A York contestant has made ‘one of the best things we’ve ever seen’ on BBC’s The Great British Sewing Bee.
Anna, who is part of the St Leonard’s Hospice retail team in York, has blown the judges away in the latest episode of the popular cosy reality show.
For week three, the theme was Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Host Sophie Willan, alongside judges Patrick Grant and Esme Young, presented three challenges focused on the environment and sustainability – Pattern Challenge, Transformation Challenge, and Made-to-Measure Challenge.
And it was the in the final challenge that Anna absolutely excelled – where sewers were tasked to make outfits with an environmental message made to measure their models.
Anna printed her fabric with Himalayan balsam flowers, which are a highly invasive species of flower. She first treated the fabric to make the dye stick and then hammered each flower onto the fabric.
“It’s made a very beautiful print,” commented judge Patrick Grant.
The fabric was used to recreate an 18th-century gown, with a fully lined bodice and boning.
“The parallel is that this type of dress was so incredibly popular in the 1880s that it was banned because it was considered a threat to the local wool trade,” explained Anna. “So it’s like an invasive species of dress.”
When the dress came down the catwalk, the judges commented that her design took “the whole thing to a completely different level.”
Judge Patrick was particularly impressed by it. “I’m genuinely moved to tears by how wonderful it was,” he said.
“It is one of the best things we’ve ever seen in Sewing Bee.”
“I almost don’t know what to say,” said Anna, who won Garment of the Week in the episode. “I’m gobsmacked.
“I’m almost a bit overwhelmed, it was just so lovely to hear.”
You can catch up with Anna’s sewing bee journey on BBC iPlayer here. The Great British Sewing Bee is currently airing on Tuesdays at 8pm on BBC One.