A Great British Sewing Bee Champion: Caz on Confidence, Creativity and Having Fun with Sewing

Join us for an inspiring and honest conversation with Caz, winner of Season 11 of The Great British Sewing Bee, as she unpicks the story behind her success. 

From childhood crafting to stepping into the sewing room spotlight, Caz shares the journey that shaped her skills and her self-belief.

We dive into what it really felt like to compete on national television, the mindset shifts that helped her overcome self-doubt, and how the experience transformed both her confidence and her craft. 

Caz also opens up about her love of upcycling, why sustainability matters in modern sewing, and how embracing creativity (even when it feels scary) can unlock a whole new level in your making.

Whether you’re just threading your first needle or dreaming of taking your sewing further, this episode is packed with encouragement, practical insights, and a reminder that growth happens when you dare to back yourself. 🧵✨

Key Takeaways:

• Caz started crafting from an early age
• She made her own wedding dress and had a break from sewing for the next 25years!
• She had open heart surgery around the period of lockdown
• Applying for and being on the Sewing Bee was a joyous experience for her
• She had a lot of fun with designing her makes for the show, even though she would say she wasn't a creative sewist before this
• Following her win on the show, she has been to several sewing socials and feels they are very important to the sewing community 
• Caz believes in sustainability and reducing waste in sewing
• She has spoken at several events, putting herself out of her comfort zone
• Caz currently takes part in a podcast with her friends Dan and Stuart, who are also from the Sewing Bee

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Guest details: 

Instagram: @cazsews

Facebook: cazsews

Podcast: Make and Tailor - www.makeandtailor.com

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Background
00:19 The Journey Back to Sewing
03:08 Applying for The Sewing Bee
05:40 The Audition Process
08:19 Shutting Down a Business
10:46 Skills and Challenges on The Show
13:28 Creative Growth and Style Evolution
16:11 Winning The Sewing Bee and Final Outfit
18:55 Design Process and Personal Journey
21:12 Creative Inspirations and Iconic Designs
22:59 Building Friendships Through Sewing
24:11 The Importance of Community in Sewing
25:24 Social Events and Connections
26:22 Public Speaking and Overcoming Shyness
28:29 Sustainability in Sewing and Upcycling
31:21 Current Projects and Inspirations
32:14 Encouragement for Aspiring Sewers
33:17 Engaging with Underprivileged Youth
34:40 Fun and Games: This or That
39:35 Outro - tip on Ko-fi

Transcript

Gemma Daly (00:10)
Caz welcome to the Sewing Social podcast. I'm so happy to have you on today.

Caz (00:15)
⁓ hi Gemma, I'm very excited too.

Gemma Daly (00:18)
I was wondering if you could introduce yourself to the listeners.

Caz (00:23)
I will do. I am known as Caz and I am the current winner of, well not the current winner, but I am the winner of season 11 of The Sewing Bee. But out there there's another winner right now going, she's old news.

Gemma Daly (00:37)
Yeah,

bless you. Well, I like to start sort of taking it back to the beginning really. So how did sewing first enter your life and was there a moment or a person that sparked it for you?

Caz (00:54)
don't remember when I started sewing, but back when I was a kid, I used to get up at the crack of dawn and my mum and dad were pretty liberal and I used to go off to the study, we were lucky enough to have a study, which was full of craft materials and I just, by the time they got up at sort of like eight, nine o'clock, I'd made something, I'd glued something, I'd cut something and then I seriously started sewing at school.

Gemma Daly (01:20)
Yep.

Caz (01:21)
My mother actually was a needlework teacher but she didn't teach me. She was a needlework home ec teacher so she taught only for about a year. she was always there for help and and was a lot more useful than my sewing teachers. I think anyone a sewing teacher knows how awful they all I just heard Mark Francis talking about the fact that he had a lovely sewing teacher.

Gemma Daly (01:44)
think he had the only one in the whole country.

Caz (01:47)
Yeah,

I'm like, you talk to anybody and they go, no, my own teacher is like this. I'm like, I don't know.

Gemma Daly (01:53)
I know, what's that about? Because obviously,

as a child, that's when we absorb the most information, isn't it? And it sounds like you were very crafty in your own right. One or the other. So how long had you been sewing before you decided to apply for the sewing bee? And what was the moment that you thought, I'm gonna go for this?

Caz (02:03)
or left alone too long.

Yeah.

