Why Sewing Matters: Tony Rea Talks Mental Health, Community and Creativity

In this inspiring and heartfelt episode, we sit down with Tony Rea — a self-taught sewist who picked up a needle and thread at age 50 and stitched his way to the Sewing Bee final. 

Tony shares how sewing became not just a creative outlet, but a therapeutic lifeline, opening doors he never imagined.

From behind-the-scenes moments on the show to his bold personal style, Tony talks about the joy of making, and why he’s on a mission to get more men sewing. Plus, he gives us a glimpse into what’s next — from hosting workshops to building stronger creative communities.

It’s a reminder that creativity can take us in unexpected directions — and sometimes, all it takes is a stitch to get started.

Key Takeaways:

• Tony started sewing at the age of 50 and is entirely self-taught.
• He views sewing as a form of engineering, following patterns like blueprints.
• The Sewing Bee experience was intense but rewarding, leading to personal growth.
• Sewing serves as a therapeutic outlet, promoting mental well-being.
• Tony is passionate about encouraging men to take up sewing as a hobby.
• He has a strong interest in refashioning items and zero waste practices.
• Tony's favourite makes from the Sewing Bee were the dress from Children’s week and the challenge based around Surrealist Art.
• He values the lessons learned from judges on the Sewing Bee, especially about sleeves and patterns.
• Tony enjoys teaching workshops and sharing his love for sewing with others.
• He believes in keeping his hobby separate from work to maintain his passion. 

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Guest Details: 

• Instagram: @Tonyr.maker
• Website: menmakers.co.uk
• The Tony Shirt pattern: Emporia Patterns (https://emporia-fabric.co.uk)
• Mind - www.mind.org.uk
• CALM - www.thecalmzone.net

Chapters

00:00 The Journey Begins: Tony's Sewing Story

05:59 From Hobby to Competition: Joining the Sewing Bee

10:29 The Intense Experience of the Sewing Bee

13:18 Sewing and Mental Health: A Therapeutic Outlet

17:45 Proud Moments: Favourite Makes and Challenges

21:07 Lessons from the Judges: Insights and Advice

24:00 Life After the Sewing Bee: Opportunities and Growth

30:21 Teaching and Workshops: Sharing the Passion

32:13 Sustainable Sewing: Zero Waste and Upcycling

36:13 Personal Style: Influences and Inspirations

38:21 Future Plans: What's Next for Tony?

Transcript

Speaker 2 (00:10.094)

Today we're joined by Tony Reay, a skilled and thoughtful sewist whose work balances precision, creativity and a genuine love for the craft. Many of you may recognise Tony from his time on the Great British Sewing Bee where he brought not only talent but a calm, grounded presence to the workroom. Whether it's through his projects, workshops or community engagement, Tony's approach is both inspiring and accessible.

Speaker 1 (00:44.611)

Thank you Gemma, lovely to be here. Just really, really looking forward to geeking out about sewing.

Perfect, that's what we like. So let's take it right back to the start of your sewing journey. How did you learn to sew and are you entirely self-taught?

backwards on that. I am entirely self-taught. I started sewing at the ripe old age of 50. So that's six years ago now. Yes, I know I don't look 56, but no, I'm joking. But when I was 50, I took a gap year. I've been working in manufacturing operations in the Far East for a good number of years. I lived abroad for a good number of years. And as lots of people do when they hit 50, they have a little bit of a, what am I doing? And because I was working in high volume manufacturing, we realized our legacy was going to be landfill. And that didn't kind of fill me with much.

promise. I stopped, you know, cut our cloth a little bit differently and stopped work for a year, took a gap year. I'd essentially worked every day since I was 15, 16, which is when we used to finish school. And, and yeah, just took a year out. When I used to travel a lot, which I did obviously been in the Far East, I used to almost take the same planes every week and you saw the same films all the time. You didn't want to just keep drinking, which is quite easy to do. So I used to take a border wall and a single crochet hook and just crochet things, little truck things actually. They weren't of any purpose.

but just it was something I knew how to do and it passed the time and it was good. So everything in my house is in a trug or if it's a statue, it's got a trug worn as a hat. So yeah, so I used to crochet and then when I took my year off, I took out the crochet and got into that a little bit more, started doing some shawls, started to do a bit of cross stitch. All of this inside the house, I didn't leave the house. I did leave the house, but not with my craft in.

Speaker 1 (02:21.312)

And then I thought kind of ready to leave the house as a crafter, but didn't have anything to put my stuff in. So I thought I need a bag and I looked online for some nice bags and they were all a bit chintzy for me. They're great, but for me, they were a bit chintzy. So I dug out a sewing machine I bought from my wife about 10 years previously that had never been used and thought I'd have a go making a bag. had a bit of tarpaulin in the garage, got the sewing machine out, made a bag. I thought, made a bag. And I've just done sewing. And then literally from that point on, kind of the way that I think about sewing is I don't know what I can't make.

