William Gee's Haberdashery

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William Gee's Haberdashery

Welcome back to William Gee.
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Sewing Machine Needles Guide - Everything you need to know - William Gee UK

The Ultimate Guide to Sewing Machine Needles: Everything You Need to Know

If you’re a sewing enthusiast, you understand the importance of using the right tools for the job. One of the most critical components of your sewing machine setup is the needle. Although it may seem like a small and straightforward element, choosing the correct sewing machine needle can significantly impact the success of your sewing […]

Great British Sewing Bee Episode 7: Recap and 90s Sewing Pattern Ideas

Sewing Bee: Episode 7 recap and 90’s sewing pattern ideas!

First off, sorry we missed Children’s Week! We’re back with a longer post for 90s week, including a recap and some 90s pattern ideas. The previous episode saw Fauve leaving, with only six contestants remaining. 90s week recap This episode comes complete with a fabulous 90s playlist, dial-up tones (did anyone else use to sing […]

The Sewing Bee: Episode 5 recap – art week!

This week the Sewing Bee took its inspiration from the world of art. It challenged the sewists to be extra creative as they tackle modernist skirts, painted canvasses and surrealist made-to-measure dresses. Check out our recap for Episode 4 if you missed Reduce, Reuse and Recycle week. Pattern challenge This week’s pattern challenge came in […]

Great British Sewing Bee Episode 4: Recap and Zero Waste Pattern Ideas

The Sewing Bee – Episode 4 recap and zero waste pattern ideas!

It was reduce, reuse and recycle week at the Sewing Bee! I was really pleased to see this theme for the Sewing Bee last week. It’s easy to generate a lot of waste when creating things, but there are things we can do to make sure we create consciously. Have a look at our article […]

Great British Sewing Bee Episode 3: Recap - West Africa Week

Sewing Bee: Episode 3 recap – West Africa week

Thanks for joining us on this recap of the 2023 Sewing Bee’s third episode! This week the sewists celebrated West Africa, exploring the iconic batakari, Àdìre fabric and boubous. They were joined by Lagos-based fashion designer Banke Kuku, whose luxury designs have been on the red carpet and catwalk. It was great to see a […]

Great British Sewing Bee Episode 3: Recap and Swimsuit Ideas

The Sewing Bee: Episode 2 recap and swimsuit ideas!

Although the the theme for last week’s Sewing Bee was ‘holiday’, there was no time off for the sewists. Each challenge tested new skills and required both imagination and technical ability. In this post I’m recapping Episode 2 of this year’s Great British Sewing Bee, so don’t read on if you don’t want to know […]

Sewing Bee Blog: How to Sew a French Seam

Sewing Bee blog series: how to sew a french seam

We’re really enjoying the new series of The Great British Sewing Bee, and can’t wait for tonight’s episode! Inspired by the Bee to get sewing, or try out some of the skills you see in the show? We’re going to be covering each episode here at WG: Studio, and having fun using some of the […]

Sewing Bee Series 9: Episode 1 - Recap

The Sewing Bee Series 9 – Episode 1 recap

We’ve been eagerly awaiting the 2023 series of The Great British Sewing Bee, and loved watching the first episode last Wednesday! We finally got to meet this year’s sewists, and see the theme for the first three challenges. It’s on weekly on BBC 1 at 9pm – if you miss it, you can catch up […]

Great British Sewing Bee 2023: The Release Date is Here!

The Great British Sewing Bee 2023 release date is here!

We were so excited last night to read that the Sewing Bee will be back on our screens on Wednesday 24 May. Now we have the official release date we’re counting down the days until we can see who the next sewists are, and what they’ll be making in the challenges. Check out our recent […]

Great British Sewing Bee with William Gee's Haberdashery

Great British Sewing Bee: Apply Now for 2024

The Sewing Bee is back on our screens in May 2023, broadcast on BBC1. Are you nifty with a needle or handy with a hem? Put your skills to the test! We’re looking for more talented home sewers to take part in the next series of The Great British Sewing Bee. If you or someone […]

It's Nearly Time for the Great British Sewing Bee 2023

It’s nearly time for The Great British Sewing Bee 2023!

