Improvers 5 Week Sewing Course

Charmingo Sews Academy is running an Improvers Sewing Course at Unit 218, Queens Dock Business Centre in Liverpool, starting Sunday 15 November. It's a five-week project-based course, with sessions running on consecutive Sundays, each 2.5 hours long. It's aimed at anyone who's already done a beginners' course and feels comfortable setting up their own sewing machine, so you're not starting from scratch.

Rather than spending weeks on endless samples, the course focuses on practical pieces you can actually use. Over the first four weeks, you'll work through precision darts, cleaner zips, proper pockets, curved seams, facings, waistbands and overlocker finishes, with every week ending in a finished item. Week five is an alterations clinic, where you bring in one or two garments from your own wardrobe to fix together. There's also a men's option that swaps the standard fabrics for canvas, denim or khaki and adds loops, carabiners or tool pockets. By the end, you'll take home five finished pieces and the know-how to mend your own clothes.

Charmingo Sews Academy is the largest independent sewing school in the north of England, and the waterfront studio is well-equipped for a group this size: it has a 26-seat sewing room, a 12-seat craft room and a chill-out area overlooking the Liverpool docks. There's free parking on site, which is a rare win for this part of town.

The course runs from 10:30 AM on Sundays, starting 15 November, at Unit 218, Queens Dock Business Centre, 67-83 Norfolk Street, L1 0BG. It costs £310 per guest for the five sessions.