And that's the way it's just rolled out from there. So pretty much from that day onwards, I've been sewing. I'm still crocheting. I've got couple of projects on the go at the moment and knit occasionally as well. Cross-stitches have dropped off, but other creative ways I'm still trying to still explore all of those as well. So yeah, that's how I started sewing.

So do you think you've always had a sort of creative bone in your body?

I'd say so, yeah. I think it was suppressed through my corporate years. Cycling is my other passion and I do cycle a lot. used to cycle a lot. But in my early days, I've always been into fashion. I've been into, let's call them street tribes, street fashion. Yeah, I've always had an interest in that. I can remember as a late teenager trying to figure out how to print things, how to print t-shirts, you know.

I know lots of people do that now when they say they're making a brand when they just print a t-shirt and then they've got a brand. So I was kind of doing that back then as well. I used to paint a lot as well, not necessarily legally, but I used to paint a lot. And so yeah, there's always been an element of creativity within me, but I think through my corporate years, it got suppressed.

Speaker 1 (03:52.342)

And also maybe in the expression of what I wear as well was suppressed at that time as well. And that's fine because you grow, don't you? You go through different stages of your life and some things get put on the back burner. what I'm really glad about is that this has come back onto the front burner, let's say, and I'm both feet in.

So how long had you actually been sewing for before you decided to apply for

Yeah, so that was just two or three years maybe. Yeah, so 50 I started and yeah, I was 52, 53 when I was on the show. It was just again, the same kind of thinking is I don't know what I can't do. And also by that time I finished my gap year and I got myself a proper job. I became a postman, which is something I actually always wanted to do. My dad was a postman for 30 odd years. So I become a postman and then as is inevitable when people find out you can sew, know.

Can you take up my trousers? Can you take up my skirt? Can you pop a zip in my jeans? You know, just pop a zip in your jeans. So I was doing lots of that from my work colleagues at Roy Mail. And then they started to badger me about there's that program on Teletone. What are you going? Go on there. Get in there. Get in there. And then I told my wife the same. They're badgering me at work to go on this on the program. I said, do you think? She said, yeah, go on. You'll definitely get on. I'm like, what do mean you'll definitely get on? She said, well, you you dress like an adult toddler and there aren't many people that...

look like you that have been on the Sewing Bee. So, you you stand a chance. So yeah, so that's how that happened really. And I kind of half didn't want to get on when I went, when I applied because I thought I just placate everybody around me. So I tried and I didn't get on in that. But when I did click the button, I thought, no, this, this is, this is maybe going to, if this does come off, you know, when you hit certain points in your life, you figure out what new experiences you could have and you do have new experiences, but normally they're a better version of an experience you've had before because you've

Speaker 1 (05:36.64)

in time you've managed to accumulate maybe little bit more money or a little bit more wisdom so that it becomes a better version of a previous experience. But this was going to be just like never in my wildest dreams could I ever imagine about doing something like this. And I think secretly I really wanted to do it as well. And then I did.

that's amazing. So we spoke to Vicky a few months ago, who was on the same season as you, which was season nine, I believe. And she told us a bit about the process and how it felt quite surreal actually being in that studio. What would you say your experience was like,

First shout out to Vicky, love her. We were great buddies during the process. Yeah, we kind of looked after each other a little bit on that. But yeah, my process, yeah, I just took every single day in its stride. I turned up with just a couple of years experiencing the back pocket, willing to learn whatever I possibly could. Knowing that I could follow a pattern, me, sewing is engineering, because I've got an engineering mind. If I compare it to actually engineering, you're given a drawing to follow.

You're given some material to use and you get to play with some fancy tools and you end up with a thing. So the pattern challenge in itself was something which I was prepared for. And that's where I did a lot more of my learning because everything that I made on the show, I'd never made before. Literally there was 30 garments I had never ever made until then. But no, to tell a lie, there was one that we did a rucksack one week. I think it was on travel week. I had made a bag before, but everything else I hadn't. that was, so that was it that I was learning on every single week. And what I was learning.

On previous weeks, I would then roll into subsequent weeks, particularly in the transformation challenge, because that was a nightmare for me. you know, having to make something up with not necessarily knowing all of it. mean, nobody finishes sewing, they? Nobody knows all of the techniques. So being able to learn something in the pattern challenges and then roll them into the transformation was just great. And then the made to measures for me were just a good way of putting across what I thought would be an interpretation of the brief.

Speaker 1 (07:38.39)

If anybody that remembers series nine will know that my interpretation of the brief was not necessarily what everybody would think or what everybody would do, but that's me. That's what I like to do. The actual process itself was great. It was intense. It was really, really intense. Long, long filming days, lots of emotions flying all over the place. It's a cliche I know, but made 11 incredible friends that, you know, trauma bonding, I think they call it nowadays. You know, it's when you chop.

Chucking people all in together into a really stressful situation and they bond and we did bond. All of us, whenever we see each other, it's great. We still got the whole WhatsApp thing going on. So yeah, was great. It was traumatic, but it was easily one of the best things I've ever done.

