IT WAS a beautiful summer’s day and a garden party was being held by the Earl of Grantham at Downton Abbey.

Underneath the white marquees were tables covered with white tablecloths where the Earl (played by Hugh Bonneville) and his mother Violet, the Dowager Duchess of Grantham (Maggie Smith), were sitting.

And above, fluttering in the breeze, was pretty cotton bunting in subtle pastel shades.

The bunting was handmade in a Hove studio that is so packed with boxes of colourful fabrics it’s like an Aladdin’s cave.

It’s here, in a tiny crowded corner of the Cross Street Studios in a listed former farmhouse that serves as the base for a variety of creative makers, that Sue Maulin runs Bunting Boutique.

She began her business after having her daughter, Connie, now six, with partner Damian, a sound engineer, and it was “a huge thrill” to be approached by the makers of Downton Abbey to supply bunting for an episode in the 2013 series.

“It was brilliant seeing it on screen, just behind the Earl of Grantham and the Dowager Duchess,” said Sue, who is expecting her second child.

“It was in another scene too, with Lady Mary. I think the programme makers found me by Googling, and they knew exactly what they wanted. It took me two weeks to make the bunting, because they wanted 100m.

“Having my bunting appearing in Downton Abbey certainly raised my profile because so many people love the show, and I sell a Downton Abbey range of bunting.”

One of her bestsellers is vintage doily bunting.

“I was one of the first people to do it and it has been very popular,” said Sue.

“The most difficult thing now is finding the vintage doily fabric, which is becoming more and more expensive.”

She added: “By incorporating things like a crocheted doily, a gorgeous trim detail, or an area of hand embroidery, every piece has its own story, its own history – and hopefully a wonderful future.

“The vintage ranges are little works of art in their own right, and with materials sourced from all four corners of the globe (well, Sussex anyway!), every bundle is unique.

“Strand upon strand of bunting is lovingly constructed, the colour and fabric of every single piece carefully considered, every stitch laboured over.”

Innovation has been Sue’s watchword ever since she learned to love sewing by watching the needle skills of her mother, her aunt and her grandmother as a child growing up in the West Midlands.

“I don’t remember anyone ever actually teaching me to sew – I just picked it up from a very early age and loved it,” Sue said.

“Everybody sewed then – it was always around me. I can remember doing a sewing project at primary school and thinking, wow, this is really great.”

At secondary school, textiles was not an option as a GCSE subject and Sue opted for art and design instead, taking A level art, and then moving to Brighton to take a fashion textiles degree at Brighton University.

For a while, she designed and made bags from leather with specially made wooden handles, selling them in a market off Dukes Lane in Brighton, and branched out into making brooches and textiles samples for interiors, at the same time attending shows and selling at open houses.

“I was doing about four different things at once,” recalled Sue.

“It was too much and when I fell pregnant with Connie, I knew I couldn’t do it anymore. I took a year off when I had her and then started Bunting Boutique because I could fit it in around looking after Connie.”

She began to develop ideas based on her collection of vintage fabrics, including strands of bunting using vintage doilies and lace, and made bunting for friends, garnering positive responses.

After word of mouth brought new business, opening a shop on the online marketplace Etsy was the next step, followed by a website.

She has won orders from the famous Betty’s teashop of Harrogate, from the BBC for an upcoming series called Street Auction, for the BBC Food Festival at Hampton Court, and she has made bunting for the Oxford and Cambridge boat races.

Sue makes bespoke strands of bunting for children’s bedrooms and weddings and other special occasions, and has a wide range of designs including a Christmas collection and a designer collection, made from fabrics by Liberty and other companies.

Specialising in vintage fabrics, the Bunting Boutique’s Etsy shop showcases her range: the Downton Abbey bunting in pale lemon, pale pink, pale blue and white, vintage doily bunting, small classic designs, Liberty prints, classic Union Jack bunting, and Just Married variations.

She also makes a vintage paper bird garland, a paper heart garland and bunting using vintage tablecloths that may have sentimental value for a client.

“One of the things that takes up a lot of my time is sourcing vintage fabrics,” said Sue, who also produces bunting for corporate clients for promotional stands, TV commercials and events.

“I go to charity shops, to fairs, car boot sales and flea markets, anywhere really. But vintage fabric is so popular now it’s getting more and more difficult to find it.

“I would love to be able to go to France and search there.”