Well, I had a massive like 25 year break between sewing and then sewing again. So I sewed my wedding dress in 96 and then that was the last thing I sewed for like 25 years. Well, two things happened almost exactly at the same time, so my open COVID. So I was at home I was unable to do anything physical.

because couldn't do gardening, I couldn't lift a kettle, I couldn't do any of those sort of normal hobbies, I couldn't paint the And I was just wandering around bored, thinking I'm so bored, I'm so bored, because I was on furlough as well as being sick. then obviously there was a demand for making a mask. So I started making and became obsessed with making better masks.

the neater masks, fabrics and things. I got my old sewing machine out, which not touched, which I figure I've just had its service. I reckon I've not had its service in over 30 years. And I've never, I've never added oil to it. I've got no idea how to do And the bloke said, yeah, it's a little bit dry.

Yeah, and then I took a little while for it to turn into clothes, mass. It than you'd think, and my first couple of things were awful. I mean, honestly, I was just with them. I really was, but I never wore them.

then it just slowly grew. And then my daughter came home. Again, there was still that sort of COVID-y thing going on, but it was February 21 then. So was just looking through Instagram. I've got some fabric to make And she went, I'd like a skirt in that. And I went, ⁓ OK, well, stand still. I'll pin it on you.

Yeah, and then that was it really after that. of all consuming for me really.

Gemma Daly (04:11)
Yeah. So do you think in that first sort of era of your sewing that your wedding dress actually put you off? Was it really involved and did it put you off or did it, was it just life?

Caz (04:21)
No,

just life. I think I'd slowly sewn less and less. was actually overly confident in how good I was at sewing as a young person. And even when I made my wedding dress, I'm like, yes. I'm like, I can look at it now and go, well, it didn't fit very well.

Gemma Daly (04:31)
Yeah.

Caz (04:40)
But I was really happy with it. It was a very simple dress. ⁓ I was matching I know, handbags are good. I started to make a pair of trousers for my husband for the wedding. I was going to have this blue dress and he was going to have these purple trousers. So I cut these trousers underneath, put them on. It was like, no, no, they look absolutely awful.

Gemma Daly (05:02)
That's it.

Caz (05:03)
I had an

old sewing machine which went into the table.

actually it then just became a computer table. And what people forget, younger people, they forget that all fabric shops in the 90s, there was no fabric shops and the internet was not what it is.

So actually sewing was a hobby that it kind of killed itself Coming back to sewing was like this world had just opened and overlockers at home and twin needles and my God, just like coming out of the dark ages.

Gemma Daly (05:40)
can imagine, I can imagine. So what do you think sort of brought you to that point where you were like, yeah, I'm gonna go on the show. Had you been watching it for years?

Caz (05:51)
Yes and no. I was a bit like, that's best way can describe it, was like watching Doctor Who for me. So I was really, really tense and hiding behind the sofa. And I always said I'd never ever go on it. And people were going, you need to go on it, you need to go on it. And I don't know, I think there was so many little circumstances, you the business, I'd shut the business, which gave me time. And I felt like it was a very good technical sewer at that point.

Gemma Daly (05:58)
Mm-hmm.

Caz (06:18)
but I wasn't an imaginative sewer Like a lot of sewists, hate waste. And I think to develop your own ideas of design and stuff, means you have to waste fabric, you have to play with fabric. And I didn't know how to do that at home. So yes, I applied much on a whim, not a whim, but like a moment. And then when I got

Gemma Daly (06:31)
Mm.

Caz (06:42)
email saying you've got through to the first I cried for about an hour.

Gemma Daly (06:50)
as in you couldn't believe it or you were like, no, what have I done?

Caz (06:54)
No, I think I it was like winning for me. was it felt like such an achievement I felt totally validated that I could sew and ⁓ I didn't I didn't expect to get the next round through the next round etc. yeah but that first email was it was actually really really special.

Gemma Daly (06:58)
⁓

Aww,

that sounds amazing. And I have spoken to a few of the bees along the way and I think it was Jen Hogg that said about the process and even before you get on the show it is quite a lot, isn't it, to go through?

Caz (07:29)
It is quite a lot, I decided, well, I mean, the first two bits, as I now know, were talking and as you can tell, I love to talk. those bits, they were just an absolute joy for me. I mean, I just went in with no expectations and no pressure. just like, right, I'm just going to just really enjoy this. And the people that you speak to was so lovely and so enthusiastic. It just makes it really easy to just have fun.

The live audition was a little bit different. still wanted to have fun, but nerves really, really took over. do panic a you're on a high because you've finished it. You've done it. Whatever the outcome, you've kind And at every stage, they tell you how well you've done to get to that stage. So you have constant...

You've done so well to get to this day. So that was really good as well. Yeah, really good.

Gemma Daly (08:22)
That's nice. Yeah.

You mentioned that you shut a business before. What was that if you don't mind me asking?