That's lovely. And you got to the final of your series, which is epic. Did you ever anticipate you'd get that far?

No, not at all. I don't think anybody does. You know, I'm a big fan of the show. I'm a big fan of all of the challenge shows that are on TV, bit pottery, jewelry, sewing, woodworking, glow up the makeup one. I love all of them. I love it when people are that into what they do. They're prepared to put themselves out there onto the TV to essentially learn in front of the nation or those people that watch it. So I don't think anybody expects to get as far as they do because it's easy to slip up, you know? And that's all it is, know, incredible sewers in our year.

slipped up or maybe didn't get the timing right. And that's in the same as every series. And that's all you have to do. So essentially to get through, you just have to be second worst and you'll get through. Which is a horrible way of thinking about it, but that's what it celebrates, you know? But yeah, it was never on the radar. Every week I got through was a blessing really. A blessing and a curse because I had to make another two shirts to wear on the show.

Speaker 1 (09:20.172)

I made a bit of a ride from my own back on that. I took two shirts up for the first filming block because they're filmed in two blocks or two episodes. And if you're lucky enough to go through, then you get the second episode, et cetera. So I took two shirts up, my two best shirts, thinking that's it, that'd be all right. Then I got through, thought, I'll make another two shirts. So the first thing I did after, a days off, which were very few and far between, was I had to make two shirts before the next filming my. No, but that was great really. I love making shirts. I know everybody knows I make lots of shirts. It's a thing. But I love making shirts because it's weirdly kind of like.

No pressure, no pressure.

Speaker 1 (09:50.594)

not going say happy place, but it's where I go and I just want to, I want what you get from sewing, which is that flow state, which is that it's done to death, but that mindfulness, you know, so being able to sit down at my machine, bout out a couple of things that I know how to make literally inside out for me, not against the clock, well, not against the clock, but not against somebody's stopwatch is my place. You know, that's why I sew. I sew because it's where I get to calm down. And you can tell by the pace of my speech.

There's a lot going on in my head at any one time and I'm trying to get it all out all of the time. When I sit at my machine, that slows down. I'm a big advocate for sewing for essentially for mental health because I think it allows you to be creative, but it allows you to be mindful. You've got to concentrate on what you're doing. So that's why I sew. It's sorry. I'm getting a bit off piste there a little bit. Apologies.

fine, that's fine, because I was actually going to come onto that later, but we might as well talk about it now. Like you say, you're a big advocate for mental health and for men sewing as well. What do you see as the most significant mental health benefit and what's your advice to other men who are curious about sitting down at a sewing machine?

think the most positive benefit is the being present. You have to concentrate on what you're doing. It's like with any air quote hobby, you have to concentrate in that moment of what you're looking at if you want to get the best results. Now for your stereotypical male pastimes of metalwork and woodwork and gardening, you still have to do all the same there as well. But the tangible benefit is different at end of that. What I love about sewing, and this is probably because I love maybe like fashion or like clothing, I like to wear what I like to wear. I'm still stuck in the nineties realistically.

You know, and although it's coming back around fashion wise, it's not really the same stuff. So being able to concentrate and to focus on something which is for you, which you're going to wear, which you're going to have the ability to, you know, when somebody says, that. Where'd you get that from? And you get that, that wonderful thing that you get to do as a server to say, made it, you know, it's that, it's a two-part thing. One of the things is the, you know, the actual making of it. And then there's the fact that you can say, I made it as well. It is just brilliant. Not in a showy off way, but just.

Speaker 1 (11:57.878)

I don't think people are encouraged to be proud as much nowadays. So to be proud of something I think is a really, really big thing as well. So yeah, in regards to getting men's sewing, I have had a good number of folks, fellows, get in touch saying I'd love to have a go, but I'm not quite sure. I'm a little bit scared of, you know, the, let's say the stereotypical environment for learning sewing because there aren't any men's groups as such. So that's something that I'm really, I've been trying really hard this year to get it going. And I think we're going to wait until the autumn because obviously

It didn't happen in the spring because of the commitments. Nobody wants to sit in a hall in summer. So come the autumn, I think we can start to roll something out. I've actually lived next door to a village hall and I'm just waiting for a slot to come up there. Brother Sew Machines, who I'm an ambassador for, have kindly given me some machines to use in men's mental health group as well. I was working with NHS in Exeter on some programs to roll out in the Southwest. That's going through the funding cycle at the moment. We're not sure whether that's going to happen or not, but

That's good to be involved in that because understanding what the funding cycle needs to be in those group areas as well. yeah, encouraging men to get into it. It's just to share that. mean, most of the people that I've spoken to are just waiting. They're waiting for an opening to get involved. But also for lots of men, it's an alien pastime. So it's a great excuse to do something that you've never done before. And normally when you're doing something you've never done before, you'll typically talk to people more as well. And by talking to people more, you're going to...

unknowingly open up more or I mean there are lots of lots of let's think you can put it side by side with sewing with some problems that maybe people are going through you know when you when you make something you know you don't have to finish the edges because nobody looks on the inside you know it's all right if you look okay from the outside but is it you know there's things that you could talk about when you're sewing with people bit men like whoever that you could equate to your life as well and I think that's important to try and get that in as well we're getting deep aren't we sorry

I love that, Tony. I love that. I've never heard and I've never thought about it in that way, but that's so interesting because I work in the NHS. I'm an occupational therapist. So like prime person that wants to be doing these crafts and things with people, but we don't get to do that anymore. You know, that's not the way it is. But also I run a sewing social.

