There was a nail-biting finish in the final of TV’s The Great British Sewing Bee last night as all three contestants – including Uckfield’s Jade Earley – went into the last stage evenly matched.
Joyce took first place after making a man’s dress shirt and was third in the alteration challenge. Charlotte came third and first in those sections and Jade had two second places.
It was Charlotte who pulled something special out of the bag in the made-to-measure challenge and won the competition but there was little between the three contestants who were all great sports, celebrating each others achievements and emphathising when others struggled.
The night’s theme was evening dress and the man’s dress shirt challenge was all about precision. Jade was congratulated on “beautiful sewing” with just a couple of small errors.
The alteration challenge was to transform a man’s dinner suit into a little black dress and Jade’s dress was described as “sexy and fun”. The judges liked the use of a chunky zip but weren’t sure about dart seams displayed on the outside of the dress.
In the final made-to-measure section Jade had moral support from her mum’s best friend Gemma who was her model. “Anything would look great on Gemma,” said Jade. “Even a bin bag.”
And Gemma did look lovely in Jade’s vibrant creation. The judges said it fulfilled the glamourous evening wear brief but they would have liked to see the train finished off, perhaps with weights in a hem to help hold its shape.
All the contestants from the competition were there to hear the result and finalists’ families too. There was a big hug for Jade from her mum Nyree as she walked in. Viewers have learned that her advice to Jade has been to “smash it” each time she entered the sewing room and the teenager from Ridgewood certainly did that.

A big hug for Nyree Earley from Jade who had advised her daughter to “smash it” each time she returned to the sewing room. She certainly did that as a great contestant.
What has Jade been doing since the competition? Fans of the Sewing Bee heard that she has been creating mini-versions of the show’s made-to-measure garments for her little sister Jema.
See also:
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