New Sewing Bee Series to start this week ...

Actually, I thought Sewing Bee became very boring when they concentrated on 'ordinary' people, who were very good sewers. It resulted in the tasks they were given getting more and more complicated and the sewers just concentrating, heads down, on the job and, to my mind it got very boring.

The current crew, seem to me to be fairly representative of the people on the streets in the town centres of any of our big cities or university towns - London, Manchester, Birmingham, Oxford, where something like 75% of the population live

It is only country bumpkins, like me, and others, who see this group of people as being 'not like people I see around here', although I love the diversity of this group.

The same thing happened with the cooking programme Monica. It started with really good home cooks (about 100 years ago ) and now they all want to be chefs and the pressure is what makes the programme.

It's a shame they don't make room for both. One to learn from and one to enjoy as entertainment.

It also happened with Come Dine with Me. It started out with keen cooks who enjoyed entertaining at home, but by the end it was full of exhibitionist who could barely make toast but just wanted to be on the telly. It just turned into a freak show.

A couple of unusual or quirky contestants is fine, but when they take over the whole premise of the show gets lost.

I thought the Sewing Bee was starting to go a bit too far down that road last year, but they seem to have reined back a bit this year.

I think it is a very much a tight rope the television production companies face between ensuring contestants have a high enough skill in the craft for people to appreciate the skill and for the programme to be properly competitive an interesting enough range of contestants to provide colour and variety.

Has anyone heard of paper bag shorts before this? I can see they could be very flattering.

Sad to see someone leave as always but I do think it was the right choice as was the dress that won this week. So much pressure though.

Yes paper bag style shorts and trousers are very popular with twenty and thirty somethings PippaZ, they are quite flattering I think, my daughter has some. I actually liked the winning shorts tonight better than the dresses. Boden have them, lots of choice.

I agree, the right person left, although there are a few other candidates for the next few weeks.

I m disappointed with this series it’s not holding me so much and I think it’s tired, we could all write the script why they all have to follow exactly the same format is just lazy programming They all have two experts and a comedian and and follows exactly the same format and it’s all lost it’s excitement because it’s so predictable
No I ve never heard of paper bag shorts either pippa I think they made that up ? I think j some of the things they make are pretty awful those items made from swimming shorts was such a mish mash
I ll keep watching though in hopes

Has anyone heard of paper bag shorts before this? I can see they could be very flattering.
pippaZ I was talking this over with my husband, we had these years ago but we didn’t call them that.
It is the same with the “buffet dresses”, just a dress surly. I first saw paper bag shorts when I got a free pattern from a website.
I wonder if they will do the equally bizarrely named “pillowcase”top or dress.
It’s a great series so far.

The shorts and dresses were fine but what was that middle challenge all about?
Who thought that one up - no-one would make anything like that in RL.

No. I'd not heard of paper bag shorts either, PippaZ but I quite liked them.

Paper bag trousers were very popular a couple of years ago, my granddaughter had a few pairs, H&M had lots of them.

I think the middle challenge is just a way to test their creativity- it hasn’t much to do with sewing!

A term I heard for the first time on last series is “bagging out”. I always just say “turn inside out”. Is this a new term to anyone else?

I hadn't heard of it either

Paperbag shorts new to me as well, fine if you are tall and willowy, but not for the vertically challenged!

I don't really enjoy the invention pieces recycling bit, why can't they just choose lengths from a roll to put together, the 'creations' are not wearable. I did think the sun dresses at the end were beautiful.

Yes I’ve heard of paper bag waists but I have worked in fashion. Bagging out” is a term used for the way of finishing where the seams are enclosed as opposed to turning a hem for example. It’s good if these sorts of programmes teach and inspire people to get sewing, but they do give the impression that you can knock out a fully finished ball gown in a couple of hours, when in reality they don’t give enough time to do anything properly.

I don’t enjoy the transformation challenge, most of the finished articles look like nothing anyone would wear.

Am already predicting how far some will go in the competition.

Casdon

Yes paper bag style shorts and trousers are very popular with twenty and thirty somethings PippaZ, they are quite flattering I think, my daughter has some. I actually liked the winning shorts tonight better than the dresses. Boden have them, lots of choice.

I agree, the right person left, although there are a few other candidates for the next few weeks.

That explains a lot Casdon Thank you. I really liked the shorts "challenge".

I think they have to show an all-around ability to win so some competitors will start to unravel as we go on.

"Bagging out" (the phrase) is used a lot these days. I think it may have come from the bag-making world (surprisingly big) originally. I did hear an American call it "birthing" as you pull the bottom of the sewn piece from the inside, through the neck of the sewn pieces but I really, really don't like that one.

I have to agree with vegansrock about the pace from start to finish. It gives a false idea of how long things take - and how most home stitchers like to sew.

I also have professional qualifications and have worked in this area so I do wince a bit at some of it BUT I always think a lot of these people who go on the show can most probably sew very well given the time to do so. It is a different thing being given an hour or two and expecting perfection. You can only really sew competently well in that sort of time frame if you have had A LOT of practice or doing the same thing over and over, a bit like soft furnishings like box cushions with piping or similar, they look easy but they are actually very difficult unless you make a lot of them regular

I love to sew but I think the stress of making something in the time allowed would probably put me off sewing ever again!

Seen - and worn paperbag shorts, like 'buffet' dress, just a new name for a familiar style of dress.

I am thoroughly enjoying this series, more importantly, so is DH and he has friends (male and female) who are nejoying it too.

Of course the premise of the competition is false, these are all competent sewers, but not the best and the whole point is meeting the requirement to make something in a short period of time. If everybody was able to finishe everything on time and with plenty of care, where would the competitionbe?

You need to remember that the prime purpose of as television programme is to entertain, not satisfy the strict requirements of purists.

I am an amateur archaeologist and when Time Team was first broadcast, there were experts in the field complaining that you couldn't do a project in three days, that it did not cover all the preparations, that they did not cover the post-excavation work, Yet that programme did more for archaeology in this country than almost anything else in my life time. people now know about the subject, are more concerned about archaeology around them and it has spawned hundreds of local community groups.

Perhaps the same will happen with Sewing Bee, more and more people will start making and remaking clothes and thinking about how they dress.

The shorts looked reasonably easy to make as long as you are careful with placing the pockets.

Not that I will be making any for myself and the DGD are more into sportswear at the moment.

I thought the shorts looked nice. If only I could go to the Body Shop and buy myself a new pair of legs, then I think I would enjoy making a pair of the shorts.

I liked the shorts. I've always wondered how to do a turn-up hem like that, and now I know. And I liked the winning dress. Have to admit, I'm not feeling much of a connection with any of the contestants this time around. When it first started I made a comment about not being impressed with Joe but I have to admit he's grown on me. I think he's got his work cut out with the current lot too - only week 2 and there's already been tears.

I have some paper bag trousers from a few years ago that I never wore because they were a bit too big. They will probably be too small for me now! I also saw a white broderie anglaise paper bag midi skirt at the weekend that I am thinking about buying.

I'm sorry if it came across that I was criticising the contestants, quite the opposite. I think it's very difficult to sew something well in a couple of hours. I also liked the winning dress but I am absolute sucker for pin tucks

Amberone I am with you on Jo Lycett, when he started my reaction was that anyone was better than that shouty woman whose name eludes me, but had hair that covered her face, and held sewing and sewers in utter contempt and made no attempt to hide it, but now I have really grown to enjoy Jo's compering, he has the art of seeing himself as their equal and sympathetic, but able to see fun in the situation.