Last Christmas I gave my grandchildren sewing machines as a gift. Nothing fancy, very basic little sewing machines that they could practice making things. Of course, none of them had any experience or interest in sewing before I bestowed the gift upon them. I would be happy with a few straight stitches. Unfortunately, my crew would need something more than sewing a few straight lines to feel accomplished. It took careful planning to come up with a sewing project for beginners.
The sewing project
Our first group project is making a bucket hat. In preparation for our day of sewing, I decided to cut out all of the pieces of fabric necessary before the start. It’s a lot to ask seven to nine-year-olds to cut a straight line let alone angular pieces. The pattern provided for the bucket hat came from sweet red poppy. It was a free download. The more prep, the better the experience with a sewing project for beginners.
Each child received all the pieces necessary to construct the hat. The brim of the hat is where the sewing started. Trouble ensued quickly. The stitches were great, but the ability to follow along the quarter-inch edge was a challenge. A seam ripper became a curse. Frustrations ran high, but none gave up. We had several machine jams and a couple of bent needles. My crew works tirelessly until dinner time.
They finish the brim after four hours. I could see that the children were becoming a bit anxious so I had them step away from the project. The next morning after breakfast we got back to it. Everyone was fresh and ready to finish. You have to take your time with a sewing project for beginners. I didn’t want them to give up. Sometimes you have to step away to regain the passion necessary to make it to the end. My crew did just that. The determination to finish was ten-fold.We made our way through to a bucket hat. The children were quite pleased with themselves. I sent them home with a beginner sewing book with small projects that only require a lock stitch and wearing hats that they made from scratch.