I spent last Friday at the Sewing for Pleasure event at the NEC. The lovely Mr Wardrobe had bought me two tickets for Christmas, and (because his interest in sewing is limited to whether or not I can repair his jeans) I took my Mum as my guest.

The NEC is huuu-mongous, so I was looking forward to see what had been crammed into three of the halls for this event. And there was a lot. Because there are dozens of fabric retailers in one place you can really compare and shop around in a way that isn’t possible on most high streets in Britain. I came away with 2.5 metres of a beautiful deep teal cotton-spandex jersey from Fabrics Galore at £10/m.

Any suggestions on what I should do with it? I’m thinking a Closet Case Files Sallie jumpsuit…

The Big 4 pattern companies were all there, offering discounts (new season patterns from £3). My Mum picked a Burda dress pattern with princess seams that will make a great summer staple in chambray, cotton lawn or a drapey viscose. The Simplicity stand was heaving with shoppers, so it was a shame that there weren’t more pattern companies there – of the indies, I only spotted Sew me Something.

We also took a look at some of the amazing quilts that were there. Neither my Mum nor I quilt, but we were still really impressed by some of the displays. My favourite was this quilted vegetable patch:

I’d have liked more workshops, but I think the show is bigger than it was when I first went four years ago so maybe there’ll be more up-and-coming exhibitors and activities next year.

Did you go on Friday, or over the weekend? What did you think? And which other sewing events are worth the entry fee?