Despite a showbiz past working in public relations handling pop stars and bands, Alison McNicol has brought her own brand of Britpop cool to crafts.

When Alison craved a new career challenge, she decided to put her creative talents to use and started up Stitchclub, sewing classes for kids in her local area.

Alison says she doesn’t remember a time when she didn’t make things. She was taught to sew at an early age by her grandmother who was a fantastic seamstress. She had her own sewing machine at 8, “an old Singer treadle machine in a wonderful wooden cabinet that my dad added a motor to,” she remembers fondly. “It was just like gran’s.”

Stitchclub was a success and Alison soon took the brand across the UK. She now has a new book Sewing Skills for Girls and Boys, a new range of Sew Easy Kits in the shops and, she promises, “lots more in the pipeline!” Publishing her first book was a dream come true for Alison, and she even writes her own column in Sew magazine.
 

Coats Crafts have supported Alison along the way, because sewing is a fantastic skill for children to learn – it’s not only practical but also creative and gives kids a huge sense of achievement and enjoyment.  More than anything Alison likes to share her passion for sewing, “I love to make items for my home and gifts for friends. Bags, cushions, doorstops etc and I have a huge collection of vintage fabrics that seem to be taking over my house!” But the best thing of all for her is, “the feedback from the children in my class, or their parents, when they tell me how much they love my Stitchclub classes and what fun they’ve had. That is priceless!”

She gets her inspiration from everyday things. “Sometimes I’ll see some gorgeous fabric and know that it would be perfect as a bag…or see an expensive dress in a shop and know how easy it would be to make a tailor made version for myself.”

Stitchclub is going from strength to strength and thanks to Alison, a whole new generation of sewers are developing and growing their skills. If you’d like to run a Stitchclub in your area, there are  information packs and advice available here.