Brother Sewing Machines Europe (BSME) is proud to announce that it has partnered with Raph Dilhan in as its newest ambassador partnership.
Raph, a finalist in 2021’s Great British Sewing Bee and a textile artist in the film industry, is relatively new to sewing. Although he had tried a little previously, it wasn’t until the first UK Covid-19 lockdown in early 2020 that he decided to learn how to sew properly. Just 12 months later, he was being lauded by the show’s presenters and judges for his creativity, ingenuity and technical ability.
Raph said: “For lots of people the first lockdown was incredibly hard. For me, I’d gone from working long hours on set each day to my entire industry shutting down. However, it turned out to be a very positive time personally as I found my new passion, sewing!
As I’d suddenly gone from being always busy to a quieter, slower pace of life, I wanted to do something that would keep me learning, entertained and focused. I started off small, making masks for friends and family I couldn’t see anymore. As I gained more confidence, I started creating menswear for myself and my partner.”
Roné Auret, Senior Marketing Manager at BSME said: “We love the Great British Sewing Bee and spend each year glued to our screens watching it. This year was a particularly close year with an incredible standard of talent, but we were blown away by Raph.
Raph is the perfect personification of everything Brother sewing – he’s creative, he’s innovative, but most of all he radiates positivity and happiness. We were hugely impressed by Raph’s transition from an almost beginner sewer to becoming a finalist, in just one year.
Many people believe they need special skills, or very expensive equipment to sew, but we want to show them that anyone can get sewing. At Brother we believe sewing is for everyone and want to inspire a new generation of crafters. We know Raph will help us do just that; you can’t help but be inspired by him!”
Raph will work with BSME to create project videos spanning topics such as womenswear, upcycling and working with difficult materials - like cork and gold brocade. In addition, he’ll write some pieces for the new Brother blog, which is due to be launched in January 2022. Raph will represent BSME in sewing and embroidering.
Raph said: “I’m really excited about this partnership. I already use a Brother Overlocker M343D and was impressed by how easy it is for a beginner to use and the professional finish I can achieve on it – so I can’t wait to see what I can achieve on their other machines!
I hope people enjoy watching what I achieve next, and that I inspire more people to start their own creative journey. I want to give them the confidence that they can make truly unique garments with just a little practice.”
You can stay up to date with Raph’s creative journey by following him on Instagram @raph_sew_and_so and Brother Sewing @brothersewingcraft.