Caz (08:29)
No, it's fine. It was a small printing which was a family business, but my dad pretty much retired. So it's like me full time and Liz part time. I did everything. it was making a every year, which is demoralizing. And B, it was just exhausting. was physically

Gemma Daly (08:47)
Yeah.

Caz (08:50)
I was getting more more tired. And also every single spare moment when you run a business, what you've got to think about is the all the time. any spare moment, I was just thinking about fabric.

Gemma Daly (09:06)
I don't blame you. I do not blame you.

So were there any skills, let's go back to the bee again, were there any skills that they made you do on the show that you'd previously avoided in your own sewing?

Caz (09:22)
The big one, the big, big one was in the final. So the bias cut on a slippy fabric. I would not touch any bias. No way. No, no, no. Slippy fabric. No, no, no, no, no. And I knew they didn't put this in, but I knew. So I picked the thinnest bias fabric in the world ever. And the reason why I did that was I loved the print.

Gemma Daly (09:36)
you

Thanks

Caz (09:48)
But also I knew that at home, I would never, ever touch that fabric. Never. So was going to do it then because I would never do it. So there's no point. I've got to take that opportunity, if you see what I mean. And I knew I'd come last, but I didn't care. never about winning. mean subconsciously, I'm sure it was, but it was never. I'm just like, yeah, well, I was.

Gemma Daly (10:00)
Yeah.

Caz (10:11)
I've got to the final. Nothing else matters, does it? So I'm going to have a go. yeah, it was really awful.

Gemma Daly (10:15)
Mmm.

God bless you.

Have you done it since?

Caz (10:25)
No, but I did work with a slippy chiffon-y thing, which I would not have done before. again, I'm like, you know what? I've just bought one. Having said that, I've literally just bought one. So we'll see where that ends up. I like a stable fabric, to be honest with you.

Gemma Daly (10:46)
don't

blame It sounds like though that the show has given you that confidence to just go for things, would you agree?

Caz (10:54)
⁓ 100%. 100%. It's a subtle thing, but almost everything I make is slightly I was talking to somebody the other day, so I still use patterns. got no, I do not want to, I'm not going down that whole pattern making route. It's not for me. There's enough patterns out there. I will alter them slightly every time, or I'll change quite comfortably.

experiment a little bit more than I did, well a lot more. And I think of overall shapes of garments before, before I would say I made a top or I made a skirt, whereas now I'm thinking of what's the outfit.

Gemma Daly (11:34)
and do you think it sort of shaped your style as well?

Caz (11:38)
think sewing will start. I mean, I've never had a great need for clothes. I've never had very many. So I might have bought one stylish outfit a year, which means nothing coordinates. ⁓ So sewing means everything fits, which is And it also means that you can choose the colors that go because you can find them. you can coordinate things better.

Gemma Daly (11:49)
Mm-hmm.

Caz (12:03)
So sewing itself has changed that. day also has ramped it up a little bit more. I can look again, through my Instagram. to me, I can see a very clear line before me. It has to be.

Gemma Daly (12:17)
Yeah, and I was going to say like as an observer, I think you've totally changed as well. You, you definitely edgier if that's, yeah, do you think-

Caz (12:27)
Yeah,

100%, 100%. And I think this is probably where I always naturally wanted to be, but it's not on the high street for me at something that's an affordable And I can make it, can make it how you want. So you can make it, you can put your pockets in or you can make it shorter or you don't want to show the bottom of your legs off or do you know what mean? So you can.

you can convert all of those sort of things. 100%. And I actually was looking, you know, there's that Instagram phase recently where it was like, look back 10 years to 2016. So I looked back to 2016, and because there was nothing in my wardrobe that was handmade at all. And this is picked off me and I'm like, I just look, I'm going to say I'm going to use the word corporate, but not in a good way. And just that kind of like,

Gemma Daly (13:03)
Yeah.

Caz (13:16)
It's just so boring.

Gemma Daly (13:18)
I think sewing really does develop who you are because I've been through a bit of a process as well as we all do. Cause it's partly, you got to learn how to do it in the first place, haven't you? So you're going to make mistakes and then you're like, I don't know if I like that anyway. And then it is, I went through the whole phase of, I love all the prints. But then nothing goes together. So.

Caz (13:28)
Absolutely. Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Gemma Daly (13:43)
You know, but now I'm in a, I am in like a solids phase. I love solid colors and I'm more of a like a pastel girl. So I'm not really a bright in your face girl, but I feel like it is a journey for everybody.

