SewBrum

An annual free-to-attend sewing meet-up in Birmingham, England since 2014

Join us for SewBrum 2024

26th October 2024, Birmingham, UK

The #SewBrum meet-up is eleven years old this year!

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Logo designed by Lydia Joy Palmer.

Meet-Up

SewBrum is an annual (free-to-attend) meet-up of people who love to sew in Birmingham, England, co-hosted with Lauren Guthrie.

SewBrum started in 2014, in the ten years it has been running SewBrum has raised £9,970 for nine charities via charity raffles.

In 2020, SewBrum temporarily moved online and had its most successful year. 678 people signed up, with over 100 people joining a live bargello workshop led by Tina Francis, and £2,763 raised for charity.

Hear Charlotte talking about SewBrum 2020 on the Sew Organised Style Podcast in November 2020.

 

 

Attending SewBrum
The SewBrum meet-up starts at 10:00am in Birmingham City Centre, before moving to Guthrie & Ghani in Moseley Village in the afternoon. The planned itinerary for Saturday 26th October is below. Attendees can feel free to dip in and out, or only attend for part of the day.
 
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Itinerary

10:00 – 11:00: Meet for tea/coffee – Location TBC

11:00 – 13:30: Birmingham Rag Market & Fabric Shops

We’ll spend a couple of hours shopping for fabric at the Rag Market and nearby fabric shops Barry’s Fabric & Fancy Silk Store

13:30 – 14:00: Travel to Moseley Village (Guthrie & Ghani) by bus

The journey between the city centre and Moseley takes around 15 minutes via the number 50 bus (the bus stop is located outside Selfridges), and buses arrive every 5-10 minutes.

14:00 – 17:00: Guthrie & Ghani

At Guthrie & Ghani, we’ll have time in the shop which sells a wide range of sewing supplies, and we’ll have use of the studio above the shop where we will hold a pattern, fabric and handmade garment swap and charity raffle(with prize winners drawn at approximately 15:30).

The Details

  • Date: Saturday 26 October
  • Times: 10am until 5pm
  • Cost: Free
  • Charity raffle: Tickets on sale on the day (cash only) or purchase online in advance. Prizes will be drawn at 3:30pm in Guthrie & Ghani.
  • Handmade garments swap: Receive a token for each handmade item you drop-off in the studio at Guthrie & Ghani; use your tokens to take away new-to-you handmade garments throughout the day. (All tokens must be exchanged by 4:30pm; any uncollected items will be donated to charity. Items being submitted to the swap should be clean and undamaged and labelled with approximate size, plus optionally with any other useful information (e.g., pattern used or fabric type))
Charity Raffle

We will be holding a charity raffle with sewing-themed prizes, with a live draw of raffle winners at approximately 15:30 in-person in Guthrie & Ghani.

Ticket sales will open in advance of the event online, and will also be available in-person at SewBrum. Full details of raffle prizes will be provided to registered attendees closer to the date.

Handmade Garment, Fabric & Pattern Swaps
The swaps will take place above the shop at Guthrie & Ghani. Simply bring your items along to Guthrie & Ghani either on the day, or the day before the event. Any items left over will be donated to charity.
 
Handmade Garments
Please ensure that they are clean and undamaged and labelled with approx. size/any modifications made and, if known, the fabric type and pattern used.
 
There will be some rails to hang garments up on. If you are able, please bring a hanger as well.
 
You will be issued with a token for each item that you donate. This token can then be exchanged for another item from the swap. Please note that all tokens must be exchanged by 4:30pm.
 
You can still take advantage of the garment swap even if you haven’t donated. We would ask that you make a donation to our chosen charities via the SewBrum Just Giving pages instead.
 
Fabric and Patterns
These will be laid out on tables for you to browse. If you have donated, feel free to take away any of the fabrics or patterns you fancy. If there is something you like but you haven’t made a fabric donation, we would ask that you make a donation to our chosen charities via the SewBrum Just Giving pages.
Accessibility

The SewBrum meet-up can get very busy (especially in Guthrie & Ghani) and there is quite a bit of travelling between locations, but attendees can take the meet-up at their own pace and drop-in and out as suits.

Barry’s Fabrics & Fancy Silk Store both have flat ground-floor access. Barry’s is a ground floor shop, and Fancy Silk Store has a (narrow) lift. Both stores contain a lot of stock, so the aisles can be narrow.

Guthrie & Ghani front door is accessed by two steps but a ramp is available and will be in place on the day. Attendees will need to be comfortable with stairs to access the studio space and the toilet.

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