What is in the Learn to Sew kit?

My Learn to Sew kits are for children who want to Learn to Sew. As I've mentioned in earlier posts, I think simple doll clothes is a good place to start. The first two kits are for a simple wrap dress that can be embellished a number of ways. One kit will be for Phoebe dolls the other for American Girl sized dolls. 

I have been working on the kits for over a month now. I know, I know, I should be done by now, but I want to make sure I have thought of everything. Everything, a child would need to make the project and that the instructions are thorough. Nothing puts a damper on a sewing project quicker when the adult helping the child is totally confused. Trust me, I've been there. 

So you don't go there, here is what a kit contains:

1. A detailed instruction booklet. Color photographs of each step of the process, plus written instructions and a side bar of "Things to think about"
2. The pattern pieces. Each piece is on poster board so it can be traced onto the wrong side of the fabric.
3. The "Pins and Needles" Booklet contains several darning needles, enough pins and Wonderclips to make the projects.
4. Practice material. The dress needs a Fat Quarter of Fabric and is embellished with a contrasting waist band and a YoYo Flower and button. You even get a practice waistband and YoYo Flower. You never know that first practice dress may come out just fine and in that case, your doll will need to wear it.
5. The fabric for your real dress, and of course the embellishments.
6. Two large snaps, (Sorry, I forgot to put them in the photograph)
7. Email support line, if you still are a bit confused or have questions about changing things up.

All the recipient has to supply is thread, scissors, tape (I'll explain that later) and the doll.

Most kits will have the same practice fabric as shown here, but there will be a selection of "real" fabrics. 

Next blog post, samples of the wrap dress and fabric choices.

The Practice Fabric set

A Real Fabric Set, this is just one selection.

Pattern Pieces

Cutting Out Patterns with Children

There are many ways to cut out a pattern. You can pin the paper pattern pieces to the fabric, you can copy the pattern onto freezer paper and iron it onto the fabric, cut and then peel it off (I'll save this is for another blog post) or you can trace the pattern pieces onto the fabric. You can have the fabric folded in two so you are cutting two pieces at once, or you can have the fabric unfolded, so you are only cutting through one layer at a time.

That's a lot of choices. 

When sewing with children under 10, I think tracing the pattern onto the back side of an unfolded piece of. fabric works best. 

First, why?

1. No pins involved.
2. Most patterns are printed on regular paper, not tissue paper, which is difficult to pin.
3. You won't need to use the iron.
4. If the fabric is unfolded it is easier and more accurate to cut one layer at a time.
5. This method better preserves pattern pieces, which are secured to poster board.

Here's how to make your pattern pieces:

1. Use a copier to copy the pattern pieces onto Matte White Sticker Paper. Roughly, cut the pieces out. #1 in visual below.
2. Stick them onto white poster board #2. 
3. Accurately cut out each piece in the center of the black outlines. When you are done you should have a sturdy tracable poster board piece of each pattern piece. #4
4. Sharpen a colored pencil. #3
5. Have your child trace the shapes onto the backside of the fabric. If they trace on the front, there is more of a chance that lines that go astray may be visible.
6. Next, your child should cut along their traced lines.
7. Keep the paper pattern pieces nearby while sewing so you can tell what each piece of fabric is.

Teaching a Child to Sew, Lesson 2

Warming Up: Getting the Feeling of Sewing

Your child, like most kids, will be anxious to make their doll dress. Although sewing can be fun, finished products, like doll clothes, are more fun. But before you cut out the pattern, everything will go a bit smoother if you help your child get the hang of stitching.

If they have never sewn at all, they will need to get comfortable with the basic feeling of stitching--putting a needle up and down through fabric. I recommend using a size 1-5 darner needle (my sewing kits will come with one) or something similar like a smaller embroidery needle. These will be just large enough to make the stitching easier for small inexperienced hands. They also have a larger eye if you want to use perle cotton thread instead of basic sewing thread. 

