CALLING ALL CRAFTY FASHIONISTAS IN WALES! TAKE ON THE BIG STITCH CHALLENGE AND HELP BEAT HEARTBREAK FOREVER

~ The British Heart Foundation launches The Big Stitch campaign 2019, challenging Wales to get creative and help raise funds for life-saving research ~

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) is calling on all style-savvy shoppers from Wales to support its life saving research by taking part in The Big Stitch.

The month-long campaign, launching on 1^st July will encourage shoppers to pop into their local BHF shop in Wales, buy an item and upcycle it using their creative flair, to be in with a chance of winning amazing prizes.

The BHF’s 550 clothes shops nationwide are full of great finds that can easily be adapted. Whether it’s fraying, tasselling, graffiti, stencilling or adding decorative items, by utilising basic sewing skills, shoppers can showcase their individual style by creating a one-of-a-kind item (or two!). The campaign is also a great way for sustainable shoppers to get a fashion fix. Last year the British Heart Foundation rescued an incredible 17,000 tonnes of unwanted clothes from going into landfill.

To enter, shoppers will need to upload their ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures by tagging the BHF on Twitter, Instagram or the BHF’s Facebook page and including the hashtag #TheBigStitch. All tagged items will automatically be uploaded onto the BHF’s live online photo wall and entered into The Big Stitch competition with three fantastic crafty prizes up for grabs.

From dresses to skirts and shirts, BHF shops provide a large range of quality clothing and accessories at an affordable price, which can easily be turned into bespoke items.

Debbie Dixon, Retail Regional Director at the BHF, said: “I always look forward to seeing our shoppers injecting their own personal style into the items people kindly donated to us. It amazes me how easily a simple piece can be turned into something exceptional with some basic sewing and craft skills.

“The Big Stitch offer shoppers the opportunity to showcase their creativity and is a sustainable solution for updating your wardrobe. By taking part it means we can continue to raise vital funds for research, which could transform the lives of the 370,000 people in Wales living with heart and circulatory diseases.”

Shoppers can start their Big Stitch project now, so their entries are ready for launch of the competition. Just pop into a BHF shop with family and friends and begin getting crafty.

With around 8,800 people in Wales devastatingly losing their lives to conditions including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and vascular dementia, each item sold in the BHF shops will help to raise vital funds into research for new treatments.

The Big Stitch competition will run from 1^st July to 31^st July 2019. Entries using the hashtag #TheBigStitch and tagging the BHF on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook will be automatically entered in to the competition*. A winner will be selected and announced the week commencing 12^th August 2019.

For further information on The Big Stitch and information about how to locate your nearest BHF shop, please visit www.bhf.org.uk/TheBigStitch