Blame it all on Lawrence Llewellyn Bowen and Carol Smillie. The craze for changing rooms and home make overs had driven many young women back to a girl's best friend - the sewing machine.

"I think it's something to do with the price of curtains," says Charles Meynell. "When they see how much they cost, they realise they can buy some material and do it themselves for a fraction of the price. Then they can afford to change it all round again in a few months if they like."

Knitting machines are different. They are nowhere near as popular as they were in the glory days when Kathy on East Enders was regularly running up dazzling designs on her machine, says Mr Meynell. Script writers, please note.

The Meynells' sewing and knitting machine business in Middlesbrough has been in the family for 44 years. Originally it was the Pfaff shop in Linthorpe Road, then sold a whole range of makes and twenty years ago moved to what had been a car showroom in Southfield Road with more room and parking on the front.

A generation or so ago, most homes owned a sewing machine - how many of us first learnt on granny's old treadle Singer? - but the world has changed. Now we prefer to buy our clothes and, in any case, not so many of us have the time any more. But a surprising number of people are digging out those old machines and changing their lives, well, their curtains at least.

As for knitting machines, cheap imports have done for them says Mr Meynell, who took over the firm from his father.

"Why make something when you can buy one just as cheaply? The answer is because the one you make will be a better product that the one you buy, which will probably only last six months or so. But that doesn't worry people. We've become the throwaway society."

That's why the Meynells are cheered by the new enthusiasm of young people for sewing machines.

"They might not have used one before, or not for a long time, but they'll come in and they're willing to have a go," says Mr Meynell.

Regular customers include students from Teesside University across the way and the many Asian women who live nearby and still keep up the home sewing tradition, as well as young couples setting up home together.

And if you haven't used a sewing machine for a long time you're in for a shock. Prices in Meynells range from £25 for a second hand manual machine, up to £3,000 for the state-of-the-art job that will do all sorts of fancy tricks, including embroidering Disney pictures.

"I never thought I'd see a sewing machine costing £1,000, but they just keep getting more advanced," says Mr Meynell.

Even the mid range machines - around £600 - are computerised. And the cheapest electric machines, at around £99, have a lot of basic features undreamt of years ago.

"They really are very easy to use. And at that price they'll soon earn their keep," says Mr Meynell.

If you fancy the idea of sewing your own clothes or curtains but have no idea how start, Charles's wife Hazel gives regular lessons in a big room above the shop, from basics to quite advanced.

As well as selling sewing machines, knitting machines, wool, fabrics, spares and accessories, Meynells also repairs machines. One lady in the Isle of Skye sends her sewing machine down every year for them to service. Charles Meynell and engineer Martin Wadlow sit surrounded by machines in bits.

"Some of our customers they've had these machines so long they're almost part of the family. We try and keep the machines going a bit longer," he says.

And if it's the end of the road for the machines, there's a whole showroom of new ones to choose from.

Meynells Ltd, 2 Southfield Road, Middlesbrough. Tel: (01642) 247863. www.meynells.co.uk. The shop stocks sewing and knitting machines, including Brother, Toyota, Janome, Elna, Bernina, Passap, Silver Viscount. Sales, service and tuition. Fabrics, wools, haberdashery and craft items and work boxes.

DOES anyone ever read those glossy bits of paper that slide out of your newspaper or magazine? Maureen Stephenson of Darlington asks if there is anything we can do about them but, sadly, not. Presumably, the revenue they bring in keeps the cost of magazines down. And when Senior Son was delivering a free newspaper many years ago he loved all those adverts because he was paid extra for delivering them. So at least somebody benefits.

In the meantime, for other unwanted adverts, these are the people to contact:

Unwanted mail: The Mail Preference Service, Freepost 22, London W1R7EZ.

www.mpsonline.org.uk

Faxes: Fax Preference Service tel: 0845 0700 702

www.fpsonline.org.uk

E-mails: www.the-dma.org/consumers/ consumerassistance.html

Telephone: Telephone Preference Service, tel: 0845 070 0707, www. tpsonline.org.uk.

Published: Friday, March 22, 2002