Speaker 2 (14:17.772)

And most of the stuff that we talk about at The Social is not even sewing. So that brings it around to exactly what you just said. And I think that's amazing.

Thank you. And I'm just trying really hard to get it. It's just unfortunate, not unfortunate, but where I live is in Bude in Cornwall. So you have to really want to come to Bude in Cornwall because we're quite a way out of way. It's just a way of figuring out how I can do it in this part of the world so we can get enough people in to be involved. It's not about making money, but just about getting enough people together so they all feel it's worth it together rather than just one or two people.

Yeah, so we need to keep an eye out for that. sounds...

Most definitely, It's something that's still, it's very much at the front of my thoughts most days, to be honest, and how we can do it.

brilliant. So just, there was a couple of other bits I wanted to go back to about the bee. So did you have a, did you have a favourite make or a particular challenge that you were most proud of?

Speaker 1 (15:15.744)

I got garment of the week, one week on kids week, which I was very, very proud of. I love kids week. I love kids week because there were kids running all over the place and they weren't mine. That was kind of nice. They were only allowed to have the child models for 15 minutes at a time because of the laws around having child models. So we only had them 15 minutes at a time. And when we didn't have them, they took them up in the green room and just stuffed them full of Haribo and sugary sweets. So when they come down, they were wearing to go. But yeah, but my model was fantastic. She was really into it. I made.

a very simplistic looking child's dress out of ivory neoprene with some studs around, some jewels around the neck. And yeah, I garment of the week for that. I was really proud of that because it came across really well. My model absolutely loved it. She was running around dancing in it. It was just a really, really nice day. So I was really proud of that. The other one that I was really proud of, which was a bit of an odd one, but we had art week and the theme was to design a dress.

inspired by the 20th century surrealist movement. That was it. And it was like, so I've got what you're to do. But I immediately had in mind what I wanted to do. I do like the surrealist movement. I've got an interest in art. And Rene Magritte did a painting called The Treachery of Images, which is a picture of a pipe and underneath it in French, it says, this is not a pipe. And it's a picture that I talk to my kids about quite a lot because it's as relevant today as it was then, you know, the fact that you can't criticise

what you see is in a painting or in a picture because that's not the thing. Really relevant today in regards to social media, fake news and all that kind of stuff, because what you're looking at isn't actually the thing. You're looking at an image of that thing. So I took that, spun it on his head and designed a really, really simplistic, as if a child would draw a dress, a triangular dress was, it was in black cotton drill. It had a really big, severe.

inverted box pleats on the backs. I love them. And I screen, I printed in HTV on the front. This is, this is a dress. And I did it to be honest, in preparation for the trolls, because, you know, nobody could judge that dress apart from the people that were in that room. Because they were the only people that saw that dress. Everybody else saw an image of that dress. And I know that's a little bit deep as well, but that was one of my favourite weeks because I managed to put across to my kids as well that, you know, what you're seeing isn't the thing. You have to be there. You have to witness things. have to.

Speaker 1 (17:34.346)

experience things, not just look at images and make an opinion.

I can tell you're such an interesting person Tony all these nuggets of really cool stuff keep coming out I love it

Embarrassingly I've done a lot. My CV is comical really. It really is.

That's not embarrassing, it just means you've had a lot of experiences.

Yeah. And that's it. that's it. I personally think you can't really have what's now deemed to be an opinion on something unless you've experienced it because you have no, you you've got to have first hand experience.

Speaker 2 (18:02.798)

Exactly. And so the last thing about the sewing bee that I was intrigued about, and you might not have an answer to this, but if you do, it'll be interesting. Was there a comment or a piece of advice from Patrick or Esme that still sticks with you?

Yeah, I think there is. Actually, Esme taught me quite a lot about sleeves and the curves and how to do the patterns on curves. So that was something that stuck with me. There were other things that were said in the sewing room, which never make it to the edit, which do make it as well. think one of the first things that Patrick said was, I don't like purple. That was when I presented my purple smoking jacket. On Nineties week, I did a bodycon dress in two tone in a beige and a black.

with a big diagonal stripe along. And as we said, I don't like beige. Nobody should ever make anything out of that colour. So yeah, there are things like that, which have stuck with the, as you could tell, I'm not, I'm not sure, but they were just ones that were like, okay. Yeah. But in regards to positive things, there were lots of little nuggets, to be honest. The majority of them that don't make it to the edit. I mean, the edit itself is an hour, an hour's worth of TV for the viewers, for the bees themselves. We have 12 hours a day for two days of sewing.

where we're geeking out about sewing, all we're doing is sewing, we're talking about sewing and then we've finished that, we go and go back to our digs and we do sewing. And you're just learning so much on the job. You don't really have much time to do anything else, to be honest. So you're getting more, you're getting more knowledge from your colleagues as well there, from the other sewers, because everybody's got a specialism, let's say, or something that they've made a few times before. So again, what doesn't make it to the edit is everyone crowding around their benches. Can you show me how to do this? Can you show me how to do that? I'm a bit stuck.