Caz (13:58)
I think so too. I think so. find it really interesting. Also, like I make clothes for my friends and stuff, as you know, but I've just made a dress for my friend and she's a different, like different style of different body shape. And we chose everything together and it looks absolutely awful on her. And this is part of the learning thing. And this is also part of what cripples you is you make clothes for yourself and they might not work. But you've kind of got to go through that. And that's

Gemma Daly (14:18)
Yeah.

Caz (14:26)
Fine, as long as you love the process. Like I love the process as much as I love maybe more than I love the finished result. just a joy, isn't it?

Gemma Daly (14:34)
Yeah, this is it.

It is. It is the whole working with your hands. And I think if you love that, you will love the process. But I think if you're quite new to sewing, what I'm going to say in inverted commas is the failures. They put you off a bit, don't they? They knock you. They knock you. But there's really so much to take into account. There's fabric choice, pattern choice, style choice, fitting.

Caz (14:53)
Absolutely.

Yeah.

Gemma Daly (15:04)
There's so much to learn.

Caz (15:05)
There is so much to learn. I mean, most things are out there on the internet now, so most people can learn. And it's almost a case of asking the right question. Because sometimes you just don't know where. But I'm very basic. I literally type in like, I don't know how to. ⁓ And some tips will turn up. Yeah.

Gemma Daly (15:10)
Ahem.

you'll get the answer. Yeah.

Caz (15:31)
I'm constantly

as well now, so I'm just sewing some seersucker and it's stretching and it's been an absolute mare. So I'm the quilters wash away tape when I'm sewing it to keep it all in place.

And that's easy for me because I have it in stock. I've used it before. I've never done it for that, but I assume it will be OK. But as you say, as a beginner, you could be sewing that. It's all stretching. It's out of shape. And you just throw it away, and it's demoralising quite sad, isn't it? That is quite sad.

Gemma Daly (16:01)
Yeah,

but you have to, you do have to go through that to come out the other side and learn from it because you learn best from your mistakes at the end of the day, don't you?

Caz (16:11)
Absolutely,

absolutely. But I have, I mean, I have people, not that many, but I people on Instagram, you know, come to me and ask me questions about sewing, a technical thing, and I will always answer. But I think any sewist would, so I kind of one of the best things as a sewist is follow, particularly people Sew Over 50 they will all, they're so enthusiastic, they will all answer any of your queries.

Gemma Daly (16:35)
They've got a lot of knowledge as well. We had Sue on the show, Sue Young, few weeks ago and yeah, she was incredible.

Caz (16:38)
Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah,

yeah, I haven't listened to that one yet, but I will be doing that one later. ⁓

Gemma Daly (16:48)
⁓ So

you obviously went on to win the show, which is incredible, and your final outfit that your daughter Florence got to wear was really cool. For anyone that didn't see it, and I can't believe you didn't see it, but can you describe the outfit and why you chose to make that?

Caz (17:13)
Yes, so the thing was, excuse my pronunciation, trompe-l'oeil so trick of the eye, and I knew as soon as I read it, I knew I wanted to do something about the open heart surgery that I've had in 2020, early 2020. think anyone who's had their chest open

Gemma Daly (17:33)
my gosh.

Caz (17:35)
It's physically, ⁓ I don't know what the word is, it's not like you're frightened of it, but it's such an amazing thing that they can do that. Constantly in awe that they literally just break your rib cage open and dive into you, do know what I mean? So I knew that I, it really is. So I knew that I wanted to do that. And then it was really a case of trying to work out the structure of the dress.

Gemma Daly (17:52)
It's incredible.

you

Caz (18:01)
So I basically in the end decided that I want to go for the rib cage and the zip down the front because people have had open heart surgery often referred to as a zipper club. But I still wanted to make it quite dressy. So I used gold pleather to make an external boned rib cage which came round the arms and sewed it into a gold sternum effectively at the front.

which had the zip in and just a little hint of red underneath it. And the dress itself was made out of black, so in theory, that was the bit that you couldn't see. So, yeah.

Gemma Daly (18:37)
It's so creative. Like you said earlier that you felt like you didn't have that creative bit at home before you went on. Like that's a huge learning curve. How did you get there?

Caz (18:44)
No.

I looked at, I mean,

you're absolutely right. You say, well, what are you proud of? And actually, even if I've not got through one of those bits, what I would have been proud of was just the journey that I went through with the designs. And there was two very clear points for me. So week one, get through it. So the best I can, sew a dress. Absolutely obsessed with the fact that I've got four hours to sew a dress. How do you sew a dress in four hours? I never sit and sew.

