Tom Wainwright

I spent twelve years in theatre wardrobe — first at the Crucible in Sheffield, then touring. Everything I know about sewing I learned from head-of-wardrobes who could replace a zip on a stage quick-change in under four minutes. You pick things up when the curtain goes up at half seven regardless.

I stopped touring in 2022 and started teaching adult sewing classes out of a shared studio in Kelham Island. Mostly beginners who'd bought a machine in lockdown and never taken it out of the box. I've set up, threaded, diagnosed and occasionally exorcised a hundred-plus domestic machines — Brother, Singer, Janome, the lot. I know their habits.

On Hobbify I write the sewing guides, especially anything involving machines. I'm the one telling you that you absolutely do not need the £400 model and that a serviced 1980s Janome is probably better than half of the new machines on Amazon.