Or if somebody does get stuck, everybody jumps in and starts doing stuff. only thing you're not allowed to do is actually sew for somebody. Although at some point I was holding things pinned together saying, like, sew that, sew that. And that happened to other people on other things as well. But yeah, the edit itself that goes out is just that hour of TV. We experienced something a lot bigger than that. When you're judged, you're judged for like 15 minutes or so on each piece. On the TV, you see a couple of seconds. So that's even more of a learning, a learning exercise. You know, you're told what exactly what's wrong with it or what's right with it. So there's, there's lots more that goes on.

Speaker 1 (20:12.998)

And then when the edit goes out, as sowers, have no idea what that edit is going to look like at all, because it's going to be the viewer's experience then, essentially. And so when it does go out, it's like, in fact, some weeks I was sat on the sofa with my wife, knowing I got through to the final, but I'd be watching it thinking, just said, I'm going home this week. It looks like I'm going home this week. And I had no idea. And I literally had no idea about that. You know, it's one of those things. But yeah, so no, no particular nuggets from Patrick or Esme, but they were, they were great.

I mean, and they played the role of judges incredibly well and we held them in that element of reverence as well that you need to because they essentially said when you went home.

Fantastic. And you said obviously life looks a little bit different now. So you took quite a career change. I imagine a lot of things came out of, you know, being on the B and what opportunities have you had following that?

The sewing bee itself, it's different to some of the other challenge programs like the bake-off. The bake-off now, when people go onto the bake-off, I think that if they do do well, they're almost expected to do a book or end up as a TV chef and this, that and the other. Sewing bee doesn't really attract those sort of people because there isn't anywhere that you can really go with sewing. Sorry, there is obviously. Some people have been very, very successful, but it's not as commonplace to say baking, et cetera.

When you go into it, you don't go into it thinking I'm going to come out with anything because you never know how you're to get, how far you're going to get. You've got no idea. But for me, had no, and I still have no real idea of where this is going to go or if it's going anywhere really. When I finished the sewing bee, you're kind of left on your own really. There isn't anybody knocking on the door saying, can you do this? Can you do that? Because it's not that kind of thing. But the sewing bee alumni is fantastic that you become part of.

Speaker 1 (21:56.844)

And you see what they've done and you think, well, maybe if you're a fancy bit of that or a fancy bit of that or, maybe not. Let's just see what happens. mean, my love for sewing hasn't diminished at all. It's still my hobby. It's still something I love to do. It's still what I do for my mental health. It's not my job. I'm a postman. That's my job. My hobby is sewing. I don't want to monetise my hobby because if I do, it's then a job and then I might be reliant on it. And I don't want to be, I said earlier on that I was into cycling. When I was a boy in my early twenties, I was into cycling and I got myself a bike shop. I then...

completely fell out of love with cycling. Absolutely fell out of love with it. And it wasn't until the shop went and it didn't become my work that I loved my cycling again. And I always said to myself, I'm never going to do that again. I'm always going to keep my pastime, my hobby, my interests separate to anything that I rely on. So I don't intentionally monetise my hobby at all. The pattern that I've got, so I've got the Tony shirt pattern, is an Emporia.

you that.

Hey, there you go. That's what yours looks like. This is what mine looks like. Mine's completely beaten up. This has got my, mine's just full of freezer paper where I've just got all my different sizes. yeah, so Emporia patterns, after I'd been on the sewing V and because I was wearing lots of different shirts, people say, pattern do you use? And it was just some blocks that I essentially, I don't even know where it originally came from, whether I traced it ready to wear or something, but it was just a shirt that I liked. I ended up with my blocks and they were in my

thing there. So I'd spotted Emporia patterns before, because I love the fact that they're size inclusive and they're nice, good starter makes. They didn't even do any fastenings. It's everything's over the head. And I liked the ethos that they had. And they were also at that point doing their lunchtime lives. And so you get to see the people behind that as well. And it was at a show, the first show that I went to, and I went to and said, look, you don't do any men's patterns. Would you be interested in doing a shirt? Because people keep asking me, and is it something we can do? They were quite excited by that.

