Creative Stitching Show at Brixham Adult & Community Learning Centre

Barbara John has just opened an exhibition of Creative Stitching at Brixham Adult & Community Learning Centre, which is open from 9.30-3.30pm Monday to Friday and 6.30-8.30pm Monday to Wednesday. The show includes cushions and boxes embellished with ribbon, detailed machine stitchery pictures using metallic threads and little girly bags decorated with flower fairies.

That was the start of my love of sewing. I have always made my own clothes. For a long time I had a desire to go to college, so when my children had grown and I was in my late forties, I did a 2 year City & Guilds course at Exeter College in Fashion & Design. For several years I did dress making & wedding finery, but the only two actual “brides dresses” were for my own two daughters who were a dream to sew for as they knew exactly what they wanted & sketched it on paper.

One day I heard about a teaching course being run at Paignton, so I did that 6 month course which enabled me to teach textiles and creative sewing in Adult Community Learning at Brixham and Paignton Community Colleges. I am currently teaching dressmaking in Brixham on a Monday evening. I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching and have never looked back.

My husband has now partly retired, so I have joined him, which is why I have found the time to experiment more with fabrics, fibres and threads. Out of all the textile areas I have worked on, fabrics, fibres, threads and dressmaking are my favourite areas. I have really enjoyed the work for this exhibition which is a completely new venture.”