?

I've had the same kilt
since I was 14.

Is it in the family tartan?

It is a dress Grant tartan.

Well, I hope someone uses
the Lycett tartan.

Very warlike clan,
absolute biters.

The tartan the sewers use
will have a huge impact

on the challenge ahead.

I'm looking for something
with a relatively small repeat.

Oh, green. That's got
quite a big repeat, though.

I've no idea what I'm doing.

There are over 3,000 Scottish
family tartans.

A set is the block pattern
unique to each one.

A larger set has
fewer lines to follow,

making the job of pleating
and maintaining the pattern

more difficult.

Well, I wanted a set
that was quite small.

A small repeat.

It's got a lot of straight lines.

It'll make it easy
to mark up the pleats.

But not all the sewers
are worrying about pleats.

I quite like the red, erm,

kind of quite traditional,

and it's also quite dark, so
hopefully it'll cover up any flaws.

The kilt begins as a rectangle,
around one and a half metres long.

To reduce this,
even pleats are formed,

taking care to maintain
the tartan's repeating pattern.

Each pleat is then adjusted
at the waist to fit.

Next, a waistband is pattern-matched
at the front and attached.

A pair of leather buckles are added,

the side edges frayed,

and a kilt pin is fastened

to complete the look.

"Across your fabric width,

"cut fabric by choosing
a certain line to mark along."

For the first time,

the sewers haven't been given
pattern pieces as a guide.

Instead, they must rely
on their tartan's lines.

OK, so let me just think...

..where I want to start
cutting into this.

Some lines, though,
are easier to follow than others.

I should probably do it
by the red line.

Easier guide, isn't it,

than starting it
in the middle of a white.

Clare, the first challenge
in the final.

Are you happy with this?

You think this is something
that's going to work for you?

I hope so.

I quite like the idea of the
systematic pleating, the tidiness.

Yeah, we can imagine that.
Nothing wrong with being tidy.

No, well, you should see MY flat!

Oh, don't, is it one of those sort
of explosions in a fabric factory?

Yeah, everything in my flat,

all the books are arranged
by genre and alphabetical order.

Post-its on them. Yeah! Yes, yes!

Clare is a consultant
lung specialist

at Portsmouth's
Queen Alexandra Hospital.

Sewing is her escape from
the pressures of hospital life.

Everything she does
impresses me amazingly,

and I think back, and I think,
"Well, yes, all right.

"I, too, was a doctor, but I didn't
do all these extra things."

I remember the first time
she beat me at Monopoly,

and I realised that
she was cleverer than me.

When she said she was
in the Sewing Bee,

I was amazed.

I informed the cat,
who didn't seem to care at all.

If she won the show,

I'd just chalk it up to another
of her wonderfulnesses.

Next, I start moving on
to my pleatage.

"Your first pleat must be at least
21 centimetres from the edge

"of your left front edge."

OK. 21 centimetres.

Cos I know I need to pleat
it down to 31 centimetres.

When I get to there,
I shall finish them.

Measuring where the pleats will go
is just the start.

"To start pleating,
matching up tartan..."

The sewers must now figure out
how to evenly pleat,

whilst maintaining
the tartan's pattern.

This folding system, it doesn't seem
particularly intuitive.

Sorry, I'm just trying to
concentrate getting this.

HE SIGHS HEAVILY

It can't be THAT difficult.

This looks very complicated to me.

Well, it's not straightforward,
it requires that they understand

what we're trying to achieve
at the end,

which is the repeating pattern.

So what they need to do is
pick a point and line it up.

Let's take these two green lines.

Now you can see we still
have the same pattern...

Yep.

..white, dark, white, dark,

but now we have pleats
running through the middle.

I mean, that is quite a big
repeat on there.

Some of them are much smaller.

Obviously, with different sizes,

you're going to get
different results.

I am going for my pleats.

There's going to be a heck of a lot,
because it's a small repeat.

The pleats not only need
to pattern match,

they must also be an identical size.

OK. Let's hope for the best, then.

I think you kind of just go
with the tartan that you have.

And the tartan they chose
will determine how difficult

the job will be.

Because there are
nice, straight lines,

this small one is relatively easy
to match the edges.

While a smaller set provides
many guiding lines to follow,

larger sets are less
straightforward.

That's not right.

The red block
I think is a bit too big.

Matt's sizable set means
he must pleat through plain fabric

if he's to get a match.

Are you all right, Matt?
No, I'm not all right.

Yeah, your repeat is quite big,
isn't it? Yeah.

Cos I tried to do mine smaller.

Here to there... OK.
..kind of thing. Yeah.

Thank you. You're all right.

It's not as easy as it looks, is it?
No, it's not.

The problem is trying to pleat
through that red square. Yeah.

And it does get a bit
mind-bending... Mm-hm.

..but go by eye. Yep.

Get it done.

Good luck. Hopefully. Thank you.
Yeah? All right. Cheers.

Matt started sewing at 40,
as an escape from the nine-to-five.

By day,
he works as a broadcast engineer.

MUSIC: Venus by Bananarama

# She's got it

# Yeah, baby, she's got it. #

By night, he makes
drag outfits for his friends.

