A Sitch In Time At Bentley | Harry Pegg

Behind the Scenes

A Stitch In Time At Bentley

Story: Harry Pegg

The humble sewing machine has always played an integral part in the Bentley story, helping create the hand-crafted interiors that are the hallmark of the British luxury marque for nearly a century. The sewing crew at Crewe in the UK, have been keeping Bentley in stitches since 1919, creating incredibly intricate designs in leather.

The new Continental GT brings classic leather embroidery, the story of artisans plying their trade and the sewing machine up to date with a “diamondin-diamond” interior pattern featuring both stitching and embroidery. It’s a highly intricate, modern take on a classic style.

There are 120 members on the sewing team of highly skilled artisans, some with 40 years of experience, who pass on their knowledge and experience to apprentices.

The machines they use today bear no resemblance to the machine first built in 1874 by William Newton Wilson, from drawings patented by Thomas Saint in 1790.

Thirty-seven years of experience separate Liz Neyland and Zoe Nevitt, but they share a passion and determination to deliver the finest result every time.

Neyland, who joined the team in 1979, has seen huge changes, especially in terms of technological advances she uses in her day-to-day role.

“When I first started in the sewing team, each person would be responsible for producing a full set of panels for a car,” she says. “Nowadays we each focus on smaller sections so it’s easier to maintain the highest quality and precision.”

“...but they share a passion and determination to deliver the finest result every time.”

“Being a trainer is a very important part of my role. It enables me to share expertise with the new apprentices.”

Nevitt works closely with Neyland, learning from her colleague while bringing a fresh perspective to the classical skill.

“Before working at Bentley, I had no sewing skills,” she says. “Nearly three years later and I can say that I am an experienced machinist.”

“Having the support of the team has been extremely valuable. They have taught me not only the technical skills but also the importance of knowledge sharing to improve our process.”

The diamond in diamond stitched interior of the 2018 Bentley Continental GT took 18 months to program the exact alignment of the 712 stitches in each diamond shape. It takes more than seven hours and 300,000 individual stitches to complete the interior.

“The principle concern is the level of quality.”

The hides of nine Northern European bulls are required, stitched together with 2.8 km of thread, to produce a single interior. Every leather panel is initialled on the reverse by the team member who made it. Why Northern European bull hides?

Mike Sayer, Bentley product and motorsport communications manager explains: “The principle concern is the level of quality. Even though we scan each hide by hand and eye and only use blemish-free areas, we want the hide to be as clean as possible.”

“Northern Europe, a cooler climate, contains fewer biting insects and a lower prevalence of barbed wire fences, both of which will scar the leather.”

“We principally use bull hide because bulls don’t get pregnant and so the hide doesn’t become stretched.”

The embroidery process always begins at the bottom of each diamond for the best finished appearance.

During the stitching process, the embroidery causes the leather panel to shrink by 12%, which has to be accounted for when each panel is cut.

If the “standard” interior isn’t enough, a buyer can order bespoke embroidered designs through Mulliner – Bentley’s personal commissioning division.

A specialist area of the sewing department can take several days to create exclusive intricate designs that can feature up to 500,000 individual stitches.

When finished, it’s time well spent on a one-of-akind interior.