A YEAR on since his appearance on popular television show The Great British Sewing Bee, Simon Cantrill is still spotted on the street.

While out with his girlfriend, Jo, the weekend before the latest series of the BBC 2 show began, Simon ended up chatting to someone who said they thought they knew him from somewhere.

The Great British Sewing Bee was in many ways a surreal experience for Simon. Conscious of a looming deadline, the amateur sewers taking part have to complete a variety of tasks at speed - and there is no room for error. Add to that they are being filmed, and know they will be watched, mistakes and all, by millions of viewers, making a very pressurised environment.

The programme, a battle of amateur sewing skills, has led to a resurgence in stitching. It may have been stressful but, as Simon watches the latest round of contestants - including Neela Mistry-Bradshaw, who is originally from Bradford and now lives in Surrey - line up to pitch their stitching skills to secure the Sewing Bee crown, he recalls it as a fun experience and one he was glad to be a part of.

His initial introduction to the Sewing Bee programme came after someone forwarded him an application form for the show. "I thought 'Why not? That might be a laugh'," says Simon. "I thought I'd give it a go and it happened."

Simon recalls the intensity of the filming. "They were such long days but it was fun once you got your head round it. In the first place it is totally mind bending though," he says. "It was a total culture shock going in and being sat in front of six cameras with people to-ing and fro-ing and making sure everything is set to go."

"It was so much hard work that went into it but it was fun," he adds.

Recalling the pressure on having to create outfits to a deadline Simon says: "You do something a bit wrong and that ends up taking you another half an hour to put right!

"The pressure and knowing you have got a deadline and it has to be done is a challenge and the quality of my sewing was shocking! But it is much better now."

While he had attempted sewing at school, Simon's interest in sewing really took off when trawling the high streets for outfits.

"For me it is all down to getting what you want really because you look on the high street and think 'I've not seen anything that appeals to me,' he says. "I started because I wanted shirts that fitted me properly, and because I didn't see what I wanted I thought I would try and make it myself. Also people used to make their own clothes around the house all the time. It is a little bit of self-sufficiency."

Eight years ago, and with some basic tuition from a friend, Simon sat down at his mum's 1980s model Janome sewing machine and stitched his first shirt.

"I started on a shirt which is not an easy challenge to set yourself because they are really really fiddly," he recalls.

Simon, who previously worked as a receptionist at Bradford Industrial Museum and is now a museum's assistant at Cartwright Hall in Manningham, admits he's been all "sewn out" since the programme aired last year but he's getting back in his swing again, gradually. "I have done very little sewing. I try to do bits and pieces but I can't get in the right mood. It is one of those things and I suppose the intensity of doing all that sewing all at once," he says.

His most recent creations were a pair of pyjama bottoms for Jo and a carrier bag holder for the home they share in Saltaire.

"I think part of it is the pleasure of knowing you have made something yourself. It isn't necessarily being individual because you want to make something that is standard - you've only got a limited amount of cloth - so you won't be completely different but I think it is really the pleasure of knowing you have done something yourself," says Simon.

Working with technology and spending time tapping on computers, people don't necessarily want to start sewing when they get home - but Simon says it is a satisfying hobby.

"We are a bit removed from doing stuff by hand; people work on computers all day and watch TV, but sewing is part of the satisfaction of doing something with your hands," says Simon.

In the latest series, which started last week, viewers have already seen Neela Mistry-Bradshaw create a pair of trousers with a complicated invisible zip; transform a denim shirt in 90 minutes and produce a stunning summer dress for a real-life model.

During last Thursday's episode, the sewers, under the watchful eyes of Savile Row's Patrick Grant and sewing expert May Martin, created clothes on a miniature scale including a tailored child's waistcoat; customising an ordinary T-shirt and hand-me-down dress and creating a child's fancy dress costume.

Neela was taught to sew by her mother on an old Singer machine when she was eight. She started collecting patterns when she was young and now has an extensive back catalogue which she uses for her designs.

The 41-year-old marketing manager enjoys upcycling old saris to make dresses for her two daughters and also likes to be adventurous with her fabric choice. Inspired by the previous series of the Sewing Bee, Neela invested in an overlocker to help her tackle more difficult fabrics.

Eager to pass on her sewing skills, she has taught both her daughters to sew. They have three sewing machines at home and are looking forward to creating a space dedicated to sewing.

"I'll make things for my children and myself, mostly for Indian weddings. I have a massive family and we always have family functions. Last year we had two weddings so there is always some event to sew for," says Neela.

"I normally self draft patterns for the girls' outfits, but I tend to mix and match patterns when I'm making my own clothes."

"I sew on my own. But when my girls see me sewing, they get inspired and start making things alongside me, which is great," adds Neela.

The Great British Sewing Bee is on BBC2 on Thursday at 8pm.