I come from a sewing family background. My grandmother was very good at embroidery, my aunt made soft toys and my mother made most of my clothes until I was old enough to make my own.
My first Repair Café was in Histon. I was impressed when they fixed my kitchen gadget, but I also noticed some ladies sewing. I found them friendly and they invited me to join them – I have been attending cafés as a repairer ever since.
From a repairer’s point of view, I enjoy the challenges brought in by members of the public, from 70-year-old teddies to metre-wide ball ‘pools’, as well as the more usual sewing on buttons, making patches, and general repairs of clothes and soft furnishings.
Sometimes I am the only one sewing, at other times we work in teams of three or four, when we can share tools, swop tips and get a second opinion if presented with a particularly difficult challenge. (The ball-pool needed two of us working together: one to hold the ‘pool’ and the other to operate the sewing machine.)
I have met some really lovely people at Repair Cafés, both other repairers and repairees. I have also eaten some delicious cakes!
