A group of teen girls have shown off an array of blankets, scarves and tops they made on a groundbreaking textiles course being piloted in a Dundee school.
The Kindred Clothing scheme's pilot project in Grove Academy saw a hand-picked group of S2 youngsters brought together to learn how to make clothes and make new friends over the course of ten weeks.
However, the project - based on an existing programme targeted at young, disadvantaged parents - also worked to improve their confidence and social skills.
The newly trained seamstresses gathered with proud course managers and senior school staff at Dock Street's Kathryn Rattray Gallery on Thursday to show off their creations.
As well as introducing them to the world of textiles, the girls told Dundee Live the scheme has helped them in wider school life, too.
Anya Lynch, 13, said: "Before, I would never really talk to anyone I wasn't already friends with but now I've gotten close with some of the people here.
"You get to be creative and not be judged about what you're making.
"I feel like if it was a normal class like PE I would be stressing - but it was just stress-free, fun and creative.
"It would be nice if others struggling to make friends get this chance."
Lucy Ewen, 14, said: "I wasn't really sociable before and there would be times I would just feel like giving up in school.
"But I feel very proud that I can look at what I've done and say, 'I've made this.'"
Siobhan Laird, 13, added: "We all got put forward for this to help with our social skills. I loved using the sewing machine - it's really fun to just run fabric through it.
"Because there was only nine of us it was easier to go up and make friends."
Kindred Clothing is run by local charity Front Lounge, which gives parents SQA-accredited qualifications in clothes making while teaching them about fashion photography and learning how to professionally present themselves and their creations.
The 10 week taster session at Grove Academy was delivered by Jolene Guthrie of Scottish knitwear firm Jo-AMI and Gillian McIver of Dundee clothing brand Andie.
Grove rector Graham Hutton said the programme had encouraged learning in a new way for kids who were not engaging in classroom work.
“For a number of reasons, some of these learners have not been gaining the most from their education so were particularly receptive to learning new skills within a refreshingly different environment," he said.
“We strive to ensure that Grove Academy provides more than just the traditional exam-based, academic pathway so that every Grove learner leaves here as the best version of themselves after an enriching experience.
"Kindred Clothing fits perfectly into this approach and I look forward to seeing the progress these learners make as they develop through the project as it grows with them into a SQA certified course in S3 and S4."
Chika Inatimi, project leader at Front Lounge, said the programme was a perfect fit for schools despite originally being targeted at people a little older than school age.
"When we designed Kindred Clothing, we didn’t just want to teach sewing skills," he said.
"The course exists to raise aspirations, provide a focus and show learners that they can achieve, regardless of the barriers they might face and we’re delighted to have achieved this goal through a short taster experience at Grove Academy.
"We can’t wait to see the next stage of their journey.”
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