Gemma Daly (18:55)
Thank

You

Caz (19:18)
You know, I've never sat down solid for four hours. I have a cup of tea, I walk around, I do the ironing, I come back, you know. So I was terrified. So I did week one's design, that's fine. Then week two, I did the, there's a point to this, week two, I did Kung Fu outfit, the Bruce Lee outfit. Because I've done Kung Fu for 25 years, so was a nod to my instructor and...

Gemma Daly (19:38)
Mm-hmm.

⁓

Caz (19:45)
just amused me with my sense of humor right there. then in my mind, when I'm designing for week three, which was my Dorothy Does Bondage dress, that was when I decided that I wasn't getting through the show. That was, I was already gone. I killed Bill out, but whatever, I'd gone home. Stopped worrying about the time and started drawing for me.

My daughter was home just then and I don't like the start to do it. She's like, ⁓ Mum, Mum, watch YouTube. I've never watched YouTube before in my life either.

Gemma Daly (20:19)
Hahaha

Caz (20:21)
watching Versace shows and I'm like, nah, still don't like it. So the Dorothy dress was the bit where I just kind of let go and the images just smashed in my head. They just, it just But I do lots of pencil drawings to get to what I wanted. And then the next real key one for me was my pop art which again was

I didn't think I'd get past with that one either. I had lots of designs, probably better designs than that one. But I was obsessed with it. I was absolutely obsessed with it. And I'm like, I don't care if I don't win, I don't care. I just want to make this dress. This dress makes me laugh. And I lay on the floor and I got my son to draw around me. what a joy that is. was so, it's just.

Gemma Daly (20:53)
Mmm.

Caz (21:12)
fun and that's kind of like, just what it should be, isn't it?

Gemma Daly (21:16)
You can tell though that that's your personality as well Caz, it shines through. The Dorothy one was like a particular favourite of mine, I just thought what an amazing mashup.

Caz (21:28)
Yes, yeah. I mean, I just, it just seems so obvious to me when I'm like, ⁓ what I'm going to do is I'm going to take an iconic dress and I'm going to make it into something that looks like a Versace dress. So then I'm racking my brains looking through, you know, famous dresses and because the Dorothy dress straight away, it was just like, and actually one of my favourite moments, they changed the order on the show, but one of my favourite moments was Dan's

Sachi dress, the jungle dress came out before mine. And so she came out with this almost nothing on. I mean, absolutely, gobsmackingly beautiful. One down, know, little bikini, boobs out, not quite out, but you And then my Dorothy dress comes out, which is the most modest dress you've ever seen in the world.

Gemma Daly (22:09)
Yeah. ⁓

Caz (22:18)
The juxtaposition had me in hysterics. I just thought that was so funny. Yeah, I loved that.

Gemma Daly (22:20)
Yeah

Brilliant,

brilliant. And you seem to have formed some really close friendships from being on the show. Somebody's, I think it was Tony, has previously described it as trauma bonding.

Caz (22:38)
for me, I loved every single minute. what's not to love? You're, I didn't know anyone else who sewed before that. That's the thing. That's the first time I'd met people who were sewing and enthusiastic about sewing. So, and then you're surrounded by people who are enthusiastic. you're like,

Gemma Daly (22:40)
you

Mmm.

Caz (22:59)
Yeah, there was some really stressful bit, it was a beautiful thing to be able to be part of. And you have a lot of downtime. I know they call it, I know that there is a lot of trauma, but you have a lot of downtime. So you make friends because you are literally spending hours together, entertaining yourself. Yeah, right. They're lovely, lovely people.

Gemma Daly (23:23)
Yeah, that's really nice. And just to sort of touch on the fact that you didn't know anyone who's sewed before, I think that is the case for a lot of people, so it can be very isolated hobby, can't it? Do you feel, obviously the show has like propelled you into the sewing community, but were you part of that before?

Caz (23:37)
Yeah.

No, wasn't. now, I mean, and I talk about these, the social sews, which there's so many of about that. I had no idea about that. I had no idea how good they are and how important they And I'm now kind of like trying to go around seeing as many social sews as I can to kind of say hello and encourage people and stuff. And that's really what I want to do is just encourage people to sew and have a go and enjoy it and

Gemma Daly (23:49)
.

Caz (24:12)
Yeah, but I've so many sewing friends now, it's ridiculous.

Gemma Daly (24:16)
Yeah,

probably more than normal, friends.

Caz (24:22)
There's actually a social stove that's three miles from my house.

Gemma Daly (24:23)
mean that in a nice way. ⁓

wow! Yeah!

Caz (24:33)
I no idea, three miles, I'm

like... Yeah.

Gemma Daly (24:35)
And now

you're doing some as well, aren't you, with Stuart and Dan? Yeah, I think this is gonna be out just after your next one, which is up north, isn't it?

