Stitch That! - Article about The Gentlemen's Sewing Club in The Scottish Sunday Express

The Gentleman's Sewing Club has been gaining a lot of press recently, interviewed by Fred MacAulay for BBC Radio last year, featured on STV and other various blogs (globally!) But our first printed review comes from Greg Christianson at the Scottish Sunday Express. Greg came along our evening in February with literally no sewing skills or experience, and left being able to hem his trousers, sew on fallen buttons and fix burst seams.

The article was a full page spread and here's a small extract...

Regulars put down their pints and do a double-take, couples nudge one another and stare while students - enjoying a drink after class - spot us and giggle amongst themselves. After all, one of the oldest pubs in Scotland's toughest city is the last place you would expect to find a cluster of young men armed, not only with a drink, but also with a needle and thread. Hunched around a table in Glasgow's Sloans bar, our group listens intently to fashion designer Alan Moore - who is the reason I've swapped a Wednesday night in front of the television for an evening of sewing.

With baking and knitting becoming increasingly popular pursuits for men, the 26 year old is bringing the art of sewing and embroidery to the city's male population, albeit through plying them with booze. As I sip on my whiskey sour cocktail, and attempt to thread what feels like the worlds smallest needle, Alan explains the inspiration behind the unusual classes.

"it's something I've been thinking about for a while" explains the seamster, who also runs a woman's wear label - ten30 "when you mention sewing and embroidery, people automatically think of it as a very stereotypical pastime, They think of old English and French aristocrats who sat around all day embroidering flowers into silk. My friends are all normal guys who go to the football and go to the pub and they don't really  have a clue what I do. They think that fashion is all about models and parties, which it definitely isn't. My friends ask me to do things like sewing on buttons to jackets and I tell them "you should be able to do this, it's not hard" I think that these basic skills are almost lost on men"

Alan points out that traditionally tailors were always men, and insists mending your own clothes brings a great sense of satisfaction, as well as savings on pricey alteration costs. But I can feel myself getting hot under the collar - reminicant of Ford Kiernan's "Ballistic Bob"  charachter in Chewin' the Fat - as I continue to thread the eye of the needle. It eventually takes me around 10 minutes to overcome the first and most basic of tasks, it's going to be a long night. As I struggle on with my not so nimble fingers, I eventually manage to weave my first thread through the material and I'm soon on my way to creating my first hem.

Spring Sewing - April 25th

It's beginning to look a lot like....spring.....time....? 

It's finally Spring......isn't it? And we're digging out our lightweight shirts and wearing chinos....aren't we? Well, when it has stopped snowing and and the ice has thawed, i'm sure we will.

In the meantime, what better way to take advantage of this extended "Serbian winter" than to learn how to mend those clothes you haven't worn since last year.

With the Great British Sewing Bee airing at the moment, judged by our tailoring hero Patrick Grant, there seems to be a real buzz around sewing right now and we're all for it! With this month's Gentlemen's Sewing Club, we think we've got the formula nailed. We've made the evening, slightly cheaper, slightly shorter and extended the choice of drinks. It has become apparent, that as smashing as a whiskey sour is, it's not to everyone's taste, pints, on the other hand, are to every man's taste.

This month our evening will be on the last Thursday of the month, (instead of the usual Wednesday) we've shortened the evening to an hour of sewing, but we'll be hanging around for drinks afterwords and everyone is more than welcome to stay on, and will only be £12, which, as usual, includes a drink and all the materials needed to practice your new skills.

The next evening will be Thursday 25th of April 7pm - 8pm - upstairs in Sloans Glasgow. Spaces are limited to 10 gents. to reserve your space, click on the BUY button below or on the side of our blog.

A new year, a new gent

Granted we took a slightly longer Christmas brake than most, but spring is most definitely in the air, and what better time to come back to writing about sewing, men's style and general gentlemanly behavior.

As we move into longer days, happier people, and of course, sporting jackets and blazers. 2013 is going to be bigger than ever for The Gentlemen's Sewing Club, expanding as more than just the monthly get together. We've been working on a range of limited edition, hand made in Scotland ties, that should be available to buy in the coming weeks. Our monthly gatherings have settled into the new home that is Sloans in Glasgow, and we welcome everyman to come along and learn some basic skills, have a natter and enjoy some smashing drinks.

For a main event this year, we're planning a very special evening in November to raise money for a very gentlemanly cause.........it's all in the planning stages at the moment, but we think its a great idea!