- Tickets: Pay what you can: £20 | £10 | £5 | £1
- Ages: Adults only
- Details
- Parking & Access
Details
Learn the art of visible mending with Rosie Leech, and repair your own jumper with yarn in a contrasting colour. This is a beautiful way to bring new life to old clothes, turning a rip or hole into a feature.
About Rosie
Rosie Leech is a clothes restorer and illustrator living in Oxford. She has been sewing since the age of six and took up darning several years ago, when her favourite yellow jumper went into holes.
She now darns as a freelancer, using traditional woven darns for holes, Swiss darning for worn areas and boro and sashiko for cotton clothing. She mostly works with visible repairs, making a feature out of the mends themselves and often creating a whole new pattern in a contrasting wool or thread.
Her work as a narrative illustrator means that she is extremely interested in the stories behind garments, mending as much as she can with fabrics and threads she has collected or inherited and which have histories of their own.
BYOJ (bring your own jumper)
Participants in this workshop will need to bring their own woolly jumper (with holes) for mending. Coloured darning wool will be provided, and you will be shown how to repair holes or unravelled hems or cuffs by creating beautiful patterns using the technique of darning.
Some examples
GREEN DARN
Method of repair: traditional woven darn
Reason for repair: both cuffs completely unravelled
Details: a medium weight wool jumper, two cuff repairs and one sleeve repair, stitched with lime green and stone white wools
YELLOW DARN
Method of repair: traditional woven darn
Reason for repair: both elbows worn through
Details: a thick wool jumper, repaired with a bright yellow wool found in a box of inherited threads
Parking & Access
Parking
There are a number of Blue Badge parking spaces nearby on Beaumont Street, and more on New Inn Hall Street and St Giles.
The closest car park is Gloucester Green Car Park, accessed via Gloucester Street.
If you have any questions or concerns, the City Council’s Access Officer can be reached at 01865 249811.
Getting here
We are committed to reducing our carbon footprint, but we need your help. Use ecoway, our sustainable travel planner, to see the most eco-friendly options for your journey to Old Fire Station, and plan a bespoke and flexible route. ecoway is easy to use and you’ll be kept up to date with any disruption or changes to your journey plan.
Car parks in Oxford Blue Badge information Public transport in OxfordAccess
Disabled patrons are eligible for one free companion ticket with their booking. To book this, contact the ticket office: tickets@oldfirestation.org.uk or 01865 263990.
There are two entrances to the Old Fire Station: 40 George Street via the foyer, and on Gloucester Green via the shop. Both are step-free. If you are coming to a show, we ask that you use the George Street entrance, as the Gloucester Green entrance is not always open.
Events in the Theatre
There is level entry to the foyer of the Old Fire Station, and step-free access to the main Theatre (where most shows take place).
If you are a wheelchair user attending a sit-down show, space will be reserved for you. If you are attending a standing gig, please contact us (call the ticket office on 01865 263990 or e-mail tickets@oldfirestation.org.uk) and we will talk with you about your needs.
Events in the Studio
There is level entry into the foyer of the Old Fire Station, and step-free access to the Studio.
Events in the Loft
There are six steps leading up to the Loft space, with no lift. If you would like to discuss this to find out more, please get in touch.
The Gallery
There is step-free access to the Gallery – level entry through the George Street entrance, and via lift from the Gloucester Green entrance.
Facilities
Accessible toilet
There is an accessible toilet on the ground floor, accessible via platform lift. Other toilets are in the basement (accessible via lift).
Hearing assistance system
The Theatre is equipped with a hearing assistance system. If you have any questions about using it, please e-mail us at tickets@oldfirestation.org.uk or phone 01865 263980.
Assistance dogs
All types of assistance and guide dogs are welcome at the Old Fire Station. It would be great if you could let us know in advance if you will be bringing a working dog to any performances – just e-mail tickets@oldfirestation.org.uk.
Strobe lighting
We will warn visitors on the website and in the foyer of the venue if a performance is going to contain strobe lighting. If lighting affects you, and you have any concerns, please call the ticket office on 01865 263990 or e-mail tickets@oldfirestation.org.uk.
Chairs in the theatre
Our chairs are a standard dining-chair size, measuring 40cm deep by 37cm wide, with a metal frame. Some have arms, and some do not. They are all joined together at the sides, to form rows. If this is likely to pose a problem for you, please email tickets@oldfirestation.org.uk and we can discuss how to make your visit more comfortable.