Caz (24:38)
Yeah! Yeah. Yeah, well.

It is, yeah, yeah. So what we're going to do is, well, I mean, people come. We've done one in Hereford, because that's where Stuart lives. The next one's up north, because that's where Dan lives. And then we'll do one the Midlands, that's where I live. And outside of that, I think it'll be too hard for us to organize, et cetera. got to stay in hotels and things. It just gets too expensive.

Gemma Daly (24:52)
Of course they will.

Yay!

Caz (25:14)
People have said, are you coming down to London? It's unless people aren't, yeah, I think it'd be too hard.

Gemma Daly (25:18)
Yeah,

okay, but you might sort of go around those three areas.

Caz (25:24)
hoping to

get a little circuit going probably every two months or so ⁓ because it's just so nice. The first one we did was it was just such a joy and people are hugging goodbye and honestly they all walk in as strangers and by the end of it you're just the best friends. It's so lovely. It's really lovely, yeah.

Gemma Daly (25:28)
Yeah.

⁓

That

is really nice. Okay, so that's exciting. And you're also doing a podcast with those guys as well, aren't you?

Caz (25:55)
Yeah,

well, I mean, you can tell I really just like to have a bit of a laugh. mean, you know, I'm, I'm old and I'm frail. So it's, you know, I figure you just got to make the most of it, haven't you? And they make me laugh a lot. So, yes, we do a podcast, it's rubbish. It will get better. There's no structure to it. We just chat. good chance to catch up. And interestingly, I don't know if you saw, but we did, I got

Gemma Daly (26:02)
No, you're not. ⁓

Caz (26:22)
I went to my local sewing shop I said to them, any business that I'm involved in, I want to help you because I know how tough it is to run a business. So, you know, if I can help you, I will. And she said, will you do a talk? And I said, yeah, of course I will. 30, 40 people.

Gemma Daly (26:31)
Hmm

Ahem.

yes, I saw this. Keep going, sorry.

Caz (26:41)
Yeah,

110 people in the local theatre.

Gemma Daly (26:47)
my word! How did you manage that? Like, do you get shy or are you quite happy to talk in front of an audience?

Caz (26:56)
This is the bizarre thing. So I know I seem really loud, I seem really bubbly and I seem really confident and because nobody's just one thing and I'm definitely not that thing. And I'm really generally quieter and shy. But I adore sewing, and I can talk about it nonstop. But I stood on stage, my husband didn't make it because he went to Kung Fu, which is fine by me.

Gemma Daly (27:19)
You

Caz (27:21)
But my best friend came and we were laughing about it. She said, I never thought I'd see you do that. know, not, I'm not the person, you know, I've never done drama. I've never put myself out there. I've never done any of this. Like, you know, like my kids were astonished that I'd applied for the B because I never put myself forward for anything. I'm the one that's hiding behind people. and I stood on the stage and I looked out and I went, I'm just going to have to take a minute here. There's lots of you.

And then Davin Stewart came the day before, said, we're to come and support you. And I went, great, you can come on stage with me.

Gemma Daly (27:59)
Did it go well then?

Caz (28:00)
Yeah, it was really good. Wow, obviously I'm biased.

Gemma Daly (28:02)
⁓

yeah, but that is like, that's being so brave, isn't it? And pushing out of your comfort zone. So you must've been proud of yourself.

Caz (28:12)
Yeah, I was. I was. And I wasn't scared because I just love sewing so much. So, you know, you asked me a question and it really is the case. Well, Caz just shut up now

So yeah, no, it's bright.

Gemma Daly (28:27)
It's really good though.

you mentioned earlier that you hate to waste fabric and things like that. And I've seen you do quite a lot of upcycling projects recently. Why do you think it is important to use the fabrics or garments that we already have to repurpose them?

Caz (28:51)
mean everything, the whole environment, the whole world's a bit of a mess isn't it generally? I just everything goes to the tip, we're so wasteful. yeah, and I think sewists think all sewists are concerned about the waste because they bought the fabric at £20 a metre, but that little square there, that's worth a pound. So I've always tried to scrap.

Gemma Daly (29:11)
This is it.

Caz (29:19)
I don't keep all of them, but I've always tried to keep all the But it takes a while because I don't like scrappy projects.

Gemma Daly (29:26)
⁓ And some things don't suit scrappy projects either, do they? Like if you buy a drapey fabric, you're gonna struggle to use that.

Caz (29:32)
No.

No, absolutely.

