Contact & FAQ
Lessons
Not sure about your skill-level?
In general, courses are split into beginners and improvers.
As a beginner, you are completely new to sewing at makeplace , want to start 'afresh', or have sewn before but just want to make whats on the beginner's course at the moment!
Improvers would have been on 2 or more courses at makeplace before and/or will be confident and accurate on a sewing machine.
Where new skills are introduced within a course then full training will be given. Whilst we welcome the chance to teach all levels of students we must be aware that each must have their own fair tutorial time.
If a tutor feels that you may find a course difficult then we may suggest alternatives but would not offer 1 to 1 within that course.
If in doubt, please contact us.
Do I need to bring anything to a lesson?
Courses are organised so that whatever you will need is included.
We have ample supplies of cutting and measuring equipment as well as Juki sewing machine and overlockers etc.
On some courses you will be asked to choose from a selection of suitable fabrics which have been selected for the project. Some fabrics may have to be pre-washed by you ready for the lesson; (we always recommend this anyway).
Where a course is based on a commercial pattern you are required to have purchased that pattern from makeplace or Anglian Fashion Fabrics at some point. This is a condition set by the pattern owners to protect their copyrights.
What happens if I cannot attend a lesson?
When you book a lesson, or course of lessons, we book the course time and tutor. We will send a confirmation by e-mail or text, or both to confirm your booking.
If you have to cancel or cannot attend, for whatever reason, then you should let us know as soon as possible in the first instance. Because we have a cut-off date for bookings we are unable to guarantee that we can fill your space at short notice.
If you do not attend a single session course then we do not refund your fee as we would have committed to running it. If you cannot attend any lessons within a course then this will impact on your learning. We will be unable to 'recap' lessons for you as this would affect other students on the course and whether projects are finished on time (which we are committed to). There are no full or part refunds in these circumstances.
What happens if makeplace cannot run a course?
There may times when we have to cancel a course. This can be for several reasons, amongst others, such as -
Adverse weather conditions.
The tutor is ill.
Insufficient students booked on or late notice given.
If WE cancel a course we will inform you, via e-mail or text, or both, of our intentions as soon as we know the circumstances. We will either offer you an alternative date or a refund in full if you were available for the course before we cancel. There may be times when we run courses with fewer students than we would prefer, but this gives those attending even more 'tutor time'!
Are there any student restrictions?
The minimum age for students is 16.
Classes are suitable for any gender provided you're happy making what we're teaching! Please be aware that some lessons may involve fitting of the garment and you may need to team-up with a class member. If you are making for a third party then this will not be possible.
If you have any special needs then please contact us before booking. Most sewing lessons will involve moving between sewing machines and pressing equipment or standing up to cut-out, for example. We supply all sewing tools needed but if you cut left-handed please let us know in advance. We do not normally use rotary cutters in our classes - if you can use only them, again, please let us know.