Come on, Martini! Woo!

We'll talk about it quickly,
just do a few sketches,

then he just brings it to life.

He's got some pretty amazing skills.

I think it's mostly from being
passionate about fashion.

He loves it so much.

I think, for Matt, what he's really
dreaming of is sewing, all day long.

Yeah. That should be his career.

Winning the Sewing Bee
would mean a lot to him.

That will be the way for him
to realise that, yes, it is true.

This is what he can do
and this is what he HAS to do.

All right, Matt?

Not really.

You OK? No, absolutely not.

No? You're not happy?

No. Well, there's four pleats here,
then three here, then two here!

Oh! Oh.

So, I've got different pleats.

I don't want to take time away
from you. No, no, no, it's fine.

So, once I've gotten past
the first two, like, literally,

I go from the top...
Yeah. ..and use that as a guide. OK.

Yeah? Yep. Thank you.

Sewers, you have one hour remaining!

Ooh, I'm Patrick and I like sewing!

He's behind me, isn't he?

Sorry.

Stupid tartan.

I'm going to leave it.
I haven't got time.

But pleating is about to get
a whole lot harder.

We need to take the pleats in
somehow,

cos obviously you don't
want it just...

There's no elastic or anything.

Now, every single pleat
must be evenly drawn in

to make the waistline
the correct size,

and as they all have
a different number of pleats...

They gave us a calculation for how
much we move the pleats over by.

Hmm...

..this means a little maths.

So, half your hip measurement

minus half your waist measurement.

Divide Z by X number of pleats.

If they get the calculation wrong,

the kilt will be too tight

or too loose.

I counted 27 pleats.

I need to move each pleat...

..5.5 divided by 27...

..which is not much.

The calculation has thrown me.
Do I need to work it out?

God. It's been a long time
since I've done maths.

Yeah. Nobody likes maths.

Well, I did, actually.

Did you? I did, yes.

I liked the early stages of maths,
cos I could do that,

and then when you started getting,
like, Pythagoras and all that,

I was, like, see you later.
Not so much.

I'm off to show business.

Nicole came to the UK
from Trinidad in her 20s.

She had a high-flying
marketing career

but bowed out
to become a jewellery maker.

That career change,

it was a way for me to just
come out of my comfort zone,

do something, and experience things.

It's great, because I not only have
time to spend at home with the kids,

but I also have time to sew.

Here's to Mummy winning the final!
Woo!

Cheers!

Her family at home,
and in Trinidad,

are supporting her all the way.

Hi!

Hi! Hi!

How are you?

I'm in the final of the Sewing Bee.

Ah! Yes! Yes!

Well done! Fantastic!

I'm so proud of you, Nicole, and I
know Dad would've been, too.

Oh, thanks, Mama.

This is a bit of a brain-teaser.

I was not expecting
to do maths today.

I'm leaving each pleat
by two millimetres!

I'm about to give up. Maybe I'll
just stitch them into place.

Big respect to the Scots
and their kilts,

because they are difficult to do.

Yeah! How's yours going?

Well, I have 27 pleats.

I'm, like, getting that sort of
weird stereoscopic nauseated head.

I have no idea about tidiness,

and I feel a little bit like
I'm falling into the pattern.

Sewers,

you have 30 minutes left of
your final ever Pattern challenge!

Patrick and Esme's pattern-matching
puzzle hasn't finished just yet.

"On the wrong side of the kilt, pin
the right side of your waistband..."

Matching tartans on a waistband
is no mean feat.

The sewers must not only account
for the seam allowance,

they also need to synchronise
the multi-directional lines

of the sets.

I need to work out how the lines
continue down and across,

which it's not doing there.

Whoever thought of this challenge
is an evil genius.

This is the ultimate
pattern-matching.

Deep breath.

I don't know if I'm doing it right.
Ooh!

Skewwhiff!

But I'm in no mood to do that again.

Just ten more minutes, sewers.

Finish the garment, Nicole.

Clare, you've made a kilt.

These are buckle fasteners.

Come on. What's going on here?

Deep breaths.
You're going to be fine.

My God. It's quite thick,
this leather buckle.

Eurgh.

Come on, move.

Two minutes, sewers!

Oh...

This is going to have, like,
three stitches in it.

God, I'm getting to the final press!
In the final!

The final press of the
final Pattern challenge! Yes!

Steamy!

I'm just doing the fastening.

I don't even know
if I'm doing this right.

Popper inside.

Right, is this mannequin
going, "I cannot wait for my kilt",

or, "Please let this end"?

Well, I'm going,
"Please let it end!" OK!

Fringe. A quick pass of the needle.

Five seconds, sewers!

Come on!

I hate the pressure.

Needles up! You've completed
your final Pattern challenge!

It doesn't fit very well, but...
I mean, that's the waist.

It's a new style. Yeah!

MUSIC: Donald, Where's Your
Troosers? by Andy Stewart

# I've just come down
From the Isle of Skye

# I'm no very big
And I'm awful shy

# And the lassies shout
When I go by

# "Donald, where's your troosers?" #

Three fabulous-looking kilts.

