Reviews

I have participated in a number of sewing and textile art courses run by Jen. I started 4 years ago with a beginners sewing course followed by an improvers sewing course. I completed a beginners dressmaking course and much to my astonishment managed to successfully sew a skirt! My main interest is however in the textile art workshops Jen has run – mostly pre Covid times but I am delighted to read in the most recent newsletter that she will be offering more textile art courses this year. I highly recommend the free motion embroidery workshop. For experienced – and not so experienced sewers – it offers a new skill to add to the sewing skills toolbox – like drawing with a sewing machine! I’ve already signed up to the print, collage, stitch workshop in May and was delighted to read in the newsletter that there will be a couple of textile art courses in the summer school programme this year – am particularly interested in the print, stitch, quilt course.

Jen is a very skilled and knowledgeable teacher – of sewing, dressmaking and all things textile art. She puts even the most inept aspiring sewer (me) at ease, instills confidence, has a wealth of practical tips up her sleeve and is always calm and reassuring. She is not just an excellent teacher, she has a range of examples of her own sewing and amazing textile art on display in the workshop.

I attended the Flourish & Print Gelli workshop in May 2025. I was not sure quite what to expect, but it was absolutely fascinating. The unpredictability of the final outcome just adds to the enjoyment, and I came away from the day with all sorts of ideas buzzing about in my head. Jen is a great teacher – not just the techniques, but also discussing ideas of how to use the output. I thoroughly recommend this course.

Getting to know your overlocker was such a fantastic class. I often felt overpowered and actually scared of my overlocker, so much so that at one point I thought I’d just sell it on. I’m so glad that I bought it a travel bag instead and ventured down to Jen’;s studio. It was incredibly clear from the outset that most people felt the same way as me. By the end of the day we had all made friends with our overlockers and mastered some new skills. It has proved to be a big boost to my sewing skills and I will be back for one of the fitting classes later on this year.

Jen is such a good teacher, everything is clear and easy to understand, and the class notes are sent on promptly too.

Highly recommend!

I’d wanted to buy an overlocker for ages, but kept hearing that they were difficult to use, problematic and therefore often confined to the back of the cupboard. I managed to borrow one after hearing about Jens course, and spent a very enjoyable day learning how to use it. The class is quite small and Jen is very patient, so plenty of time to sort out normally time consuming and frustrating problems. I came away inspired and confident, and will be heading to the shops soon.

Jen is an excellent and patient teacher, allowing plenty of time to accommodate any Overlocker overwhelm!

I was concerned about my often challenging brain fog and learning new things can be a real challenge at times. However, the pace of the class, a great teacher and learning in a small group made all the difference .

I would also say, to the fearful, the class is where to watch how, and then make your mistakes in the practical, as the learning continues in practicing the technique at home. This in itself alleviates the pressure to get it right first time.

Morning session is the initial task of “making friends” with your machine, then Jen teaches one technique at a time – a demo, then the practical, when Jen goes from student to student troubleshooting any issues and answering questions.

I never once felt rushed and believe Jen sincerely enjoys helping, even the most nervous of students, to learn.

So don’t be afraid dear fellow procrastinators, sign up and join that class you’ve been putting off!

You won’t regret it!