Hi Vicki! It is so lovely to chat to you. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself and where you’re from?

My name is Vicki, I’m 31 and from Lincolnshire. My family consists of my husband, 2 children and 3 cats. I work as a Police Dispatcher, and in my spare time my hobbies are pretty much anything creative that I can get my hands on! Sewing, knitting, crochet, yarn dying, quilting, and the list goes on.

Wow! So many crafts. We love a multi-crafter here at the Cotswold Sewing Centres. It would be great to hear more about how you learnt to sew!

My first introduction to sewing was as a child with my Gran, she used to have one of the old hand crank singers which fascinated me, she showed me how to thread it and sew lines. After that I am completely self taught, I have learnt from YouTube, blogs, books, sewing patterns, and mostly a lot of trial and error.

That’s amazing! We hear a lot about how much YouTube and the online world has helped with teaching people crafts. The Great British Sewing Bee has also inspired a lot of people to learn to sew. How was your experience on ‘The Bee’?

Is it crazy to say that it still almost feels like a surreal experience. It was such a wonderful whirlwind. I was able to do things I never thought I was capable of, push myself out of my comfort zone, learn about myself, make friends for life, do something just for me, it truly was once in a life time.

That sounds incredible. Definitely a once in a life time experience. Although, it’s not stopped there and we’ve noticed all the opportunities you’ve now had and the platform you’re creating. You share a lot on your instagram about body positivity and sewing as a force for good. How has your sewing influenced your own relationship with your body?

I think sewing has been a complete liberation. No clothes are a ‘one size fits all’, and that is the case for so many reasons. Our bodies are unique, they are different shapes and proportions and you just can’t accommodate that in a ready to wear industry, and I don’t think the fashion industry really even tries to accommodate individual bodies. Sewing has allowed me to recognise how different people’s bodies are, and how no ones body is ‘wrong’ – it’s the clothes that are the issue, not you, and sewing means that I am now longer held back or restricted by what the shops are choosing to provide. I can celebrate my body by making it beautiful clothes that I love and that fit me well.

Thank you for your honesty. We would love to know what your advice would be for others struggling with their body image?

The beginning of the turning point for me was having children. When my eldest was born I suddenly became really conscious of the ways I felt about myself. I think because I was overwhelmed by this love for her, and I didn’t want her to ever feel the things about herself that I felt about myself. I knew that the only way I could really raise her and make sure she loved herself, was to change the way I felt about myself and lead by example. When I am having thoughts about myself, I try to think – how would I feel and what would I say if one of my children had said that about themselves? Because I love them unconditionally, and if I wouldn’t say it to someone I love, then I shouldn’t say it to myself.

That is really great advice thank you. Any more advice for crafters or people wanting to learn to sew?

People often ask me for beginner tips, and say that they don’t feel like they have the confidence to sew. My best advice would be to just pick something you feel passionate about and go for it. There is no right way, perfection doesn’t exist nor matter, go do something for you, we all start somewhere, and if nothing else at least it will have brought you some joy.

Amazing! Thank you so much Vicki for being our first interview guest on the blog. If you would like to see more of Vicki and her amazing crafting you can check out her instagram page or her blog.