Breaking This Tiny Rule Could Get You Disqualified On 'The Great British Sewing Bee'

Most days I'm a writer, but some days I like to consider myself a professional baker. I'm obviously not, but thanks my love of The Great British Bake Off, it's shown me that there's absolutely no harm in believing. And while I have no idea how to sew, the return of The Great British Sewing Bee has ignited my curiosity and I am so tempted to finally sit down and teach myself how to cross-stitch. While I'm in no position to even think about entering any future series of the show, if you're an amateur sewer yourself, this is how to enter The Great British Sewing Bee.

While it's too late to enter this year or next year's Sewing Bee (applications for the seventh series closed on June 7, and the sixth series is already underway), with so many successful series already under its belt, I have a feeling it's not time to say goodbye to the haberdashery just yet.

There’s a slight possibility that filming for the seventh series could be postponed if COVID-19 lockdown restrictions are put back in place but we'll just have to wait and see.

I've had a little dig around about how applications work for the show and, unsurprisingly, there are a lot of rules. The main things to take away if you're planning to apply for the Sewing Bee is that you need to be over 16, a resident of the UK, and have no professional or educational experience in sewing. I mean, it is about finding Britain's best amateur sewers, after all.

Even though the 10 contestants won't win anything other than a trophy and the satisfaction of taking part, they will have shown the nation their talents when it comes to a needle and thread, which could lead to some exciting opportunities.

And that's the sort of reward the Sewing Bee promotes, too. As judge Patrick Grant told The Telegraph in 2014, "that's the point — it's not about the prize, it's about the enormous honour of being crowned the champion." Who knows what the future could bring if you won The Great British Sewing Bee. From setting up your own business to potentially being featured on BBC Radio Four’s Woman’s Hour, what's stopping you from giving the show a go?