Recently Christina from 2 little hooligans, posted a photo of a sewing machine she had bought her little girl who is the same age as my older granddaughter. That got me thinking that perhaps my granddaughter might be ready to have a go at sewing so I started looking around for a suitable sewing machine for a child.
Unfortunately I wasn't able to find a pink one like Christina's so settled for a white Elna Mini...
...which I bought from here. This is a 'real' fair dinkum sewing machine which is light, doesn't go too fast for a child and they can't put their finger under the needle.
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My granddaughters love it and I had been hoping to have time to do some sewing with them when I was visiting them last week in their new home but, with one at Prep each weekday and the other at Kindy a couple of days, we ran out of time...and energy :-) They had just moved so it was a busy time for their parents as they settled in and sewing was put on the back-burner until another visit.
Miss Five was so keen on sewing after her first lesson with her mum a few weeks ago that she tried her hand at hand sewing even while in the car. She has made herself a bag and a cat for her little sister already.
Another of my favourite blogs is Ashley's Make It & Love It and she wrote an Introduction to Hand Sewing ...
...where the children start learning how to sew using a disposable plate.
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Her daughter was able to sew this teddy bear sleeping bag by Lesson 9.
Another great series called Tiny Sewists has been put together by Jenn from A Jennuine Life. This is a very comprehensive series and Lesson 1 is about Set up and Safety which is a good place to start. You can find links to the first nine lessons in this post.
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Her daughter was able to sew this teddy bear sleeping bag by Lesson 9.
I know that a lot of schools don't teaching sewing anymore and some young girls can't even turn up a hem or mend a tear in clothes. When I was at primary school in the 1950s I can remember the samplers we had to sew and there wouldn't be many ladies my age who haven't been taught how to do basic sewing which is what I do. There is a sewing resurgence now though and I am amazed at what some young girls are producing who are basically self-taught.
Blogs like MADE, Make It & Love It , Ruffles and Stuff and The Sewing Rabbit are just a few that are full of sewing inspiration. If you are keen on sewing I am sure you would have heard of them but if you haven't do check them out and I am sure you will love what you see.
Can YOU sew?
I can sew. Sew can my 6 year old grandson. He had wanted to learn for a long time, and I bought a Hello Kitty machine last year. Yes. Yes, I did and I chose it because it was inexpensive and easy and safe to use for the boys and it was Hello Kitty, which is really reason enough. My daughter hemmed and hawed about it, but I knew it would be another sew special thing for us to do together.
ReplyDeleteJ, I tried to buy a Hello Kitty sewing machine whenI couldn't get the pink one but they aren't available here either. It is good for boys to learn basic sewing too...the they can take up the hem on their own trousers when they grow up! It is sew good that you are teaching your grandson to sew ...sew very good :-)
DeleteI wish! I can hem a line or something by hand, but a sewing machine is a foreign country to me... something I want to change soon, as my aunt left Mma a sewing machine when she passed away and it's still in good condition
ReplyDeleteDamaria, perhaps you can learn to use the sewing machine and join in the new skill swap on the DTE forum next month. That would give you some incentive to start.
DeleteOMG!! Wish you were my Nanna lol. I must admit my Nanna did teach me to knit though...even though I have not done it for years I did teach my daughter...hopefully she remembers when she is my age :) Gorgeous Nanna Chel. xx
ReplyDeleteYou lead such a hectic life I don't think you would have much time left for sewing, Tanya. I guess there is more motivation when one has little children or grandchildren so you may not have too long to wait for the latter LOL!
DeleteI have two boys (no girls) so I am teaching my eldest 6 to sew. He's keen so it is working out. I have fond memories of light pink sewing machine when i was a little girl. I am 37 and when I was at school we had sewing class too but I think a year or two after than it disappeared. I'm glad there has been a resurgence (for myself as well!).
ReplyDeleteI am sure your boys will enjoy sewing, Zena. Yes, I think it is a shame that sewing isn't taught now in most schools. At least a few lessons in basic sewing wouldn't go astray.
DeleteI love this post. I'm going to show it to my mum as she has done a wee bit of sewing with my neice, mostly doll clothes. I have fond memories of sewing in primary school, not so much in secondary as it wasn't seen as cool then. I have a great memory of my friend at the time sewing her school skirt to the nigthdress we were sewing as part of home ec class - how she managed I'll never know but it was hilarious. There's been a renewed interest in sewing with the Great British Sewing Bee on the BBC and now there's a drive to get it back on the secondaryschool curriculum. xx
ReplyDeleteElablue, good to see you here. I hope your mum likes the post :-)
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