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Beautiful Things HQ

Sewing and Craft Classes in Brentwood, Essex

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Dressmaking

Great British Sewing Bee 2021 – Week 1

Claire’s #2018makenine

My dressmaking makes for May

Clearing out my fabric stash

A trip to the Goldhawk Road

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So you want to:

Learn to sew?
Learn to crochet?
Learn to knit?
Make your own clothes?
Learn a new craft?

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We had a great introduction to mandala dotting thi

We had a great introduction to mandala dotting this morning with @lovedotting check out our website for all of our Christmas classes as spaces are now very low.

You have until midnight tonight (28th Sept) to joi

You have until midnight tonight (28th Sept) to join our VIP sewing club.

Link in our bio

A quick tutorial showing you how to sew your own i

A quick tutorial showing you how to sew your own ironing board cover. #sewingtutorial #sewingironingboardcover #learntosewwithme #sewingteachersofinstagram #sewinglessons

Join us for a perfect patchwork point class and le

As we quickly head towards October a lot of us are

“When I started the sewing club my sewing confid

“When I started the sewing club my sewing confidence was great.

We were in the middle of lockdown and I had been making scrubs.

That’s what got me back into getting my sewing machine out.

Then I made myself a dress, which really wasn't very successful!

Looking around for some help I found the online sewing club, which gave me the opportunity to try new skills and to experience using different materials.

With the sewing club I got to make practical things which was the greatest thing for me … I just wanted to make useful things for my home and I could do it all online. At the time, that was important to me so that was brilliant and I hadn't haven't looked back!!”

Member spotlight … “Sewing club has projects

Member spotlight …

“Sewing club has projects for everybody.

It's not a case of feeling like you’ve got hardly any time and worrying that you’re not going to keep up with them.

You do get new projects on a regular basis, but it really doesn’t matter when you do them.

It's definitely not a race because when you join, you get lifetime access.

So, for example, if you're a parent with very young children, children just about to start school or you're thinking about how to fill your days when you retire, sewing club will be perfect because you can dip in and out of the projects.

I've made some of the projects lots of times and some I’ve not even started yet but it really doesn't matter as it’s all yours for you to enjoy.

The projects are really varied so I’ve made every one of them for my home, I've made things as gifts for people and I make things for my grandchildren who are very picky about what they like!

The sewing chub has a huge variety of projects, and excellent short tutorials. Once you've got a project in your library, you can develop it, use it your own way and of course it’s always in your own choice of fabric. It's not like you're buying a kit and off the shelf so you can really enjoy personalising each project.

The connection to other people who understand you and appreciate what you're making is one of the best things about sewing club.

We love to use the Facebook group that we have, so that we can share what we've made, share ideas and just generally cheer each other on.

I've even had the opportunity to meet some of those people in real life, online around the world and also face to face. I've made a whole load of new friends and it's just brilliant!”
________________________________________
If you’re feeling a bit uncertain or nervous then drop me a message, reach out to members of the free BTHQ group and take a look at the link in the first comments.

There’s nothing I love more than helping someone start, or restart, something they want to love but are afraid to try.

Claire

Another one of our happy Sewing Club members tells

Another one of our happy Sewing Club members tells her story.

“I’ve been sewing for most of my life, on and off, but life really got in the way and it was just making the odd thing here and there.

I was having a look on the internet for some new and fresh ideas and came across beautiful things.

Amazingly discovered that they were only 30 miles from my house so I went for a couple of classes which I really enjoyed.

While I was there I found out about the online sewing club, which I joined and it's been just amazing.

I'm a platinum member now, and I love it.”

If you'd like to join in with the fun, don't be the one with FOMO in October when it's too late to get in on the action. Ask us for more details.

“I love the social aspect of the sewing club, an

“I love the social aspect of the sewing club, and learning the techniques to reuse to make something off piste.

Yesterday I made a zip up pouch without a pattern from memory using techniques I’ve learned over the various projects.

Making highly personalised pressies for friends and family is so much fun and the sewalongs really get me out of a rut if I’ve stopped sewing for some reason.”

___________________________________________
If you'd like to be able to make something special for your friends and family then the Sewing Club is just what you need. Find out more about joining today.

When I first started sewing it was hard, really ha

When I first started sewing it was hard, really hard to find decent courses to follow.

I spent hours searching the internet and watching terrible YouTube videos just to learn the basics.

Sometimes I got lucky and found something worth learning from but most of the time it just felt like a big, fat, waste of time.

You know how precious your time is, especially when you have young kids.

You want to spend time with your family doing the things you love.