Speaker 1 (23:54.05)

By that time I'd already been adopted as a Brother Ambassador. So Brother were keen to get involved with that as well, as they still are today. So they helped us get that pattern up and out with Emporia patterns. So that pattern belongs to Emporia, it's not mine. I'm just the model. So yeah, so that's been going great and there's lots of fun. People making it all over socials and posting their own versions of it in their own prints. It's just great to see lots of people embracing that. And also there aren't really that many

I mean, there are men's patterns out there, but when you look at the big four men's patterns, they don't look that inspiring. And I'm not saying this 50 year old bloke on the front of this looks inspiring, but it looks a bit more modern than the ones that are out there. know, it's not, unless you're a more than a beginner sewer that you can look at the cover of a big four pattern and be inspired by it and look at maybe how you can change it and what fabrics you could use. Whereas some, the Emporia patterns I love that you can just see it immediately. I could make that, you know.

And a lot of other, sorry, not just Emporia, but all the other independent patent companies as well. Also with independent patent companies, I love that they use just the one centimetre seam allowance because I'm lazy. And I like to just use the foot on my machine for the seam allowance. So yeah, so that went really well. Yeah. Things that have came out of being on Soapy, there was the patent, the Brother Ambassadorship, I’m ambassador for a few other brands as well. I don't really push them and nobody chases me for any of those things because...

The amount of content that I generate on socials is indicative of how my mind works as well. It's not necessarily that I'm trying. It's just that that's how much I produce. And I always have the camera out just in case. I always take a picture of what I'm doing at that time and tag anybody that I want to tag, whether I'm an ambassador or not. You know, it's nice to be able to use the reach to get smaller companies out there as well. So I'm ambassadors for a couple of other companies there. After the Sewing Bee, our series, series nine was nominated for a national television award.

Which was crazy. So me and Asma and Mia went to the national television awards. That was, that was barmy. I've done a good number of podcasts. an interview with Craig Charles on six music. Yeah. There's lots and lots of things that have come out of it. but none of it's been chased. You know, it's not something that I'm running after. it's just when things pop up. Yeah. It feels natural. Hopefully what I do looks natural as well. Cause it is, there's nothing, there's nothing forced. And I think.

Speaker 1 (26:14.422)

More importantly, as I said, I don't know what I can't do in regards to sewing. And the experience that the sewing bee gave me was a brand new experience. So everything else after that, if it's not illegal or dangerous, I tend to say yes to it. You know, it's one of those. And that's the way it's been working out. I've done quite a few catwalks as well at the Knit and Stitch shows, which is weird because walking on a catwalk, I feel like a welder that's just finished work, know, parading up and down. But it's nice to show off what you've made.

And you've been doing some teaching, is that right? For the Tony shirt as well.

Yeah, been doing a few more workshops actually. I do enjoy that. Sewing as a pastime hobby, whatever we call it, can be quite lonely, can't it? You know, to sat in your, I mean, this is where I sew. It's in my, in the corner of my bedroom. And as much as I love it, sometimes it's good to have a bit of a chat to other people as well. So the workshops that we do is yeah, we teach the Tony shirt. I've been teaching some other Emporia patterns, the Penelope and the Margo dresses as well. Also going to start doing some.

Emporia Roan trousers, some Indigo Studio trousers, some Minimal Waste. I love my Minimal Waste, zero waste. I'm going to do some Bergitta Helmerson shirts. yeah, lots of different workshops. But to be honest, the idea for that behind me is I'd like to just go and geek out of its own for a whole day with loads of different people I've never met. That's what I get from it really. And they've been really good. They've been really, really popular. Tend to be more down here in the Southwest because that's where I am. I've done some up in the Midlands.

Wales actually on Sunday with Asma, who was the winner on our series. So I'm with her and we're doing some trousers, a trouser workshop there in a little village hall in South Wales. So I'm looking forward to that. I've been over with them before and we did the Tony shirt a couple of months ago and that was loads of fun. So yeah, they're just a great place to just have a chat, make something. I can answer questions about, yeah, not the same as what we're doing here today. Probably figured out my favourite subject is me. So.

Speaker 1 (28:08.096)

You know, I will keep talking. would generally keep talking and making all at the same time. So yeah, we have a great time and that's what they're about. They're just having a bit of fun, making something, meeting other people and walking away with a shirt or some trousers or a dress.

Fantastic. And I was going to ask you about the zero waste patterns actually and upcycling, because I've seen you do a lot from like duvet covers and things like that. Is there a particular reason why you choose those patterns or fabrics or did you just want to give it a try?

I use a lot of duvets when I do a twirl for if I'm doing something new, for example, and I'm a bit tight when it comes to fabric. I don't have a stash essentially. And I don't have a stash because there's a small shop in our town that is my stash. I know as opposed to the, I deliver to him every day. So I know exactly what's in that shop. So I don't have to have it at home. Because that I don't, I always practice with a duvet set and sometimes that works. Sometimes it works out and it's a wearable twirl. Sometimes I...

chance upon maybe old children's duvets with prints of nostalgic cartoon characters or whatever. And I love that. And I love making those shirts as well. The shirt I'm wearing today is a duvet actually as well. was an old duvet with a little bit of an embellishment that I've got on it. Yeah. So that's why I use duvets and that's where the prints come from. Also, I've been a postie in a town, but my round is essentially around the little town. All the charity shops know me. So if they see something that I'd like, they'll save it and go, have a look at this tone. I've got this one for you. What do you think?

