Helen is a great teacher with a wealth of knowledge and expertise. I learnt more about sewing in a one-to-one than I ever learnt at school or in group classes as an adult. I feel confident to get back into sewing, I’m so glad I found Helen to support me on my journey. Thanks so much x
Fantastic 1 to 1 session with Helen on a shirt making masterclass. It was the first piece of clothing I have ever made and we got very far, and had the knowledge to finish it at home! Helen was a brilliant teacher and has given me some really valuable knowledge!
I really enjoyed my trouser block course by Dot n Cross. Helen is lovely, as well as very experienced at pattern drafting, cutting, draping and toile making. She is extremely helpful and brilliant at passing her knowledge on in a clear way. Her tuition is supported by excellent documentation for future reference. I learnt a lot from the trouser block course and am looking forward to putting my learning to the test with a pair of shorts!
Had a brilliant day with Helen, learning how to use my sewing machine and making a beautiful apron. She was so patient and I really felt I had achieved something at the end of a fun day. Thank you Helen!
I’ve been meaning to message you to thank you so much for Saturday - firstly, for letting me step into my husband’s place unexpectedly, and secondly, just for how brilliant it was! I had the best time - you’re such a good teacher, and it was a really lovely atmosphere. I never get the chance to just sew for hours. What a pleasure! And I feel much more confident now. I’m so proud of the apron, and Martin loves it, too!
Really looking forward to the cloning class in November - see you then.
The trouser block workshops were excellent. Helen paced the sessions well and ensured enough time so I felt I was getting plenty of individual support. I learnt so much.
Recently attended a very enjoyable and informative workshop on garment cloning pattern techniques. Helen made us very welcome and gave us enough information and confidence and showed us all the techniques to copy our chosen garments. Thank you for a great new experience. Hopefully will be able to attend more in the future.
Helen is an excellent tutor. Everything was properly explained and all questions answered in a comprehensive way. I found the course most interesting and informative...I learnt a lot! A lot was covered in the time but no-one was left behind. I feel confident enough to go onto the next stage. Highly recommended.
The beginner's sewing course I attended was excellent! Having always been slightly scared of my sewing machine, Helen immediately put me at ease and took us through the process of making a tote bag. It was easy to follow and I was amazed at how we were all able to produce a brilliant, professional looking bag! Helen was extremely patient and helpful. I would highly recommend this course, to get to know your sewing machine and come away with a real feeling of achievement.
Recently attended 2 x one to one sessions with Helen with the aim of fitting a dress for my wife (who also attended). Helen immediately put us at ease and we went about correcting a toile I had previously made. Helen was very patient and answered all of our questions and went about explaining the pattern drafting process to create a new improved toile and set me my homework. On the second session I brought along the new improved toile and we further refined the fit for my wife's dress. I cannot recommend Helen enough. Her experience and knowledge is first rate and she gave me a whole new appreciation of the garment construction process.
I learned so much. I am thrilled not to be scared of sewing machines any more! I loved this class, I thought I wasn’t going to get as far as we did and I am happy/thrilled with the results and skills learned today.
I gained an appreciation of pattern engineering and a better understanding of the subtleties of fit. Lovely hearing Helen’s experiences and dipping into her knowledge. Thank you, it was worth the journey from Devon.
I recently had a fantastic day pattern cutting with Helen after my husband kindly bought me a voucher for Christmas. I had had the benefit of Helen's experience before when we made a bodice block and my project this time was to make a summer dress based on a Tudor kirtle. Helen spent a lot of time beforehand researching the styles and seemingly endless possibilities of the look and function of the dress after I sent her some photos of the kind of design I had in mind. Helen has an incredible wealth of knowledge and experience to draw on and talked me through the stages of how to move and remove darts and incorporate Princess seams instead and how to drop the sleeves to make the garment more historically correct. I learned so much and am busy finishing my toile ready for a further fitting session with Helen and more advice regarding the lining and lacing. Helen is very friendly and approachable and ensures that you are understanding the various steps and the whole process as you go along. I would definitely recommend Helen's classes to anyone from the first time sewist to those who have been sewing for a while and want to challenge themselves further in their projects.
I had the best time with you on this course, thank you so much!! I learnt so much about patterns and garment construction, and also just had an overall nice time chatting about sewing, thank you so much! I will definitely be booking onto another course soon!
This was my second course with Helen, consisting of four 3 hour sessions creating a personalised clothes block. It was great fun working with other enthusiastic sewers and I ended up with exactly what I had hoped for: a pattern from which I can create a host of new projects. I also learned that I needed to up my game and be a more accurate seamstress - all brilliant lessons! I would recommend this course as a foundation for anyone interested in creating their own sewing patterns.
Really enjoyable four week class creating a pattern block. Helen is super helpful and explains everything in a very easy to understand way. I am delighted with the final toile produced from my block and can’t wait to join Helen for another course soon.
I've done a 'shared course' and some one to one sessions with Helen at Dot and Cross. Really improved my understanding of how dressmaking happens. It is a technical subject, but so important. The knowledge I gained has had a great effect on the fit and style of my hand-made clothes. I've been able to alter commercial patterns, to measure myself and interpret those measurements to my dressmaking. Excellent teaching, and 'team work' Helen teaches, listens, explains and discusses options in a lovely way. I wanted/needed to improve to prevent frustrating waste. Excellent. Worth it and so so satisfying. Lovely garden studio room. To be recommended.
The Full Bust Adjustment Course was a birthday gift for my wife Clare. She arrived home from the course bubbling with excitement and enthusing about the course content, the teaching, everything.
Friendly and engaging, Helen is clearly knowledgable and has a great teaching method.
Highly recommended.
I attended the 1-1 garment mending workshop. It was absolutely excellent. I learnt multiple mending techniques and we even shortened some trousers that were too long for me and reused the "harvested" fabric to mend some other pieces. My favourite was learning about (and trying) the Japanese mending style, Sashiko. Will definitely be using this technique in the near future, it's very pretty. I was very impressed with the class and intend to book more. Helen is great and super friendly. The studio is cool.
Sometimes, going on a course whilst on holiday is a wonderful way to spend your time, especially if you go home with a new skill or hobby that enriches your life. With the idea of Cottagecore, the Great British Sewing Bee and ‘make do and mend’ being very much in the limelight now, what better way than to learn how to sew using a sewing machine?
I was greeted warmly by one of the shop proprietors, Jane, who welcomed me into her Aladdin’s cave of crafting goodies. Helen, our teacher for the day, also greeted me as we made our way to our desks. Helen is the founder of Dot N Cross, who hosts sewing and pattern cutting workshops across Cornwall. Having worked for the likes of Karen Millen and Victoria Beckham, she has spent 10 years working as a pattern cutter in the London fashion industry before relocating down to Cornwall. Safe to say, she knows a thing or two about sewing!
A course with Helen is a wonderful way to spend a day. Running an assortment of courses for beginners to experienced alike, from making a shift dress to mending existing clothes and crochet to knitting, there are a lot of courses to choose from, whilst there’s also flexibility to arrange your own private classes focussing on something specific, should you want to.
See the full review here