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.