100%. So they don't don't get saved usually. But I've got poofs and things that I put those in. But I think one of the reasons why people don't do it so much is you have to think about it so much. And it takes twice as long to do a project because you've basically got to create the fabric before you start making the garment. So you need to make sure that you know the garment's going to fit and it's going to suit you, kind of.

Gemma Daly (29:42)
Yeah.

Well, what?

Yeah.

Caz (30:03)
I've really been enjoying using the scraps and trying to think about it.

Gemma Daly (30:07)
Yeah,

well you're wearing a top that's a ⁓ jersey make aren't you? Yeah.

Caz (30:10)
I am! Yeah, I am!

You know, I actually don't like this, I... No! I find myself putting it on as soon as it comes out of the wash, so I must like it, really! I must do it!

Gemma Daly (30:18)
Do you need?

You must do!

You wear a lot of denim as well, don't you? Do you upcycle your denim? Yeah.

Caz (30:32)
I love denim. I've

always loved denim. I don't know whether that's the 70s thing, because that's my childhood or whatever. my favorite memories of things, I can remember certain jeans, can remember denim dresses, denim skirt I wore for about 20 years. I'm always looking to replace that particular denim skirt with the next denim skirt.

So yeah, so I always keep all the scraps of denim and I've got a denim throw here that I've made out of scraps of denim. Yeah.

Gemma Daly (31:03)
wow. Yeah,

I have to admit it's one of my favourite fabrics as well. It's just classic, isn't it?

Caz (31:09)
Yeah, and it's so easy to pair with anything. It's a bit of a no-brainer, isn't it?

Gemma Daly (31:12)
This is it.

So you said you're working with some seersucker. What is it that you're making at the moment?

Caz (31:21)
Well, I've become since doing the B, I've become obsessed with the designer, Tom Brown. very kind of out there, but his tailoring is extremely good. And he's got this beautiful little white shirt. And I haven't got any white fabric in stock, so I've got this seersucker. So I'm attempting to make a beautifully, you can see where this is going, can't you? I'm attempting to make a beautifully tailored shirt out of seersucker.

Gemma Daly (31:40)
Yeah.

Caz (31:49)
Anyway, it's not going to be beautifully tailored.

Gemma Daly (31:50)
you

Caz (31:52)
But it will be wearable.

Gemma Daly (31:55)
that's

the main thing and then if you like that you can get a different fabric and redo it, can't you?

Caz (32:01)
Exactly,

Gemma Daly (32:03)
So what do you think is the advice that you would give someone who's been watching the sewing bee and really wants to go on it but doesn't believe that they're good enough to apply?

Caz (32:14)
I'll definitely just go for it. Definitely go for it. Just me, I would say even ⁓ any aspect of, once you filled the form in, that's a bit tortuous, once you feel deforming, every aspect of that for me was a joy. even if you don't want to go on the show, but you're curious, I would still say apply. Because it's just such a lovely space.

Gemma Daly (32:24)
You

Yeah.

Caz (32:37)
It's a clean space, no one knows you.

So you've got no identity when you walk in there. quite an interesting thing. No one in that room knows if you're quiet or shy or loud or anything.

Gemma Daly (32:49)
So you can be who you want to be basically.

Caz (32:52)
Yeah, and there's no judgment. You're being judged all the time, I know that. But there's no racism, sexism, you know, just respects the fact that you're a really good sewer and that you've been on there. So just go for it. You never know what's going to happen, definitely.

Gemma Daly (33:12)
lovely. you have any other exciting plans coming up Caz

Caz (33:18)
I've got something that I am quite excited about, but it's only little. I am getting involved with a lady who works with I think that's right in terms them to learn so or so creatively. I really would like to get kids involved more, you know, whenever I've turned up to these social sews or whatever, mostly, you know, it's over 50s.

Gemma Daly (33:22)
Hmm.

Caz (33:42)
and I really would like the young people, boys, girls, yeah. So I'm really excited about that.

Gemma Daly (33:51)
sounds amazing. So what would you be helping to teach them or inspire them? What sort of aspect would that be?

Caz (33:57)
I

think in this case, I just said yes, because this is where I'm at right now. So I don't really know what it is. I just went, yeah, I'm in. I'm it's to do with, think it might be an eight week course and I'm just going for one day. I think it will be some sort of transformation. So it's a little bit like taking some denim and repurposing it, that kind of thing.

Gemma Daly (34:01)
Yes to everything.

Caz (34:23)
yeah, I am really excited about that. And I've also kind of got involved with couple of heart charity type things as well. a little bit more under the radar, but that's really nice.

Gemma Daly (34:24)
Aww.

Mmm.

fantastic. Exciting things coming then.

Caz (34:39)
Nothing major though.