You can try to teach your child to knot the thread or you can knot it yourself and teach the knotting later. I LOVE the following knotting method.  Easy way to knot thread. 

I recommend going double stranded, meaning securing both ends of the thread in the knot. That way the needle won't slide off the thread while your child is sewing.

Now for a Few Tips on Practicing Hand-Stitching:

1. Have your child practice sewing two pieces of fabric together. Initially there will be inconsistently sized stitching and they will have trouble staying close to the edge without going off the edge (see arrows). Both of these things will create holes in seams when you are stitching doll clothing.

2. Have them practice getting smaller stitches of equal size.

3. Once they can do that, work on keeping the line straight. 

4. Use the needle to do several stitch "bites" at once. This will help with straightness and can help with keeping the size consistent. It also takes the worry out of having the needle below where you cannot see it and have to feel for the right spot.

Once they can do this, they can start making something!

Next a better way for children to cut out patterns.

Teaching a Child to Sew, The Launch of a Series

When I was a child I tried to teach my younger sister to sew.  I have gone on to teach all three of my children, a few nieces, a few children of friends and a brownie troop to sew. There is almost as much of a learning curve to teaching sewing as there is to sewing.

This post is a first in a series about teaching children to sew. The very first post will be about what to think about when introducing sewing to your child--some thoughts before you begin (or end in frustration).

1. Start with hand sewing. Hand sewing is a better way to introduce the basic concepts of sewing, ie securing thread, right sides together, what is a seam, undoing mistakes, etc... than the machine. Understanding how to work a sewing machine is a whole separate mastery that should be learned after a child understands the basics of sewing.

2. Although a child can learn to sew at any age, and each child is different, ages 6-9 is often a great time. They are young enough to still be keen on mastering new skills, not old enough to think, I'll never be good at this. It is also an age when they still play with dolls and stuffed animals, which brings me to my next suggestion...

3. Doll clothes are a great way to start. When the project is done, the child has something they want. Unlike pillows, doll clothes require a number of sewing skills. You can start with a simple dress that just requires seaming and basic hemming and build from there. Through doll clothes your child will also learn the basics of garment construction, which will naturally lead into sewing clothes for people.

Next: The very first sewing skills to teach.

Would you like to sew for Phoebe?

Here is a sneak peek at the Phoebe and Egg Learn to Sew sewing kits. Each kit will come with almost everything you need to sew a simple (but cute) wrap dress for Phoebe. The kit will be designed for beginning sewists, adult or a child 7 and over. The kits will include almost everything you need except the sewing machine, scissors and iron. 

The dress, despite being very easy to sew, is very cute and can be embellished in so many ways. The first version is with a fabric yo-yo and button (which of course will be included in your kit) along with pattern pieces printed on freezer paper that can be ironed directly onto your fabric (no pinning).

Check in later, I'll post a few photos of the dress. Also the last photo below gives you some idea what goes into creating a pattern for a simple dress. Not so simple.

What goes into creating a simple dress is not so simple.

The Doll Book

I learned to sew at age eight and started right away making people clothes. I made a dress for my little sister. She was not as appreciative as I hoped she would be and so I moved on to sewing my own clothes. But I spotted this book somewhere, somehow (without an internet) and begged for it. It is called "The Doll Book" and it really was the THE doll book, since I knew of no others. I loved it and made many of the dolls and the clothes. I still have it and I still think it is cool .

It gives you the patterns for a family of dolls--parents, older siblings, younger siblings and a baby. I made them all. The patterns are Barbie sized and I love the way old Barbies are inter-mingled in the photos. It also gives you hundreds of period clothing patterns. You could historically dress your little dolls in outfits from the early 1800s on through to the early 1900s. 

The book would be fun for any child who wants to try doll-making. The dolls are simple and flat and the instructions for the clothing are amazing.

Used copies are still available on Amazon. Starting at about a dollar.