At their April meeting, members of Week St Mary’s Bonaventures WI were treated to a talk by local television celebrity Tony Rea, who was a finalist in the ninth series of The Great British Sewing Bee.
He designed and made a total of 30 garments in all for the series and brought a selection with him for members to look at. Tony came first with “garment of the week” for children’s clothing (pictured here). He had never made any of the garments before, apart from a travel bag made from recycled materials; he still loves reusing and recycling with zero waste clothing.
After years in a very stressful job in the far east, Tony applied for a job with Bude Post Office – a job he still does today three days a week in the centre of Bude. He has never regretted his change of lifestyle from high-powered job to his current role.
Tony is now an Ambassador for Brother Sewing Machines and produces shirt patterns for Emporia Sewing Patterns.