Netflix and Sew: Our Favourite Sewing-Inspired Television Shows
- Words by Peppermint
Sewing is a great hobby that engages the brain and the hands – tactile, creative and away from those damn screens. But sometimes we’re tiiiiiiired. Sometimes the spirit itches to stitch but the body is weak, or the sewing pile is empty, or we just miss our best friends the screens so much.
Luckily for us, there are some mighty fine television shows out there that can soothe the savage sewing beast while you stay snug on the couch, or lying and cutting fabric, or hand sewing, or, if you’re a real daredevil who cares not about a needle through the finger, while you’re on the machine itself. We’ve chosen some of our favourite sewing-inspired television shows to share with you – shows that not only satisfy but educate and inspire, so you can throw yourself back into your own sewing practice refreshed and refuelled with new information and ideas you can’t wait to try out!
The Great British Sewing Bee
If you’re looking for Top Tier Sewing Television you can’t go past our beloved The Great British Sewing Bee. Each week, an eclectic bunch of amateur home sewists compete to be crowned Britain’s most sensational seamster under the wry and watchful eyes of judges Patrick Grant and Esme Young and new host Sara Pascoe. Full of the understated drama and general bonhomie characteristic of British reality television, every episode includes lessons in sewing history and special techniques for contestants and viewers alike.
Project Runway
Another Grand Matriarch in the Sewing TV Pantheon is the estimable Project Runway, where aspiring fashion designers compete to create the best clothes while restricted by various time, material and theme constraints. Spanning 18 years, 19 seasons, multiple spin-offs and several eras of fashion now abhorrent to human eyes (low-rise jeans you will never be our jellicle choice!), it is a rich vein of content for you binge-watchers out there.
READ MORE: Here are 11 Films to Inspire Your Sewing
Making The Cut
Making the Cut is hosted by platonic power duo Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum who left Project Runway to create their own legally distinct, though ideologically identical, fashion reality series. Picture Project Runway but with more established designers, higher production values and a renewed sense of energy (they’ve got Bezos’ cash to burn). It’s a good time and we challenge anyone not to feel inspired when they hear Tim Gunn sternly but not unkindly bidding you to “make it work”.
Next in Fashion
Queer Eye-con Tan France and Alexa Chung (to be replaced by Gigi Hadid in season 2, coming soon) present Netflix’s Next in Fashion, where 18 seasoned designers compete for the opportunity to take their labels to the next level. With an incredible amount of talent on show, each challenge reflects a different trend or design style that has had a major influence on the world of fashion. Tan brings with him the purposefully positive ethos that encapsulated his previous cult classic, cultivating a diverse, queer-positive and welcoming vibe to escape into.
A Stitch in Time
An accessible introduction to fashion history, Amber Butchart brings the past to life by choosing iconic and interesting historical outfits from paintings and recreating them using only period-appropriate techniques. Working with expert historical costuming crews, Amber shows how much we can tell about historical figures and their lives from only the clothes they wore, not to mention exposing the techniques required to create some truly sumptuous outfits, all while showing off her own serious style and charmingly unserious approach to learning.
READ MORE: What Historical Sewists Can Teach Us About Slow Fashion
RuPaul’s Drag Race
RuPaul scours the drag queen population for the newest swathe of drag superstars, judging them against criteria of charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent. While not always the main focus, a queen’s ability to stay in the race or sashay away is largely dependent on her sewing skills. Either way, the assortment of Capital-L Lewks they put on the runway each episode in order to meet various themes and challenges, often home-sewn, are sure to inspire you to serve, slay and so on and so forth in your own sewing.
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Between 2000 to 2015, global clothing production doubled... while the duration of garment use decreased by 36%.
We are throwing away clothing at a faster rate than ever before. How can we tackle this problem?
✨️ WEAR
Be an outfit repeater - wear your items of clothing as long as possible. Learn to style your garments in various ways. Loved clothing lasts.
✨️ SHARE
If you really need to move it along, share the love with friends - hold a clothing exchange night! Or organise a timeshare with a friend where you swap a few favourite pieces of fashion. If you really can`t find a new home for it, then donate to an op shop or charity.
✨️ CARE
The care of your clothing – washing, drying and ironing – can account for approx 30% of a garment`s total carbon footprint. Hand wash, line dry, wash in cold water, and only wash when necessary.
✨️ REPAIR
Mending – and making – slows down fast fashion buying habits. Repairing used to be common practice, until disposable fashion took over. Extending the life of clothing by just nine months can reduce carbon, water, and waste footprints by 20–30%. Fixing doesn`t need to just be utilitarian – get creative with visible mending!
*Fact from The United Nations Environment Programme
#PeppermintMagazine #WearShareCareRepair #SustainableFashion
Have you whipped up the Acacia A-Line Skirt yet? 🪡
Accessible to beginner and experienced sewists alike, its classic style makes this skirt a wardrobe staple and a pattern you can happily play on repeat. Curved front pockets and the fun exposed-zip detail at the centre back make this style pop! The Acacia is a blank canvas, awaiting inspiration – add contrast top stitching, trim the pockets with bias binding or even change the length. We’ve chosen the smooth, clean lines that come from facing the waist, with back darts to ensure a neat fit on the hip. *chef’s kiss*
This pattern was made with the support of the lovely folk at @WeftAndWarpFabrics 🫶🏼 The team at Weft and Warp graciously sent three sewists the fabric of their choice to whip up their own Acacia A-Line – the results are super sweet!
Head to our website to see the makes from @The.Sewcialite @HandmadeByCarolyn and @You_CanSew - link in bio!
#PeppermintAcaciaAlineSkirt #PeppermintPatterns #WeftAndWarpFabrics #MeMade
Polka dots for days…
We love this Tansey Top by @_Rubys_Threads_ - the ultimate simple but stylish top you need in your rotation now!
Pattern: #PeppermintTanseyTop
Fabric: Japanese cotton @RawFibre
#MeMade #PeppermintPatterns
How`s your long weekend going? Working hard on your PhD? 🪡✂️🧵
Image from JoellsLeatherWorks on @Etsy
#ProjectsHalfDone #SewingPile #ProjectPile
In case no-one has told you lately, Emma Giacalone says you`re a good egg. (And we happen to agree).
This incredible mini egg embroidered 3D artwork was created by @Emma_Giacalone_Textiles, a textile artist in Gloucestershire, UK.
"When we buy an item of clothing, a label is attached telling us how to look after it to keep it at its very best. My mission is to create little care instructions to help to remind us to lead our happiest life."
INGREDIENTS: Freehand machine embroidered onto 100% cotton, using Egyptian cotton thread, and wool felt backing.
#EasterArt #GoodEgg #TextileArt
No ordinary wrap dress! 💃
Wrap dress wardrobe malfunction? Not with the Peppermint Waratah Wrap Dress pattern! We designed the Waratah to make sure this never happens.
Enjoy a few BTS videos from this super fun shoot. Maybe some inspo for Easter weekend sewing?
MODELS/SEWISTS: @Melt.Stitches, @KatieMakesADress @Tricky.Pockets @Laura_The_Maker
Head to the link in bio for the #PeppermintWaratahWrapDress 🪡
#PeppermintPatterns #SewingPattern #MeMade #WrapDress