Let's see what the judges think.

Clare, bring yours forward.

# "Hello!
Donald, where's your troosers?"

# Let the wind blow high
Let the wind blow low

# Through the streets
In my kilt I'll go

# All the lassies say,

# "Hello!
Donald, where's your troosers?"

# "Donald, where's your troosers?" #

I love the look
of the pleating on the back.

That has all the drama
of the back of a good kilt.

I think you very evenly
reduced it at the waist.

I mean, you've got
a lot of pleats here.

I'm going to count them. 27.

OK, you've saved me the job.

27 pleats.

That's an awful lot
of pleating to do.

Your waistband looks pretty good.

There's a slight little bit
where it's not matched.

Now, I think this is ceilidh-ready.

And you could see this person
doing the g*y Gordons in that,

couldn't you?

# Heel for heel and toe for toe

I don't know what's happening.

# Arm and arm and row on row
All for Mairi's wedding. #

Oh, you do. OK.

I like the choice of tartan,

but the pleats are just not right.

It isn't a kilt. Yep.

You've given us sections
in the middle

where there is no pleating. Mm.

Oh, I've got a pin here.

This pin is just
holding it up at the waist.

There's another one there. Oops!

It's a hipster kilt. Yeah!

I don't think you've
reduced the size of the waist.

Oh, no, you haven't, have you?
No, I haven't. No.

OK. Your snap fastener.

You've got two males,
rather than a male and female.

LAUGHTER

Is that a deliberate comment?

As a piece of political commentary,

it's fine, but it's not
going to keep your kilt up.

Well, Nicole,
we have a finished kilt.

We asked you to reduce the size
of the waist versus the hip.

It seems like you've done that
pretty neatly.

We do have the repeat
on your pleated section.

I'm just looking at that waistband.

Oh, no, it's not matched
at the front.

The thing with checks is
they show off anywhere

where you're going off kilter.

That's not a kilt joke.
No, stop it now.

Patrick and Esme will now rank
the kilts from last to first.

In third place,

it's Matt.

You struggled with the pleating.

Right.

In second place is...

Nicole.

Really, really nicely sewn,

but the waistband, you tripped up.

Which means, in first place,

it's Clare.

APPLAUSE

It just has all the movement
and all the drama

that a great kilt should have.

Well done.
Go and have a cup of tea.

I know it's the final,
but just a cup of tea.

But well done.

# I can swing along through
anything...#

One, two, three, one, two, three.

# Just as long as the world goes
round and around... #

Well done. Cheers. Cheers.

I found the pleating very
satisfying.

That was...almost enjoyable.

Second place for me does
feel pretty comfortable.

It's not hitting it out the park,
but it's not

kind of bottom-clenching, like,

"Ooh, I've got to really pull it out
the bag next."

I'm definitely still in it to win it
with this Transformation.

Just need to go mad and do something
really crazy, I think.

Celebration Week isn't about to get
any easier.

The finalists' creative instincts

are about to be tested one last
time.

It is time for the final
Transformation Challenge!

Of course, the most important
Transformation is the one

that you guys have made
over the last ten weeks.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going
to be sick behind an overlocker.

SHE LAUGHS

Patrick, tell
us about this challenge.

We are giving you a swimsuit, and...

NICOLE: Ooh! ..a prom dress.

And from these, we would
like you to make a carnival outfit.

In the haberdashery,

we have got a load of old sparkle.

OK, we're going to send the judges
away now.

Good luck.

You have 90 minutes.

Good luck.

Your time starts now.

Oh, OK, these are good colours.

Here we go.

Oh, I can't make my mind up!

I am so excited about this.

Let's go with that one.

Carnival in Trinidad is...

.the greatest show on Earth,
they call it.

I've gone for a dress that's got
some lightweight fabric to make some

kind of wings, like ladies
at Notting Hill Carnival with big

kind of sails.

I picked out this dress.

I've never been to carnival.

I've no idea.

So we've asked them to make
carnival costumes. So we have.

Have you been to carnival? I have,
actually, I've been to the Notting
Hill Carnival.

I've sat on a window ledge
with David Bowie... Have you?

..watching the carnival.

But we weren't wearing feathers.

THEY LAUGH

For me, carnival outfits
have two things.

They have a big structural
wow factor,

but also it's a lot about
embellishment.

Bustles with feathers on, headpieces
with... Plumage. ..feathers.

I think it's a great challenge
cos it allows them finally

to just be as exuberant
as they want to be.

I'm pretty exuberant.
You are today, aren't you?

I'm exuberant every day.
What do you mean?

That's entirely true.

I'm looking for stuff, just shiny
things.

In the most recent carnival costumes
in Trinidad, they're very risque,

but what they would do is maintain
some structure, cut this actual cup

out, and then replace it
with just things to cover

the...sensitive areas.

How are you getting on, Clare?

Yeah, all right. Good.

I'm currently just adding
some shiny bits onto a bra.

Oh, how very carnival of you.

I want to try and make some
kind of big wings.... Oh, yeah.

..with this lightweight fabric.

