a good read
70 WWW.GATHERED.HOW/SIMPLYSEWING
daysina localvillagehall. It’s the real
sisterhoodofsewing.
Thegrouphassincegrownandnowthey
teacheachothernewskillsandenjoysharing
knowledge,visitingshowsandexchanging
fabricandpatternideas.”Aftergettingto
knowTheYorkshireGirls,Juliacouldn’tresist
gettingtheminvolvedwithTheDenim
Company:“Wesetupa funchallengefor
themalltochoosesomefabricfromour
rangeandmakewhatevertheyliked,”she
explains.“Thentheycametoourstudioand
wehada photoshoottocapturetheirmakes.
Theywerea pleasuretohostandfullof
masses of sewing knowledge and fun!”
TIMELESSAPPEAL
Juliais clearlynotaloneinherloveofdenim,
butwhatis it aboutthisfabricthatsheloves
inparticular?“Denim,I believe,is timeless.It
willalwaysbeinfashionandit suitsme,”she
sayswithouthesitation.“Itis justsucha
versatilebutpracticalfabricthatcanbeworn
byallagesandI don’tthinkthereis anyother
fabricthatgetsbetterthemoreyouwash
andwearit.I stillgetexcitedwhenI seethe
nextseason’sranges and love predicting the
best-sellers!”
If you’venotworkedwithdenimbefore,
andfeela littlenervousattheprospect,Julia
hassomewordsofadvice:“Thetrickwith
denimis tokeepit simple.Theaverage
dressmakeris goingtostruggletoturnout
theperfectpairofjeanswithoutlotsof
practise, so a simple shift dress or pinafore
topredictwhatwillbeourbestsellersand
amlookingforwardtomixingsomeofthe
newrangewitha checkorheritagetweed,
andaddinga popofcolour to some of our
classicfavourites.”
RunningTheDenimCompanyhasalso
turnedJuliaintoanexperttrendspotter,so
whatdoesshethinkaregoingtobesomeof
thisyear’sbiggesttrends?“Sustainability
seemstobea wordthatis talkedabouta lot
atthemoment,andnotjustinfabrics,”she
says.“Traditional,long-lastinggarments,
professionallymade,arealwaysgoingtobe
wellwornandI thinkmostpeoplethatsew
respectthetimeandeffortputintomaking
somethinglikethat.It makespeopleproud to
wearandtreasuregarments.I dobuy
OEKO-TEXcertifiedfabricwherepossibleand
weworkina veryefficientstudio,wherewe
don’twastea scrapoffabric.Alltheoffcuts
arecarefullymatchedandcollatedintoscrap
packsforquiltingandsmallprojects– and
thesearecurrentlyallgoingtoTheQuilters’
Guildpincushioncharityproject.”Vintage
styleis alsoa trendthat’snotgoingaway,
saysJulia:“Wetrytogivea nodtothecurrent
vintagetrendsbyaddinga coupleofditsy
floralchambraysintothecollection– denim
fits next season’s 70s vibe perfectly. To be(Left)TheYorkshireGirls!Thegroupfirst
cametoJulia'sattentionwhentheyall
createddressesfromherRosemaryfabric.
(Above)Makingsamplesforcustomers to see
always leads to a fabric sell-out."I stillget excitedwhenI see
thenextseason’srangesandlove
predicting the best-sellers!"workswellif you’rejuststartingout.We
alwayshearcustomerssingingthepraisesof
howeasyit is tosewwithourfabrics,andit
reallyis!”Juliais alwaysusingTheDenim
Companyfabrictomakesamples,tohelp
inspire– andit clearlymustbeworking,as
shereveals,“Intruth,anyfabricI makeinto
a sampleweselloutof!I spenda greatdeal
oftimedecidingwhattomakeupas
a sample,becauseI knowwhenyougetit
righthowprofitableit canbe.Althoughwe
sell to a creative audience, they are stillalwaysswayedwhentheyseea garment
madeup.I thinkit justhelpspeopleseewhat
theyareaimingforandgivesthemmore
confidencethatit willbesuccessful.”
Beingsurroundedbysomuchbeautiful
fabricis a dreamcometrueformostsewers,
andJuliais nodifferent.Havingsaidthat,she
definitelyhasa favourite:“I havebeen
searchingfora checkeddenimsincewe
startedin 2014 andfinallyI havefoundthe
perfectone.It’scalledTanyaandI have
alreadymadeit intoa pinaforeformyself–
I’veorderedvastquantitiesasI’msureit will
be very popular! I pride myself on being able