So that works out well. As for upcycling, like clothes as such, I'm all into that. Just really to try and, it's not so I personally are reducing clothes, clothes waste, but if there's something that I'm quite fancy to make myself, I will go to a charity shop to try and find something that I can modify into that thing because that's still cheaper than buying the fabric more often than not. I did a fit. In fact, I'm pointing to it over there, which is no good because you can't see what I'm pointing at.

Speaker 1 (30:05.42)

which I'm just about to post, which is a pair of old men's Marks and Spencers jeans in a size 50 inch waist and a Florence and Fred shirt, both of which I think cost me five pound for both of them, that I've managed to turn into a massive pair of jorts and a fully embroidered shirt. Because those are two things that I wanted. Yeah, and needs are different, aren't they? But when you can make it yourself, it's awful because you do end up with quite a large wardrobe. I do pass a lot of stuff on though. I do pass a lot of stuff.

Um, so yeah, I do like to rework clothing, like to rework a lot of denim, a lot of camo workwear. I also like to try and recreate clothing as well. So if I see something that I like, a streetwear, stuff that I typically can't afford because the brand, branded stuff is way above, um, post is pay grade to be honest, but I can see it and I can make it now. You know, until I look at it, I'll cheekily maybe take a photo if it's in a shop and I'll go back and I'll try and figure out how to make it. Not juke it, not juke it, not brand it, none of that, but just.

If I like the cut, the silhouette, the fit, I'll look at that and maybe then do it for myself. So yeah, there's the engineering element of reworking garments as well into other garments or garments that you've been inspired by.

And do you freestyle a lot of stuff then? So if you do see something like you say, do you just generate your own pattern? Do you draft it or do you always work from a pattern you've got?

No, I tend to make it up as I go along, to be honest. Once you've got a catalog of patterns in your head, I'm just talking about me. If I've made something once, I can make it again. That's the way that it works for me. And I don't necessarily need any instructions or a pattern after that because I can visualise what that pattern looks like. So that's what I tend to do. With zero waste, it's relatively easier to do that because it's just rectangles and it's just maths. Two things I love, rectangles and maths. That's weird.

Speaker 1 (31:50.286)

But that's something which is relatively easy to do. And then if you know those basic construction methods, you can see something, that's that way and that's that way and that's straighter and that's taken in and that's a tuck and that's a box pleat. That's a gather. And then, yeah, so I tend to just do it on the table. More often than not, it works out. If it doesn't work out, then pull it apart and start again until it does.

What's the harm in that? But I can tell you, you've got that mathematical brain and that sort of, like you say, engineering brain and how things go together. I wanted to talk a bit about sort of your unique style. You said earlier that your wife thinks you dress like an overgrown toddler. Yeah, an adult toddler, that was it. And you reference sort of 90s influencers. Is there anything else that influenced your personal style?

Yeah, and I don't tell that that's the way.

Speaker 1 (32:42.434)

I love a lot of Japanese and Korean streetwear. That's a big deal for me. Workwear is a big deal for me. A lot of the big American workwear brands and also UK workwear brands really. I just like utilitarian clothing, like something that's got this boxy, typically quite plain, which is why I go a bit mad with my shirts when I wear them underneath. But yeah, so utilitarian, boxy, Korean, Japanese, workwear, and then all of those items typically roll into skatewear and skate fashion, which is something that I was very involved in.

through the eighties and through the nineties and into the early two thousands as well. And I still skate now occasionally, not that often and typically in the dark because nobody wants to see this thing fall over. You know what I mean? It's kind of, it's, it's for everybody. So I tend to get in the skate park late at night and have a bit of a push around just to save anybody the embarrassment. yeah, so that's my, that's my influences really. yeah, and it's, it's ever changing. mean, I personally think that skate fashion inspires street wear a lot. And typically what skaters are wearing now will be

mainstream in a couple of years. And that's the way it's always been in my eyes, fashion wise, it's something I've always been interested in. So yeah, those are my influences really.

Awesome. And I was wondering, have you got any other exciting plans coming up? So you mentioned about your sort of your workshops and things. Is there anything else on the cards?

not at the moment. workshops are something that I'm still keeps doing. still, do lots of WI talks still. I love doing those. They're fantastic. WI talks that we do, we get fees for doing those as well, but those that I typically donate the fee from that to mental health charities. So we've been able to raise quite a lot of money for the Samaritans, for Mind and for Calm over the last three years doing that. So I'm going to continue, I'm going to keep doing that. There's no way, no way I'm going to stop doing those. And then workshops.