Well, if you can't use this in a
carnival challenge, when can you?

JANGLING

I like the fact
that this makes noise as well.

That's very carnival.

Bow for your queen.

Let's go for queen. Your Majesty.

I declare you a finalist
in the Sewing Bee.

Rise, Sir Matt. Yay!

This is the...? Green swimsuit.

I put the boning in to stiffen
it and then I'm just

going to add feathers,
and whatever.

Ah! Sounds like you've got an idea,
though.

I've got an idea in my head.

Yeah, I don't think it's going to
work out like that.

That's sort of what the joy
of this is, isn't it? Yeah. See, in

my head, I look absolutely stunning.

You do!

But I think in reality, I look
like a man having a breakdown.

MATT LAUGHS

I'm just going to try and make
a pair of wingy,

standy-uppy things.

I am completely "winging" it.

Ha-ha-ha-ha!

Sewers, you have one hour remaining!

Hi, Nicole.

Oh! Do you want a lollipop?

SHE LAUGHS

There you go. Thank you.

What else are you hiding in there?
Oh, you don't want to know.

SHE LAUGHS

So you're already putting
jewels onto a bra.

So I'm going with embellishment
over the naked breast.

HE LAUGHS

Wow!

Just going to pop downstairs to pick
up a few drinks for carnival.

See you later.

This needle is just literally not
piercing this.

It's not going to work.
HE CHUCKLES

I might use a metre rule.

Am I allowed this, do you think?
There are no rules about you not
using the stick,

so I think... Yeah! I can use the
sticks.

Yeah.

My feathers, they're too thick to
sew on,

so I've got two lines of this.

HE SIGHS

As long as that stays up,
it'll be OK.

Sewers, you're halfway through!

Just going to pop to the loo.

I'm kind of kicking myself a bit
for going this heavily embellished

on the top of the leaves because now
I've got to mirror that

on the bottom.

What's all the others' look like?

High competition.
Yeah, it's not that size.

Oh, my God, this is complicated.

Shall I let go? Try letting go.

Wow!

This is where the thong
magic is going to happen.

Right, so I'm just going to sew this
sequin around.

Appliques. Hopefully, they'll go on.

Throwing everything at it.

Come on! Stitch through the middle,

and hope I don't break the needle.

I broke the needle.

HE LAUGHS

Five minutes, sewers!

I'm concerned about how secure
they are.

I kind of feel like I need to use
a second garment. Will this go

round her neck? A little choker.

I might use that bit at the front.

Trim on the bottoms.

One minute, sewers!

Excuse me, madam.

Needs more feathers.

Feathers around the bum.

Suppose it would be very handy if

somebody says, "Oh, can you just
measure me anything under a metre?"
Yes!

You could just sort of go, "Yeah."

Ay, yay, yay. Just shoehorning
things on now.

Might just tie that round.

Do you think the feathers
will k*ll it, or...?

No, it looks cool.

Just make my feathers.

Needles up, that is your time.
It's time for carnival!

I've just realised the front of my
bra looks really boring.

JOE GIGGLES
Oh!

MUSIC: Bingo Bango
by Basement Jaxx

Prom dresses and swimwear
transformed into carnival outfits

in just 90 minutes.

The judges have no idea
whose is whose.

Looks like a little bit of Rio

here in Bermondsey.

Better crack open the Red Stripe.

THEY LAUGH

One thing about this that
I really liked

as soon as I saw it was this

upside-down bodice. Yeah!
I'm not entirely sure

what you'd wear underneath it,
maybe nothing.

But the drama is here,

and this green isn't anywhere
close to that green. No.

It doesn't feel like it's
a part of it. Quite goes.

And this feels under-embellished,
for me. Yes, I agree.

I mean, it's kind of funny
that it's just a couple

of nipple leaves.

Well, this one has huge impact.

We've got all sorts of complicated
engineering going on here.

They've got a couple of yardsticks,
half-wing, half-flag, aren't they?

Yeah. Look, they made little pockets
to put the metre rule in.

If you were dancing in this, plenty
of swish at the back and, actually,

that's holding up pretty well.

It's a shame there isn't some
decoration

on the bust piece of the bikini.

Yep.

Well, I love this.

It's fabulous.

I think it's sort of part
Middle Eastern belly dancer,

part Wonder Woman, but it feels
100% carnival.

When they're doing the dancing,

it'll be jingling.

There you go. We've got the
turquoise of the swimsuit,

and we've got the coral pink of the
prom dress,

and then we've got all this
embellishment, and it all absolutely

works for me. Got a kind of reveal

of the over, the top of the breast
underneath,

you know, the top of the swimsuit,
which is very clever.

I would be quite interested
to actually see a body in this.

I would, too.

Patrick and Esme will now rank
the garments from not so keen

to Carnival Queen.

In third place is this one
on the end. That...

Just felt like it didn't go
together.

I loved that the top was
upside-down.

Thank you.
HE LAUGHS

In second place...

Purple wings.

Clare. Clare, it's fantastic.

It's an amazing feat of engineering.

Well, I wonder whose this could be.
Nicole!

