We are Sewing again

I do not know why but when I saw the princess sewing kit which was suitable for 5+ years old, I could not help but buy it. That was 1 year ago and we only started sewing 10 months ago. What I like about this kit is that it has a safety needle (Tapestry needle) and hence as a parent, one does not need to worry about the child getting pricked by a sharp sewing needle while they attempt sewing. 

The sewing kit

However, I must admit teaching the child to sew is not an easy task. Little One could not understand the needle has to go through one hole and then come back through the adjacent hole from the other side (we were doing running stitches). Little One often sew through the same hole or a few holes down the row. Sometimes, she sewed slip stitches instead. Sometimes, she did not attempt to pull the yarn all the way through the hole before attempting another stitch. Sometimes, she sewed through only 1 piece of felt instead of 2.  Hence, I ended up having to undo her work and let her try again and again.

Her progress after 1 hour of sewing. The eyes and mouth done by me as demonstration. I think the "W"s for the crown are super hard for her to sew.

Another hour of work before we call it a day. This time it is a lot more progress. Notice she pull the yarn real tight!

We continued sewing on and off the following months. Little One was not truly interested in sewing, partly because I kept pointing out her faults. She gave up after some time. It was not until she saw me sewing little stuffs such as flowers and mini stuff toys than she picked up the interest again. That was when she started to request over and over again that she wants to sew again. We even did a test sewing with sharp needle on cards.

So, we start sewing again. When the body of the princess is almost stitched up, we started to stuff the doll. I demonstrated how to do stuffing. This is the fun part and Little One truly enjoy doing this herself!

Put in the stuffing

Push the stuffing in

Using a pencil (crayon in our case) to pushing the stuffing into the 4 limbs

Seal up the head by running stitches

Ta-dah! Finally done in 10 months time! Now she has a new soft toy to play with. I am proud to say she completed 75% of the doll + dress .

Tips on teaching a young kid to sew:

1. Patience, patience and more patience

Teaching children this young is not an easy task. Loads of patience is needed as you guide them along. They would make the same mistakes repeatedly. 

2. Let them make mistakes

Making mistakes is the process of learning

3. Do not give up

Probably they would give up because it may be tedious/difficult for them but you do not give up on them. Sew in front of them, rekindle their interest. They would be amazed with your work to be willing to try again.

4. Get them something cute to sew with

Probably this should be tip no. 1. Cute stuff tends to draw their attention and hence easier to ask them to complete the task.

Report Card:-

Suitable Age Group:- 5 and above.
Difficulty level: 3/5 (Level 1 being no or little help is required, Level 5 being very difficult)
Safety level : 5/5 (Level 1 being very unsafe, Level 5 being very safe.  )
Messiness: No mess
Fun Level : 4/5 (3 for Sewing and 1 more bonus point for stuffing .)

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