The Great British Sewing Bee is one of the highlights of our year at William Gee’s Online Haberdashery! It should return to our screens any week now, and we can’t wait. The challenges, creations and friendships we enjoy throughout each season have charmed the nation, and it’s something to look forward to whether you sew […]

Visible Mending Series: DIY Patchwork Jeans

Visible Mending Series: DIY patchwork jeans

The fast fashion industry creates a huge amount of waste and pollution – in fact it’s the second largest polluting industry on the planet. As I wrote in my previous post, we’re thinking more and more about sustainability and how we can avoid waste in our day to day lives. This visible mending series celebrates […]

Sustainable crafting and the art of mending

Many of us are trying to live in a way that is more mindful to our environment, as well as being economical. Though we can’t really avoid creating some waste when we create, we can learn how make the most of our materials. Scrap busting projects are perfect for this. As well as being sustainable, […]

Visible Mending Series: Basic Scotch Darning

Visible Mending Series: Basic ‘Scotch’ Darning

Welcome to the first in our mini-series about visible mending. We’ll be using different methods of darning, Sashiko embroidery, statement patchwork and other decorative mends. Visible mending has become increasingly popular as we look more towards sustainable fashion and crafting. We’re beginning to recognise the joy in caring for much loved garments, while also injecting […]

Sewing Tutorial: DIY Detachable Oversized Collar

Tutorial: DIY detachable oversized collar

Oversized, ruffled collars are all the rage at the moment, and look beautiful in a range of fabrics. If you like the look of them but aren’t sure if you’d like to invest in a big-collared shirt or dress, this tutorial is for you! A detachable collar is such a fun way to add interest […]

Festive ideas for decorating with velvet ribbon

I love making little bits for my home all year around, but I particularly enjoy homemade festive decorations. I was looking through the lovely velvet ribbons that William Gee stocks, and came up with a few fun ideas for working them into your festive projects. Velvet is beautiful and luxurious – whether you’re looking to […]

Sew Invisible Zips with confidence!

Sew invisible zips with confidence

If I’m honest, I always used to avoid sewing invisible zips – it looked fiddly and I wasn’t sure I’d ever get it looking neat enough to be worth it! Over the years I’ve seen lots of tutorials and learned a few tips for how to get them looking lovely and neat. It turns out […]

Sewing Tutorial: Turn Scraps into Scrunchies

Get creative with ric rac braids!

Ric rac braid has become increasingly popular over the last few years, and it’s easy to see why – you can use it on just about everything! It comes in a wonderful array of fun colours, and I’ve seen it used in lots creative ways. First invented in the 1800s, it was often used as […]

Sewing Tutorial: Turn Scraps into Scrunchies!

Turn scraps into scrunchies, two ways!

I love making use out of something that would otherwise be thrown away. As makers, we’re often left with odd bits and bobs lying around and, if you’re anything like me, that means lots of awkwardly small offcuts of fabric. One fantastic way to make the most of these is to sew some scrunchies! You […]

William Gee Studio: Welcome to our new online sewing space

WG Studio: Welcome to our new online sewing space!

We hope you’ve enjoyed our previous posts and reading about William Gee’s history. We love connecting with our customers and sharing topics we think you’ll find interesting. We’re excited to let you know we’re launching our new online sewing workshop: William Gee Studio. It’ll be full of fun and useful ideas to inspire your crafting […]

The warehouse round the corner on Forest Road - not much has changed since the 1970s

We’re hiring: Join the team in our London shop!

We have a fantastic opportunity for a Full-Time Sales Assistant to join our friendly team in our shop in Dalston, London.  William Gee is a long-standing family-run haberdashery in Dalston, London, who are celebrating successful high street trading for over 115 years. Our shop is now looking for the right candidate with retail experience who […]

Our shop has reopened - William Gee UK

Our shop has reopened!

LIVE UPDATE: We are fully active and our shop in Dalston is open for customers again! Dear customers, suppliers & friends, We wanted to assure you that normal levels of service have resumed at William Gee, and are happy to announce that our shop at 522 Kingsland Road, London E8 4AH has reopened. – Delivery […]

Product List featured image 2015

Updated Product List now available

We’ve updated our product list, introducing new lines and removing discontinued ones, in order to give you a comprehensive list of all the items we stock at William Gee. The majority of these items are available online, though please do get in touch if there’s something you cannot find and we’ll do our best to […]

William Gee Summer Sale 2019

William Gee’s Summer Sale 2019

UPDATE: FLASH SALE IS NOW OVER 🙁  We’ve got some exciting news for our lovely friends & family…We’d like to invite you to William Gee’s SUMMER SALE Event on Friday 28th June 2019! We’re sure you’ve been busy creating, making and mending your fabulous projects over the winter months. Now, with the sunshine slowly beginning to […]

We’re thrilled to announce that we’ve partnered with Tree Nation, the platform to reforest the world & fight climate change! Home to over 90 planting projects in 33 countries, Tree Nation is a non-profit organisation that helps people & companies offset their CO2 emissions. Join us by planting trees & offsetting carbon emissions with William Gee today!

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