There are so many different
elements that all work

so brilliantly together. Well done.

Well, sewers, that's it for day one.

Tomorrow, we'll find out the answer
to the question we've been asking
for the last ten weeks.

Why did Patrick grow that moustache?

ESME LAUGHS

And also we'll find out who wins
the Sewing Bee.

Whoa! I mean, come on, a
Trinidadian in the final doing

a carnival Transformation.

You know, if I didn't hit
that out of the park, I think I'd be
probably exiled from the country.

I was a little nervous at the
beginning. I was like,
"What am I going to do?"

And then I remembered
that I've been wanting to use

those metre rules in some kind
of costume or Transformation
for several weeks.

It's all resting on this one last
garment I have to make.

I'm fairly confident -
it's pretty impactful.

Today is a bad day, tomorrow
may be better.

# Let's fall in love

# For the last time... #

There's one challenge left
in the Great British Sewing Bee,

after which this year's
champion will be crowned.

One more dress and we're done.
Yeah, better or worse.

THEY LAUGH

Here's to that. Yes. Cheers.

Good luck.

# Let's fall in love for the last
time, dear. #

At the end of today, one
of you two will be my apprentice.

Sorry, I've got the show wrong.

It's the adrenaline.

Have you enjoyed the final?

I think so far so good, don't you?

I think the Transformations
were a wow. Yes.

If you had to distil
Nicole down to one garment,

that Transformation would be it.

It's incredibly impactful.

Clare's always been very good
at the technical side of things.

I mean, this week her pattern
challenge was excellent, right?

Yes. You have to be really precise.

And it was excellent.

So, Matt, then.

Pretty unlikely
that he's going to win?

Well, let's not forget that Matt
has won Garment of the Week twice

for Made to Measures. So he is no

stranger to doing well in that part
of the Sewing Bee.

But Matt has a lot of work to do
today if he's going to win.

For this last challenge,
the finalists have chosen

their own models.

Hello!

Nicole's sewing for Audra,

her pal from the school
run... It's exciting!

..Clare for Alex,

her colleague at the hospital...

Oh!

Welcome to my station.

..and Matt for his boyfriend, Greg.

Nervous, but all cut out,

all ready to go.

HE LAUGHS

Welcome back, sewers, and a special
welcome to our models,

who you have chosen
from your friends and family.

So if anything goes wrong today,
you have no-one to blame

but your own life choices.

THEY LAUGH

The judges today would like
you to make a stunning evening gown,

the sort of thing you might wear
on a red carpet.

They'd like a cut-out element
for drama and glamour.

You have six hours for this
challenge. For one last time,

good luck. Your time starts now.

Let sewing begin.

The finalists have all been allowed
to practise and cut out

their pattern pieces in advance.

But constructing a red carpet gown
in six hours is still a tall order.

Crazy. Last day, last garment.

I'm just happy to be making
a dress for Greg on national TV.

HE LAUGHS

I came into this challenge owning
the fact that I am quite

an experimenter, so, really, as with
many risks, if it pays off,

it's going to pay off big.

So it's the final Made to Measure,
a red carpet gown.

What are you looking
for in this garment?

We've asked for these gowns
to have a cut-out element,

so those cut-outs
need to be well-placed.

If you had the cut-out here,
and it's too loose,

your bosoms could fall
out the bottom.

They need to deliver something
extraordinary today.

I mean, this is the longest
Made to Measure Challenge.

You know, it doesn't just
have to be well-sewn, it doesn't
just have to be well-fitted,

it has to have incredible
impact on the model.

When I heard that we were
being asked to make

a red carpet dress, my immediate
thought was sort of

Golden Age of Hollywood,

those sort of slinky satin dresses,

a feature of which is lots of
panels,

which these '30s dresses are.

Made in luxurious satin,

Clare's ode to Tinseltown features

a drop back, a tiny bust cut-out

and an intricate bodice,

which contains 16 panels.

A chic, minimalist skirt
will enhance the slinky

'30s-style fit.

Hi, Alex! Hello.
How are you?

I'm good, thank you.

You're an anaesthetist, aren't you?
Yes.

I mostly do critical care
or intensive care.

Are you looking forward
to being dressed by Clare?

Terrified
about the actual reality of it.

Are you frightened about
the catwalk bit?

Yeah, yeah. Oh, God, I can teach
you.

SHE LAUGHS

Basically, what you do... What do I
need to do? It's all in the hips.

Are you wearing heels? Yes.

So I'm imagining I'm in heels.
Uh-huh.

And then you walk from the hips...
Yep.

THEY LAUGH

..like that. And then you get to the
end, and you go, "Ooh, I'm nice,
aren't I?"

While Clare's harnessing
sleek, understated glamour...

I love Nicole's fabric.
All those feathers.

SHE GASPS

..true to form,
Nicole can't resist a bit of bling.

So this is the pattern. Yes.

There's going to be a fair
bit of embellishment.

I wanted it to be an expression
of my Trinidadian heritage and,

you know, kind of bring all that
colour and flamboyance and
everything.

These are pictures of me and my
husband playing Trinidad Carnival.

