Father's Day is coming this Sunday, so the two Little Ones have been busy making a little bag for Papa to keep all his cables safe when travelling.  It has been made to look suitably 'fatherly' on the outside, but is packed full of two and six year old goodness on the inside.   A little delight to help keep the homesickness at bay while travelling.  

The project is a good one to try, after your Little One has completed a few sewing machine projects already.  The bag is fully lined, so there is no need to worry about finishing seems, but there is the focus on pivoting corners, sewing straight and safely, lining up seams and sewing a casing.   

For full details take a look at the lined drawstring bag tutorial.  

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A quiet Sunday afternoon spent stitching outfits for favourite dolls, using old favourites from the wardrobe that were otherwise destined for the rubbish.    

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There are two little people (and one big person!) in this house who like to sew.   However one of our challenges is preventing my little two year old sabotaging the sewing endeavours of the rest of us!  When I say sabotage, I really mean destruction through over enthusiasm and 'yet to be perfected' fine motor skills.   So, we've learnt to involve our littlest at her pace with some independent sewing activities.   It keeps her occupied, and thus out of the 'sabotage zone'! and those fine motor skills are getting a work out.  

We made some soft toys the other day (post on that coming soon) and my little two year old enjoyed her part in the process. Here's what we did, you might want to try some of these ideas at your place?  

So don't think you can't get out a sewing project for yourself or independent little people if you've got a busy toddler with you.   Set them up with these or other activities - cutting up scrap fabric is also another favourite in our house - and buy yourself some time to sew.  

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The school holidays have arrived - again!  So time for some sewing at home.   Today we stitched up some art using embroidery floss and buttons.   This was the first time I let my biggest Little One free with a pile of embroidery threads - it took her about two seconds to have most of them in a complete mess - perfect for a nesting bird.  So this evening I made some little cardboard bobbins in an attempt to halt (or perhaps just lessen a little bit??!) the mass of knotted threads in the future.   We will see if it works....fingers crossed!

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Our beautiful mess ended up just being beautiful.    My Little One completed a picture of her little blue play house.  Good enough to frame, and easy enough to complete before getting too complicated.  

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So you've decided to spend a bit of time helping teach your Little One(s) to sew.  Great!  The obvious starting point is often a few simple hand sewn projects.  Grab a needle and get going!   hmmm..it is often at this point that things start to get frustrating as you find your LIttle One is struggling with the whole needle and thread thing.  Is there an easier way?   Well usually.   Try starting with a needle that is better suited to both your Little One and the project you've chosen to work on together.  

Take a look at the Lolo & Grace guide to hand sewing needles.   You'll find a host of information about most of the different types of needles you will come across and some advice on which needles to use to get your Little Ones going.  And you may just find some good stuff for Big People as well! 

If you are after the abridged version and just want to get started with your Little One before the initial enthusiasm wears off - go grab a Chenille needle (you might already have one floating in your pin cushion).   This needle is a pointed tapestry needle that will work with a lot of fabrics and is easy to handle for Little Hands.  It is also great for learning how to thread a needle as it has a big eye.  

This needle guide is the first of what will be a series on all the basics you need to know to get your Little People sewing.   So, go forth and sew!

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School starts in a week and we've been shopping for new pens and books.   A pencil case was needed.  So we got busy.    Take a look at this tutorial to get your Little People sewing.   This is one of those projects that looks a lot more complicated than it really is.   But we've used a couple of tricks to make it super simple - if your Little Person has a couple of hand sewing projects under their belt and has had a play with a sewing machine, then this is a nice project to get a real sense of accomplishment.   And, hey, it's stylish and useful.  What more could you want? 
 

Take a look at this tutorial for the Easy Pencil Case (or purse, or pouch...) with a Zip.   

Click images to enlarge.

What do you think?  Did your Little One give it a go?