Gemma Daly (34:42)
But

do you know what? Those things are more meaningful than some of the big projects. So, you know, that that's amazing.

Caz (34:48)
Yeah.

Gemma Daly (34:51)
So just to tie up the interview Caz, I'd to do a little game of this or that if that's okay with you. Yeah, okay, right. First one, the transformation challenge or the made to measure?

Caz (34:55)
Yes. Yes, yes, yes.

made to measure. Although

now I'm thinking about it. I'm traumatized by the transformation, but you learn so much. made to measure. no, I don't know. don't know. You get a little high from the transformation as well. Even if you produce something rubbish, you're a little bit bussy.

Gemma Daly (35:11)
Yeah. But we'll...

You

Shall we say you can't Tea or coffee?

Caz (35:27)
Yeah, might be a lot of that.

coffee.

Gemma Daly (35:32)
Spring, summer or autumn, winter.

Caz (35:35)
I think spring, summer, I mean, let's be honest, my bones creak in winter.

Gemma Daly (35:46)
Wovens or knits?

Caz (35:48)
Oh, definitely woven. obviously I do like a bit of jersey, but you can take denim away from me. Yeah, that's a hard one, isn't it? I think, again, if I had to choose one, it would definitely be scissors. Because rotary cutters, again, they bother me on the whole wastefulness of You have to keep them sharp and, you know, definitely scissors.

Gemma Daly (35:56)
Yeah. Scissors or a rotary cutter?

Hmm, good point. Classic planes or bold prints?

Caz (36:19)
Well, now you're asking, aren't you? Because you've used the word bold print there. See, I'm not a little print, but a bold print. But there aren't many of them, so I'm going to go plain. didn't say stripes. Stripes, stripes. That's a whole other category.

Gemma Daly (36:28)
Yeah. ⁓

Yeah.

Yeah, yeah, I would feel that's a... there

is, it's a separate category. practical wardrobe staple or a one-off special piece?

Caz (36:46)
are practical staples, definitely. I don't really like the idea that something would be a one-off. I like it to be usable. I hate, I don't have room for something you're not gonna wear.

Gemma Daly (36:52)
Yeah.

This is it. An organised stash or creative chaos.

Caz (37:02)
You know, I live in both worlds, obviously. I like an organised stat. I like it organised. My mind's clear if it's organised. But if you looked around this room, it is just a mess.

Gemma Daly (37:05)
You

I think that's a common theme. We like one thing but we actually do the other.

Caz (37:23)
Yeah. ⁓

Gemma Daly (37:25)
Sewing for yourself or others.

Caz (37:27)
Well, I definitely can't choose on that one. I adore so for people I find it, it's a whole different thing and I find it more meditative. ⁓ I find it often really joyful to sew for other people I get a bit more perfectionist when it's for other people. I be a bit slap dash with my own stuff.

Gemma Daly (37:44)
Yeah I get that, I get that. I know you can have a bit of both. And the last one, iron everything or it'll be fine.

Caz (37:46)
But I like having stuff! Yeah!

Iron everything. Iron everything. ⁓

Gemma Daly (38:03)
Brilliant. So

where can people find you Caz?

Caz (38:08)
Cazsews obviously.

Gemma Daly (38:11)
Short and sweet, isn't it?

Caz (38:13)
Yeah, that's it. I've just kind of started Facebook. I don't really do Facebook, but it's the same And kind of part of the make and tailor, which is what I do with Dan and Stuart. And that's the podcast and stuff is make and tailor. But now I'm a cashier.

Gemma Daly (38:24)
Mm-hmm.

Perfect,

and I'll put all those details in the show notes. Will you be at any of the sewing shows this year so people can look out for you?

Caz (38:33)
Thank you very much.

Yes, I will. I'm definitely going to be at Stitch and it looks on the Saturday. Definitely going to be the Alley Pally one. And then there's one in Birmingham coming up in March at Creative Crafts, that when I'm going to be there on the Thursday,

Gemma Daly (38:52)
Yeah.

busy busy.

Caz (38:57)
Yeah, I know, but it's not really, it? Yeah, I I should probably just go get a job. Thank you so much. I've really enjoyed it. And you said you want me back next week?

Gemma Daly (39:01)
It's all fun. fun. Well, you've been fantastic Caz. Thank you so much for joining me on the Sewing Social podcast.

of course. Every week. Do you want to co-host?

Caz (39:20)
No

one would be able to say anything Gemma, that would be no good, would it? Thank you very much. Thanks very much Gemma, thank you. Bye.

Gemma Daly (39:27)
Well, you take care. Thanks again. Bye bye.