Oh, wow. So that's me and my
siblings, as well.

OK. So, yeah, feathers hang down.

And it's going to have a big slit
going up the left leg.

OK. This is who you are, isn't it?
Mm, yeah.

Nicole's flamboyant gown

will feature a naked back cut-out,

side slit and ostentatious

embellishments starring hundreds

of cascading sequinned feathers.

Have you used anything
like this before?

I've used, obviously, sequinned
fabric, not feathers. Yeah.

There's a lot that can go
challenging with it.

This isn't a carnival costume. Yes.
This is red carpet evening wear.

Yes. So just make sure that it
still feels refined.

Mm, yeah.

Nicole's feathered frock
might be a risk,

but Matt's...

You do need to bang hard.

..is even more risque.

Matt, that's an interesting-looking
shape. Mm.

What is this piece?
Oh, my goodness!

So this is a sketch of how it's all
going to come together.

A harnessy kind of feather bodice.

So, quite saucy? Yeah.

The cut-out is doing a lot
in creating the drama

in the garment. Did you draft all of
this pattern yourself? Yes, I did,
yeah.

I mean, it could be extraordinary.

Wow.

Mat's unique design contrasts

a full-bodied skirt
with his tight-fit

faux-leather harness,

its dramatic cut-out winding
all the way from the front

through the entire back.

Like raw-edge binding.

But to pull it off,

he'll have to bind over two metres
of leatherette, which is notoriously

difficult to sew.

This is pretty strong stuff.

Come on, move.
HE SIGHS

This is so tricky, already.
I've only just started.

Sewers, you've had one hour!

You can do it.

AMERICAN ACCENT: Yes, we can.

That's the spirit.

Nicole, you're pals from the...
from the school run?

Yeah, she was with the cool parents.
She was in a cool g*ng.

The cool parents.
"Oh, she looks good."

If you saw me in the playground...

Hang on.

Let me get a child mannequin.

AUDRA LAUGHS

Come on, little Bobby!

Oh, hello, I'm Joe.

Hey, Joe, do you want to come to
prosecco Friday?

SHE LAUGHS

Yeah, I want to come to prosecco
Friday! Shove off, Bobby!
It's so easy!

Oh, my God. Move.

MATT SIGHS

Matt may still be struggling
with his leather harness,

but Clare's 1930s dress
has challenges of its own.

I have sewed together my 8,000
bodice pieces,

and I am assembling lining.
Two of those.

The bodice has two snaking parts,
both finished with lining.

And to encase the raw edges,
she must bag out.

It's the delicate operation
of sewing inside-out

and turning through.

My cut-out is here,

so I want to make a nice, sharp
point. OK.

Pull this whole lot

through itself.

The cut-out will be...

in the middle.

The others are a quite a long way

ahead of me, so I don't want
to footle about.

Time isn't just on Clare's mind.

Let's go, let's go.

But for Nicole, her big challenge
still lies ahead.

I'm trying to work as quickly
as I can getting the dress,

so I can work on, importantly, how
I'm going to attach the feathers

because that fabric's not
going to be easy to work with.

You've got half your time, sewers!

I am just attaching my lining.

Time's ticking on. I want to get
to the skirt embellishment.

Nicole may not be ready
to add her bling, but Matt...

Cool, right, I'll get on
with the skirt...

..has already arrived at his,
namely seven metres of gold brocade.

That's Greg's waist.

So I've got to gather each panel to
probably about seven centimetres.

Wow. It's quite tricky with all
the bulk here, but it should fit.

Are you excited to wear it?

Yeah, yeah. I mean, you've done a
lot of dressing up, haven't you?

A lot, yeah. So my drag name is
Martini.

Do you do shows as Martini?
Yeah.

She's sort of high fashion.
It's quite high fashion, yeah.

Oh, God.
THEY LAUGH

A lot of pressure on you,
all of a sudden.

Pressure, pressure, pressure,
pressure.

There's still a great deal to do.

What is going on here?
What is going on here?

What is going on here?
This is not right!

I've just stitched the lining
to the wrong side of the dress.

So instead of being right sides
together,

I've stitched it the wrong way.

I'm just having to unpick it
all and start over.

This is quite an annoying mistake.
Say some prayers, woman. I am.

Packing these things away.
Sewers, you have one hour!

Oh!

As Nicole rushes to fix her mistake,

Matt's moved on to his final fit.

The waistband, where should it go?

For the dress to be
red carpet-ready,

it's fundamental there's a good
fit at the waist.

Yeah. Maybe a bit lower? No.

But not all the sewers can try
theirs for size.

Because the skirt comes

up to here,

it doesn't have a waistband seam,

so I can't just make adjustments.

As Clare's dress has a seamless
waistline, she can't alter it

as she goes.

She won't know she's got
the fit right

until Alex puts the finished
dress on.

I've promised Alex there
won't be any embarrassing bits

hanging out. So I'm in your hands
now.

Yeah! Send you out with a seam
that just gives way as soon

as you walk. Pyew! Pyew!

Steady hands, steady hands.

So we've got three gowns,
three very different styles.

Yes, absolutely.

