As a child holidaying in north Norfolk, I dreamt of living in a traditional brick-and-flint cottage, a stone’s throw from the sea” I’ve always said I could never do a job I didn’t love. After all, you spend upwards of eight hours a day at work and that’s a big chunk of your life. Until…
Harvest time has always been an inspiration as it heralds the impending arrival of my favourite season” When the corn turns from a lush green to a pale yellow, I know it’s time to start thinking about new sewing pattern designs and fabrics for autumn. Growing up in a rural English village, surrounded by arable…
The colours of the changing seasons have always informed my fabric choices“ For the past four years, I made do with a paved courtyard garden. Living less than five minutes’ walk from the beach – and working for around 12 hours a day – made that a sensible option. But now I’ve moved to a…
A hat is the crowning glory of any vintage inspired outfit” At one time, an ensemble wasn’t deemed complete without a hat. From the cloches of the 1920s to the pillboxes of the 60s, hats defined the mode of each decade throughout the 20th century. Although in terms of fashion they no longer have the…
My obsession was cemented by the discovery of a shop, packed full of buttons in brown cardboard boxes” One of the questions I get asked the most about Charlie’s Aunt bags is “where do you get the buttons you use in your designs?” The truth is that the carefully chosen vintage pieces I place on…
There are usually three layers to each bag ‘body’ — the exterior fabric, the interfacing and the stabiliser” A bag is only as good as the fabrics you use, and that includes the base materials which give it structure, durability and form. The foundation materials used in making bags are interfacing and stabiliser. Interfacing strengthens…
I’ve always found it quite difficult to stitch simply for art’s sake rather than to produce something useful at the end of the process” The art of ‘slow stitching’ is usually defined as mindful needlework which focuses awareness on the process of sewing rather than the end result. It has come into vogue in recent…
Why the styles of the decade inspired a collection of handmade clothing and numerous fashion accessory sewing patterns” With the new Downton Abbey film due to be released this spring, a passion for all things ‘roaring 20s’ is set to be reignited. Although many of the Charlie’s Aunt sewing patterns are influenced by slightly later…
How to stitch every precious scrap of fabric into a vintage inspired fashion accessory” Fans of Charlie’s Aunt will know that my patterns are unashamedly vintage in their styling, influenced mainly by the fashions of the decades between the 1920s and 1960s. By far the strongest and most enduring inspiration comes from the late 1930s…
A look at how the humble zigzag trim can be used for a lot more than fancy hems” Why buy when you can make? My passion for fashion began at an early age. I came from a family where most things were homemade. From the Friday night baking of bread and cakes which filled the…