creative leisure that seduces all generations

The first time she used a needle, Marie was 6 years old. “It was with the grandmother of a girlfriend who was a seamstress!” She says, the voice full of enthusiasm. We spent afternoon with her and she helped us make clothes for our dolls … I loved this moment. »»

For a long time a childhood memory, the experience proved to be precious when, thirty years later, she decided to bring out a sewing machine. “I was a size 48 and no longer found my happiness in the stores, so I told myself that I only had to make my wardrobe!” »»

Today installed in Saint-Maixent-l’École, a small town in Deux-Sèvres, this 42-year-old nursing assistant devotes an entire room to her equipment, her bosses and her creations, dresses she imagines for herself at the personalized t-shirts she offers to her loved ones: “It is both a decompression airlock after a difficult day and my space of intimacy. »»

An ancestral practice

For the past ten years, more and more French people have been discovering or rediscovering the pleasure of sewing. According to the Company & Consumption Observatory (Obsoco), more than 20 % of them have practiced needle work in the last twelve months, when they were only 8 % in 2015 (IPSOS study), and 5 % of the population launched for the first time the previous year.

Astonishing figures, because this ancestral practice has experienced many twists and turns: at the heart of so -called domestic tasks, it has long been transmitted from mother to daughter, in the home, as evidenced by the section reserved for her in Suzette week, The newspaper for young girls published until the late 1960s.

Today, needle work has the impressive revival of interest in creative hobbies in general. And confinement has further expanded their audience. Many studies are now documenting the benefits of manual mental health activities -anxiety and secretion of dopamine, in particular.

“Pleasure bubble”

At Mondial Tissus, supplier of sewing equipment, the figures confirm the trend: purchases of sewing machines have been multiplied by seven between May 2019 and May 2020. As for sales in haberdashery, they have doubled for ten years. If it is difficult to establish a typical profile of the couturier apprentice, in 2025, the clientele is still made up of 90 % of women, all ages, professions and places of life. “According to our latest studies, most of them have a common motivation: more than 75 % first quote the joy of doing something yourself and with your hands,” explains Marine Nagel-Lacroix, director of marketing.

Gaëlle, a 33 -year -old Auvergne, began to make her clothes five years ago. The one who, little one, observed her mother handling the needle and the scissors, received a machine as a gift, before taking advantage of it during containment. “Today, I could spend hours there: it’s a kind of pleasure bubble, where I can work on my creativity, my thoroughness and my patience. »»

An “ecological” and “responsible” approach

Coudre also meets needs specific to our time. Marie, for example, finds a way to dress tailor -made, an asset for those who come out of the omnipresent “standard” size, which Sociologists Vinciane Zabban and Emmanuelle Guittet detail in The needle and the screen (1).

Apolline, it is part of an “ecological” and “responsible” approach while low -cost fashion and with constantly renewed collections continues to seduce. This 27 -year -old Lyon engineer creates headbands, bananas or pillowcases by favoring second -hand fabric: “It avoids mess, it’s done at home, and it’s more resistant!” »»

A craze among young people

This environmental concern is particularly present in the new generation, confirms the spokesperson for Wecandooa company that offers to discover crafts through workshops, 130 of which are now devoted to sewing. On the other hand, and contrary to what one could imagine, we do not come priority to the needle works to save money. “By counting the order of the new fabric, the purchase of machines, the bosses, we quickly reach the average price of stores! », Notes Aurélie, 37, who now dresses those around her.

Second -hand equipment or fabrics? You have to have time to come across the right room. Located near Bourg-en-Bresse (Ain), this mother dared to get started “on an adventure” five years ago, after grappling some tips on the Internet. Online, online tutorials or influencer accounts swarm. While, in real life, sewing lessons, which have become rare at the end of the 20th century, find a new youth. Created twelve years ago in Brignais (Rhône), south of Lyon, the workshop In rainy weather Today receives around fifty students per week.

“And there are clearly more and more young people,” says its founder Yannick Pupier. Céline, 50, who started at her house a decade ago and still wants to improve, shares her passion with Titouan, 12 years old. The young boy’s grandmother, who came to drop him off, is impressed: “I sew modestly and a little out of habit, but he has ambition: he has already made his own stuffed animals! That morning, the kid starts making a bi-material scarf. Too happy: “I love the creative side of A to Z, it makes you want to become a stylist! »»

A passion that is shared on social networks

Does this craze arouse vocations? The case of Hubert, 34, would gladly suggest. “As a child, I was fascinated by my mother who made costumes for the holidays and I imitated him with pieces of fabric,” he says. For a long time, he did not dare to talk about his hobby, because of his obsolete and very feminine image. He became an architect, before finally deciding to spend a stylist diploma. Today he takes advantage of his skills to compose a “more sophisticated” male wardrobe. “I feel much more free to tackle the subject now!” Exclaims the one who plans to release, in 2026, a first collection of clothes.

It is this same passion that led Anne, 48, to a radical retraining. In 2022, this Lyonnaise left her management position in Dermo-Cosmetics to create her self-business. My Dress Made offers “colorful” fabrics and sewing boxes and kits. On social networks, Anne shares her inspirations with more than 32,000 people: “This is what I prefer because I have the impression that we are with friends. »»

For these amateur couturiers, Facebook accounts, sites or groups are essential for sharing their leisure. A means, according to sociologist Vinciane Zabban, to “modernize the image of practice (2)”. If Gaëlle and Marie entrust to find an endless source of tips and inspirations, Aurélie even started to share her creations via her account Les Cousetes de Youyette on social networks. She smiles: “Now it’s a real pride! »»