Clare's is incredibly classical, and
very refined and quite understated.

I mean, it's a very fitted gown.

It really all depends on that long,
smooth shape through the waist.

It needs to be beautifully,
beautifully sewn.

Fingers crossed. In you go.

It's a frock.

I'm attaching the skirt.

Doesn't sound too good.

SEWING MACHINE WHIRS

A lot of material. It's struggling.

I can really feel the tension.

Oh, my God!

So, Matt,

it's got this fake-leather bodice,

and this really dramatic
full, full skirt.

I'm slightly concerned about the
sewing of that leatherette.

It looks really kind of bulky.

But without doubt, it will have
impact, won't it?

So the lining's back on the right
way now.

Feathers are going on.

That is proper bulky.
Don't you dare break now.

Nicole. I do love that fabric

with the feathers. Jazzy, isn't it?

But Nicole, unfortunately,
is way behind on time.

Oh, is she?

Oh! What's happened?

Really! What? Broken needle.

Can we make time stand still?

HE LAUGHS

I love to. I'd love to, Nicole.
Oh, my God!

Is it these sequins and the
feathers?

Oh! This is not the finale

I was visualising.

Sewers, you have half an hour
remaining, and then you never

have to do this again.

Whoo! That's the spirit.

It's not a lot of time,

so I've stitched these points
here and leave the middle to sort

of hang. I mean, look at that,
don't you think?

The skirt is attached.

This sews into the hem.

Yeah, it should help it stay
out a little bit.

I'm pleating the shoulders. I can't
get the bloody needle through.

I'm going to do a couple
of very quick machine stitches.

I'm marginally concerned the style
may not have quite the same visual

impact as bright orange feathers.

Give me one.

I'm not sure how much
of these embellishments

I'm going to be able to get on.

Are you joking me?

This is doing my nut in now.

Sewers, you've got five minutes
left.

Finishing touches.

Perfect storm.

That's not good. The hem came
away from the edge.

So I'm just going to redo it.
Pressure.

Oh, God, that's really bad.

SEWING MACHINE WHIRS

As you can hear, my machine
is rather disgruntled.

I will not cry.

SHE SIGHS

Right, slap me, slap me, slap me.

Hm? Slap me.

One minute, sewers!

Get those models dressed, please.

If it doesn't fit now,
it's a bit too late.

Holding on by a thread.

Deep breaths. I believe in you.
We all believe in you.

Nearly there. How exciting.

Phew! There is no buttock on show.

Oh, my God.

Ay, yay, yay!

Five, four,

three,

two, one.

Needles up! That is your time!

You have completed the Sewing Bee!

NICOLE SIGHS

Give yourselves a massive
round of applause.

THEY CLAP

Hot stuff. Thank you.

You look amazing! Do you need a firm
handshake of support?

And it's over! Ha-ha-ha!

Ah! Ooh!

So proud of you. Oh, God!

So proud of you. Quite a difficult
fabric. Even for a non-sewer...

..I can see, erm...
That was tough.

You're OK. Come here.

You're OK.

NICOLE SOBS
Yeah. Hm? Yeah, I'm fine.

And we're ready.
You're like twins.

What's the face?

Just try and pretend you're looking
away.

Oh, I'm looking away over there.

What's that over there?

Oh, it's rain, it's rain.

# What good is sitting
alone in your room?

# Come hear the music play

# Life is a cabaret, old chum

# Come to the cabaret

# Put down the knitting, the book
and the broom

# It's time for a holiday

# Life is a cabaret, old chum

# So come to the cabaret! #

You did brilliantly, thank you.

Clare, this is the very epitome
of elegance.

It's ever so chic, it's ever
so refined.

You know, it's understated.

We just have this one beautiful,
jewelled focal point

and then a small cut-out.
Got a tiny, little pucker here,

which is unfortunate.

But I think the position
of the panel pieces across the bust

has worked really nicely,

the fit looks really good.

HE LAUGHS

Erm, yes. Finally, it's beautiful
over the shoulders,

it's very clean across the chest.

It's coming beautifully
in at the waist, it's not tight.

There's a very elegant movement
over the hips.

The simpler the garment,
the more the mistakes show up.

So it's really tricky to sew
something like this,

and I think you've done
a really good job.

We know it's a retro pattern,
but actually, it looks quite modern.

I think it's great. Well done!

Yeah! Well done.

# He's suave and he's smooth

# And he can soothe you like vanilla

# The gentleman's a k*ller

# Mr Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

# He is no fool. #

Right, Nicole, I think this
looks really, really glamorous.

Turn round. This back cut-out
is very nicely sewn.

You've under-stitched the lining,

so none of it's coming to the front.
But, turn round to the front again,

I've noticed that we've got
all these little pockets here.

Yeah. Yeah.

So it's not completely sewn on.

I thought it actually looked better.
OK. Yeah.

I don't mind that
it's just attached at the points.

Arguably, it sort of gives it a bit
more movement by not being attached

all the way around that kind
of scalloped edge.

I'm really glad that you've got
these jewelled patches.

It's got real impact.

I mean, I think it looks
amazing on you.

