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Home » DIY Tutorials » DIY Sewing » Teaching Kids to Sew, Part 2: Using Fabric, Tying Knots, & Tracing Designs

Teaching Kids to Sew, Part 2: Using Fabric, Tying Knots, & Tracing Designs

Is summer break in full swing for you?  It is here.

Which was my motivation to get this “Teaching Kids To Sew” series going.

 

And you know, Elli (age 6) and Connor (age 5 in a couple weeks) are really enjoying it.  I think a lot of their interest stems from it being something that I really like to do.  So, they get to use my special fabric and needles and scissors, etc.  What could be cooler than using the “off-limit” tools in mom’s craft room?!?! :)

And just like I explained last time with the Intro to Hand Sewing post, I think it’s really important for kids to get the hang of hand-sewing before hopping on the sewing machine.  It helps to let their hands manipulate the needle and thread and gain an understanding of the thread going up and down and securing itself to the fabric.  It helps to demonstrate in a very basic way, how the sewing machine works.  So……letting those fingers explore is a great way to begin the sewing adventure.

So today, we’re graduating from a foam plate, on up to fabric and an embroidery hoop.  Plus, how about teaching them to tie their own knots?

 

There are many basic stitches but I’m still having them work on the good ol’ Basting Stitch.  Just big stitches, up and down, up and down…

Draw an image on some plain fabric and let them practice going around all the lines.

 

Or, if you get tired of drawing things for them…..have them stitch around objects on printed fabric.

 

Either way, they’ll stay busy for hours……..sewing around this and that and using whatever colors their little fingers are drawn to most.

 

What a perfect way to get rid of some of that summertime boredom.  (Also, a great thing to take on a road trip!)

 

Would you like a few more ideas and tips??

First of all, gather some supplies: embroidery thread, plain fabric, embroidery hoop, and some needles.

 

The needles we used for the Foam Plate sewing, were these Tapestry Needles.  They have a very blunt edge and are great for little fingers but if you have a fabric with a tighter weave, you may need something a little sharper.

 

Now, draw an image……or let them draw one.

 

Place your fabric between the 2 hoops, secure the bolt, and pull the fabric tight between the hoops.  Tighter fabric between the hoops makes it a lot easier to sew through.

 

Now, it’s time to thread a needle and knot the end.  Let your child practice their knots over and over again.  You may be surprised how quickly they catch on.  I was. :)

**P.S. These are Elli’s little fingers below.  You may be able to tell by the chipped nail polish but also, she has regular shaped thumbs…..not like my stubby ones!  Lucky girl! ;)

  • Thread your needle and then hold the needle in your right hand and the end of the thread in your left hand.
  • Cross your thread end over top the needle.
  • Place your pointer finger over the top of the thread on the needle, to keep it from moving.
  • Wrap the thread around the needle 2 times (or more for a bigger knot), wrapping towards you.

 

  • Pull the thread in your left hand (and the 2 wraps) down the needle, toward your pointer finger.
  • Pinch the 2 wraps between your pointer and thumb of your right hand and then grab the tip of the needle with your left hand.
  • Keep pinching the 2 wraps and begin sliding them down the needle, past the eye hole.  (If you can’t get it past the eye of the needle, you probably wrapped the thread around a bit too tight.  Try again.)
  • Continue pinching and pulling the little wraps between your thumb and pointer, on down the thread.

 

With the needle in your left hand, pinch around the eye of the needle, to keep the thread from pulling out and keep pulling the wraps in your right hand down to the end of the thread.

 

Pull until the thread stops……

 

…..and you have a nice little knot at the end of your thread.

**This knot tying technique is really common for hand sewing.  I also tie knots a different way sometimes.  It just depends on what I remember right that second.  But truly, the technique above is the quickest way, once you practice a couple times.

 

Now, teach your kiddo to always start sewing from the back.  Also, have them hold the needle in their dominant hand and hold the hoop with their other hand.  Teach them to always keep it this way and to not switch back and forth.

 

Have them look closely and show them that as they are trying to find the correct place to poke their needle up from the back, they will see the bump of the needle tip trying to poke through.  With patience, they will see that they can glide that needle tip along the back of the fabric until it reaches the place they want to poke it through.  Get lost video games…….this hand eye coordination is by far superior!! ;)

 

Also, show them that when they are pulling the needle up from the top, to pinch the base of the needle to keep the thread from coming out.

 

Then…….let them have at it for a while and sew around their images and/or shapes.

 

After they become more comfortable, explain to them that if they take shorter “hops” from the back, they’ll have less gaps from the front.  You can call it whatever you want, but calling the stitches, “hops” made sense to Elli.  When she started along the bottom of the house, she was taking longer “hops” from the back.  Once I explained to her how the stitch size affected how it looked from the front, she did much better and it started looking a lot better.

 

When she was done, instead of tying a fat knot, I showed her how to hide her thread ends (like cross stitching) but threading them under other stitches on the back…..

 

…..and pulling it through.

 

And then I had her thread it under another one, pull it through, and then snip off the end of the thread.

 

Then, have them switch to whatever color they’d like and practice re-threading and knotting the end of their new thread color.

And like I mentioned above, if you’d rather not draw something, find some fabric with a fairly large print and have them stitch around the objects in the fabric.  If you have them stitch around every object with its matching color, this would give them great practice threading, knotting, and changing colors.

 

Now, just remember……have fun with it!

Their little brains are learning the most important beginning steps of sewing.  And most likely, if you show them how proud you are of what they’ve done (even if its wobbly), they will gain more and more confidence and hopefully interest, in this little craft called Sewing!!

Good luck!

Ashley

 

. . . . .

To see other lessons in the “Teaching Kids to Sew” series, check out these other skills!!

Intro To Hand Sewing

 

Hand Sewing: Sleeping Masks & Super Hero Masks

Intro to the Sewing Machine

Ashley Johnston

Administrator at Make It & Love It
Ashley Johnston is a professional DIY costume maker, sewist, crafter, and owner of Make It & Love It. She is a mom of 5 and a wife to a very patient (with the craft clutter) husband. In case you’re wondering, she always chooses crafting/sewing/designing over mopping/dusting/wiping base boards……but bathrooms/laundry/full bellies are always attended to. Whew!

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Hi, I'm Ashley

Hi, I’m Ashley—the DIY-enthusiast behind this crazy blog!

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