Speaker 1 (34:28.852)

And yeah, there isn't, we've got a couple of shows coming up. There's Ali Pali in October. I'm sure I'll end up on a catwalk somewhere there. I have got a project that I'm working on for Stylecraft at the moment. So it's something in yarn rather than fabric. So that's quite an interesting one. Whether it works or not, I have no idea. I'm making it up. So we'll see about that. No, but there isn't anything concrete as you probably picked up. Everything that I tend to do just...

is organic. There isn't a master plan as such. I'm still producing content. I still will produce content because I love that. Because it just reports what I do. When it comes to the point where I can't remember, I can look back and see what I've done. So yeah, just watch this space really because you never know what I'm going to do.

Yeah, definitely. And are you working on any particular garment at the moment?

I've just got three meters of black cotton drill, which I'm quite keen to do. a cotton drill shirt not long ago, unsurprisingly, and I make my shirts turn into great work jackets and I've got a lot of those as well. But Trimming Shop UK have just reached out to me with their green machines for lots of the metal fasteners and pop studs and stuff like that, which I've started to use a lot of in my clothing. So I think I'm to go to town with some metal work in some cotton drill based around my own style, but just, yeah.

accessorise it more with more poppers and eyelets and things like that. I can't give anything too much away because I haven't got a clue what I'm going to do yet, that's what I'm going to do. As I said, I've got quite a few trouser workshops coming up, the minimal waste and zero waste. I do have my own zero waste short pattern, which at some point I'll get out there. I've got lots of tips and tricks from my workshops that I've started to write up and illustrate as well. At some point I'll try and get that out there as well, just as an aid memoir for people.

Speaker 1 (36:19.576)

who have been to the workshops. At some point that might be enough to put in a book, who knows? I have no idea, none of this is planned, but it's things that I'm doing for myself that once it builds up it might be of some use to somebody else.

Fantastic. And just to sort of round off the interview, Tony, I like to do a little game of this or that. Is that all right with you? Okay. Wovens or Knits?

It is. Yes, go for it. Thank

Woven, most definitely woven. Solid. See, love it. I love a print for a shirt, but I love a solid for everything else. Yeah, I couldn't. That's the favorite child question. can't do that one. Scissors. Rotary cutter. Well, actually, don't actually, actually, rotary cutter, but I don't use a rotary cutter anymore. use electric scissors. That's the thing for me. I absolutely love them, adore them because you don't have to get the cutting mat out. I can cut, literally just cut on my carpet with the electric scissors.

or a rotary cutter.

Speaker 2 (37:09.44)

you cut quite a lot of thick fabrics, don't you? I imagine that...

Yeah, they're great. can do, most of them is six layers of denim in one go with them. So they're great.

Brilliant. A meal out or a takeaway?

most definitely nice big posh one coffee 100 % all the way

your coffee

Speaker 2 (37:27.712)

One project on the go or multiple.

One at a time. The way that I work is I'm a completer. If I start something, I finish it regardless. There's no way I can move on to the next one, which is why I'm actually so quick, I think, because I've got another one in mind, but I've to get this one out of the way first. I can't park it. It's got to be done. I love making for others. Autumn, winter, get all those layers on. More clothes to wear. That's what I love, layers. I'm struggling a bit. I'm not sure what it is where you are today, but we've got this.

Making for yourself or others Spring, summer or autumn, winter

Speaker 1 (37:59.576)

fourth heat wave of the summer I think they've called it. Yeah, so yeah, can't wear my layers today unfortunately.

And the last one, a paper pattern or a PDF.

When I use patterns, paper pattern, I love a paper pattern. I love the tangibility of it. You can pick it up, you can look at it, you can read the back of it, you can get a good understanding of it. I do use a lot of PDF patterns as well. I do quite a lot of pattern testing for people nowadays as well. So they get sent through, but as soon as I get a PDF, I send it away to a printer's to get it printed out on big A naught so I can see it and get an understanding of what it looks like in its totality before I start cutting it out.

Brilliant. And where can people find you, Tony?

You can find me, if you're not following me already, you should be on Instagram at TonyR.Maker. That's the platform that I tend to use more than anything else. I don't feel like dancing, so I don't do TikTok. You can also get me at menmakers.co.uk. That's kind of the front end for everything that's me. It's just a placeholder really, but it'll push you to my socials. It'll also show what my calendar is and where I am. Yeah, but yeah, you should follow me. Everybody should follow me.

Speaker 2 (39:02.794)

Absolutely. I agree with that. It's very inspiring. So thank you so much, Tony. It's been epic getting a bit of an insight into how your brain works and all the exciting things you've got going on. So thank you for joining me on the Sewing Social podcast.

Thank you, Gemma. It's been great. Loved it. Cheers. Cheers. Bye bye.

Take care.

That's it for today's episode of the Sewing Social Podcast. Thanks so much for listening. If you're enjoying the show and want to support what we're doing, you can now leave us a tip over on Ko-fi. It's like buying us a virtual coffee or a spool of thread, and it helps us keep bringing you inspiring stories from the sewing community. You'll find the link in the show notes or at ko-fi.com forward slash the Sewing Social Pod. Until next time.

Happy sewing!