What you've done is brilliantly
sewn.

# I'm doing my face
with magic marker

# I'm in my right place

# Don't be a downer

# But I'm actually good

# Can't help if we're tilted... #

Matt, you look slightly nervous.
I am.

Well, you needn't be.
THEY LAUGH

I mean, Martini looks
absolutely astonishing.

I mean, it's fabulous.

There's nothing here I've ever
seen before.

It's glamorous, it's powerful,

but with this very elegant,
full skirt.

The binding around the edge.

Boy, have you handled
that brilliantly.

It is sitting so flat.

You thought this through and each
element has worked.

I love this brocade fabric.

And you can see how
they go together.

Let's look at the cutout.

I really like how you've put
the ring on the studs.

No, it looks great.

It's got real drama.

Thank you.

While Clare, Nicole and Matt
await the final decision...

THEY CHATTER

..the sewing room has opened its
doors to their family, friends

and a few familiar faces.

The things that they've made
are absolutely phenomenal.

I think Matt's stands out,
just like massively,

and I imagine that Greg
was just an amazing model.

Matt's dress just looks stunning.

And Matt has such great ideas.

If Matt was to win, I mean,
I'd be proud as punch.

I would have a few tears then!

For me, Clare's dress,

I would wear that.

It's just so chic
and so glamourous.

Clare was really worried that she
perhaps didn't have the creativity

for a challenge like this,
but looking through her rail,

she's a lot more creative than she
ever gives herself credit for.

Very impressed.

I would love her just as much
if she was completely useless,

but this is very nice.

I think it's going to be Nicole.

She's one of those sewers
who really went for it,

and it's because she was so brave.

Feathers to the end.

Glitter. Brilliant. Love it.

I crossed my fingers and wished that
she would win the Sewing Bee.

The judges now have a huge
decision to make.

Well, this is a tough one, isn't it?

Yes. I mean, I think they all
have impact in different ways.

So, Nicole - she was very frustrated
with her garment.

You guys loved it.

I was very impressed by the
combination of texture and colour.

It's joyous.

It's got brilliant use of
embellishment. Yes.

I mean, that is absolutely,
purely, Nicole.

At the opposite end, Clare's
made-to-measure is '30s-inspired.

To make it look really well-fitted
is very difficult. Yeah.

Everything needed to be sewn
to perfection.

And it was.

Matt - has he redeemed himself?

This hits you in the eye
when it comes towards you,

and Matt drafted this
pattern himself.

You know, it is an original.

This is feminine and
ballgown-y.

And then this is creating
a lot of drama.

Yeah, there's
a lovely juxtaposition.

This is a really great finale
for Matt.

So is there a clear winner
in your eyes?

For me, there is a clear winner.

I have a clear winner, too.

Well, I hope it's the same one
or you could be scrapping.

CHEERS AND APPLAUSE

LAUGHTER
Flamenco dress!

Yoo-hoo!

Woo!

Well, this is exciting, isn't it?

ALL: Yes!

OK. Will our three finalists
please come forward?

CLARE: Good luck, chaps.
MATT: Good luck.

I can now reveal that the winner

of The Great British Sewing Bee
is...

It's Clare!

CHEERS AND APPLAUSE

Well done!

Oh, well done!

Well done.

Clare! Go on!

Unbelievable!

Whoa!

How do you feel?

Very surprised!

LAUGHTER

Oh, my goodness! Very well done.

Oh, my goodness.

Well, well, well, well done!
Thank you.

Well done. Wow.

That was great.

LOUD CHEERS

I'm gobsmacked!

Big hugs.

Well!

Crikey.

I do hold myself to high standards
and...

But other things I've gone in for

have been things that I've trained
for, you know, like exams,

and more exams and more exams!

This was something I do for fun.

And I just... I signed up
just to have some fun

and do interesting things,
and, well, I've done that!

Definitely done that!

I'm really happy for Clare,
you know, she's done a...

She's done an amazing job
all the way through.

You know, she's a really good sewer
and she deserves to win.

It's a... Yeah. I'm just, er...

kind of sad it's all over, really.

CORK POPS
CHEERS

I don't think she's had a single
duff week, really.

You know, just like the standard
to which she sews and pays attention

to everything, the way she considers
everything and the creativity

in her work and her Transformations
and her Made to Measures

are really just outstanding.

To sewing. To sewing.

I couldn't be more proud of her.

Don't go mushy all on me!

See, if I start
telling her I love her,

and she's wonderful and beautiful,
she gets cross with me!

So I don't tell her!

But she is!

MUSIC: I'll Never Fall in Love Again
by Johnnie Ray

# I'll never fall in love again

# It's over now,
it takes a heart to know the end

# I tried to take the chance, to
feel the thrill of romance and love

# And I let my foolish heart become
enchanted by starlight above

# I'll pretend I never heard
a tender loving word from you

# You've found another love
and forgotten every joy we knew

# I'll pretend I never heard
a tender loving word from you

# You've found another love and
forgotten every joy we knew

# Please help me understand
the way the angels planned

# Our love affair should end

# I'll never ever fall

# I'll never fall in love

# Again. #