You want time for yourself, learning something you want to learn, to just relax.

When I started the business, I realised that people wanted and needed things to be …
… simple, high quality, consistent …

One of my sewing club members recently told me that …........
___________________________________________
“When I started 2 years ago I was nervous and apprehensive, despite wanting to learn. I really wasn't sure if it was something that I would be able to do.

Claire & BTHQ are the complete opposite of the misery of school sewing which crushed all my confidence.

There is warmth, enthusiasm (which is very infectious), encouragement, excellent tuition and advice, and the online course structure is really easy to navigate.

I loved completing Beginners 101 and then embarking on the Sewing Club projects (and the Introduction to Stretch course online).”
__________________________________________
Hearing that makes my heart feel full and I see myself in their words.

It takes courage to start something new.
To step out of your comfort zone and into something your heart desires but your head fears.

That same sewing club member summed it up beautifully when she said …

"I would say to anyone who has even the slightest inkling to start (or restart sewing) - just do it, and do it now.

Life is horribly short and we all deserve our time to ourselves and our passions.

My only regret is that I didn't start sooner.”

So perhaps now is your time to start.

Don’t wait for the right time, I guarantee it will never come.

P.S if you’re looking for a new challenge and want a hobby with like minded people check out the sewing club link in our bio … doors are open now but close soon!

Member spotlight … Meet the lovely Sandra Here'

Member spotlight … Meet the lovely Sandra

Here's what she has to say about out online sewing club................

“Sewing club has projects for everybody.

It's not a case of feeling like you’ve got hardly any time and worrying that you’re not going to keep up with them.

You do get new projects on a regular basis, but it really doesn’t matter when you do them.

It's definitely not a race because when you join, you get lifetime access.

So, for example, if you're a parent with very young children, children just about to start school or you're thinking about how to fill your days when you retire, sewing club will be perfect because you can dip in and out of the projects.

I've made some of the projects lots of times and some I’ve not even started yet but it really doesn't matter as it’s all yours for you to enjoy.

The projects are really varied so I’ve made every one of them for my home, I've made things as gifts for people and I make things for my grandchildren who are very picky about what they like!

The sewing hub is a huge variety of projects, and the excellent short tutorials. Once you've got a project in your library, you can develop it, use it your own way and of course it’s always in your own choice of fabric. It's not like you're buying a kit and off the shelf so you can really enjoy personalising each project.

The connection to other people who understand you and appreciate what you're making is one of the best things about sewing club.

We love to use the Facebook group that we have, so that we can share what we've made, share ideas and just generally cheer each other on.

I've even had the opportunity to meet some of those people in real life, online around the world and also face to face. I've made a whole load of new friends and it's just brilliant!”
__________________________________________
If you’re feeling a bit uncertain or nervous then drop me a message, reach out to members of the free BTHQ group and take a look at the link below.

There’s nothing I love more than helping someone start, or restart, something they want to love but are afraid to try.

Claire
x

You’ve made it!! It’s officially week two of

You’ve made it!!

It’s officially week two of term for most kids and their parents too.

Even if you’ve got a little one still doing settling in sessions, hopefully things will be starting to feel a little more ‘normal’.

By now I imagine you’re starting to feel like you’ve got some sort of routine beginning even if it feels all a bit new or changeable.

Whether your kids are littlies or biguns, as I affectionately call them, the start of a new school year can feel really up and down and all over the place.

Truth is, I’ve always found that by the time we get to the end of week two you’ll be well and truly ready to embrace the new found moments of freedom.

Freedom from our children can make it sound like we don’t love every bit of them.

Like you do, I love my kids to bits.

I would move heaven and earth to make sure they are healthy, happy and provided for.

Like you, I also have times when I know I just need a break and I have always been a big advocate of parents, especially mums (who are still the majority of primary carers) needing to take time out for themselves too … I call them #metimemoments or simply #metime!

It’s easy as a mum to feel that pain or guilt when you think about yourself.

If you’re new to having your kids at school or even in a nursery you’re probably feeling like you SHOULD be filling your new pockets of time with things for everyone else just like you always do.

I make no secret of the fact that I have Coaches, for business and for life … they help me focus on what will get me where I want to go.

One of the things I’ve learnt over the years is to be very careful of anything that feels like a SHOULD, MUST or HAVE TO … those words are like triggers to get your spidey senses going.

They smack of obligation rather than desire and goodness only knows we can all do with a bit more of what we want and desire in our lives!

So, in those moments when you feel like you should be using your time for everyone else, take a breath and ask yourself how could you be using your time for you.

Continued in the comments......

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