I recycled an old basket and some other on-hand household finds to make up a sweet toddler-friendly sewing kit for Clara. It’s been a big hit around here, and it was practically free to put together! I completely under-estimated how ridiculously happy she would be to have a sewing basket of her very own, and how proud she was of herself! Oh. my. goodness!!
Leftover pieces of shelf-liner and produce netting made for easy and interesting material for her to sew through with a large blunt-tipped yarn needle. She especially loved the netting from the top of a clementine crate! A small embroidery hoop made it easy for her little hands to hold.
She was especially interested in sewing on BIG colorful buttons — yay!!!
I pre-cut all of the yarn, tying a knot on one end and wrapping the other end with a bit of tape to make it easy for her to thread the needle on her own. She was so proud that she could thread it herself! I also tied a small knot near the needle to keep it in place while she sewed.
She also enjoyed the basket itself, and practiced taking all of the materials out and putting them back in over and over again!
We recycled cut up pieces of an empty cereal box to make the “spools” of pre-cut yarn.
Then she would take it out and start sewing all over again! I think it helps if you wear a colorful pasta necklace, don’t you?
Sewing is a wonderful activity for developing fine-motor control, pattern recognition, color identification, and so much more! I love that this simple kit made it easy for her to enjoy some early sewing success!!
Look, ma! I can sew!!!
Have fun!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 11:36 am
How fun! I got my first sewing basket when I was six years old, I think, and it’s still the one I use today!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:16 pm
That is totally awesome! I’m looking forward to lots of sewing fun with Clara!
January 3rd, 2011 on 11:42 am
Dear Valerie,
“You’ll
shootpoke your eye out, kid”Just kidding! She sure looks like she is having fun.
Love,
Mark
January 8th, 2011 on 10:18 pm
It was non-stop smiles all morning long!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 12:13 pm
What fun!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:39 pm
Thank you, Anya!
January 3rd, 2011 on 12:40 pm
Thanks for this timely idea! My daughter has been begging for a sewing kit, but thinking of my 3-year old armed with a needle makes me fearful for our 14 month old. This will be perfect for her!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:39 pm
How fantastic!! Have fun! xoxo
January 3rd, 2011 on 1:07 pm
Oh, I want to make on for Hannah. You have such wonderful ideas!!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:40 pm
Oh, I bet she will love it! Have fun!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 1:16 pm
This would be great for my little one and I have just the basket too.
Thanks for all your inspiring ideas, I always get from reading your blog!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:41 pm
You’re very welcome — so happy you’re enjoying our little bloggy blog! xoxo
January 3rd, 2011 on 1:31 pm
What a wonderful gift! I would never have thought of the shelf liner, but it looks perfect.
January 8th, 2011 on 10:42 pm
Thank you, Frances! It is so nice for easy sewing, and Clara really loved it.
January 3rd, 2011 on 1:36 pm
how cute!! she looks so happy!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:43 pm
Aww… thanks, Sarah!
January 3rd, 2011 on 1:48 pm
What a fantastic idea! One of my twins has recently mastered tying knots, and I’ve been trying to come up with a craft other than bead-threading that might catch her fancy.
January 8th, 2011 on 10:43 pm
Wonderful! I hope she really enjoys this!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 1:57 pm
So is that an old tea set basket? It’s way too cute
January 8th, 2011 on 10:50 pm
Wow, good eye, Ticia! It is an old tea set basket! I’ve seen picnic baskets at the thrift store that would work very nicely too.
January 3rd, 2011 on 1:58 pm
Dear Clara,
I have a pair of pants that desperately needs the button replaced. Could I send them to you so you can adorn them with one or two of your BIG, colorful buttons?
Thank you fro your consideration!
Sincerely,
Wonder Mom
P.S. Congratulations on owning your very OWN sewing kit!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:57 pm
LOL — So sweet!!
We’ll add it to the mending pile.
January 3rd, 2011 on 3:25 pm
That is the cutest thing ever. Fantastic!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:58 pm
January 3rd, 2011 on 3:28 pm
I love it – what a great idea, especially seeing those big buttons that are actually not falling off.
January 8th, 2011 on 10:58 pm
The buttons were a big hit!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 3:58 pm
STOP!!! I love this. Must have. So cute!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:02 pm
Hee hee!! Thank you!
January 3rd, 2011 on 4:24 pm
Okay, this is a fantastic idea! I knew I was saving that netting from the orange boxes for something. Oh, and great tip about tying the knot near the needle – thanks!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:03 pm
I’m so glad you saved the netting — it’s perfect easy sewing material. Enjoy!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 5:18 pm
I love this idea, I have a 5 year old who would love her own little basket. I am new to your blog and have really enjoyed it today
January 8th, 2011 on 11:04 pm
Welcome to FFFB, Pam! I’m so happy your 5yr old would enjoy this — it’s so much fun!
January 3rd, 2011 on 6:33 pm
So clever and CUTE!!!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:05 pm
Thank you, Diane! xoxo
January 3rd, 2011 on 7:31 pm
Absolutely love this idea. Kalyssa is always wanting to sew when I am, so this is definitely a must do on my crafting list! Thanks for sharing
January 8th, 2011 on 11:05 pm
How fantastic! Enjoy!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 7:48 pm
Oh my goodness! This is so creative, love the green factor! Great for fine motor.
January 8th, 2011 on 11:06 pm
Thank you, Kristi! We love recycling things from around the house.
January 3rd, 2011 on 7:48 pm
Great idea! I found some place mats at the dollar store that are just like that shelf liner. I cut them up for our kids to use in sewing – works great.
January 8th, 2011 on 11:06 pm
I know exactly which ones you mean, and I’ve seen them in all sorts of bright colors! Great idea!!
January 3rd, 2011 on 8:30 pm
What an awesome idea! I love it!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:10 pm
Thank you, Kara!
January 3rd, 2011 on 11:43 pm
Just had to say what a dolly Clara is! The last picture is SO cute!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:10 pm
Awww… so sweet, Jennie! Thank you! xoxo
January 4th, 2011 on 9:16 am
She looks so happy as she’s working on her sewing project. Love it; great idea.
January 8th, 2011 on 11:10 pm
Thanks, Petula! Her smiles are contagious.
January 4th, 2011 on 9:52 am
That is adorable and so much fun for Clara. What a great idea.
January 8th, 2011 on 11:14 pm
Thanks, Debby! She had a lot of fun!
January 4th, 2011 on 10:11 am
What a great idea. Clara looks so incredibly happy and proud of herself. And I love how you recycled almost the entire gift.
January 8th, 2011 on 11:15 pm
Thanks so much, Anna! I couldn’t believe how happy this made her!
January 4th, 2011 on 1:13 pm
thanks valerie! so cute and so much fun! esp if it keeps them occupied
Where did you get the BIG colorful buttons?
January 8th, 2011 on 11:16 pm
I don’t remember for sure, but I think I may have gotten them at a teacher’s supply store??
January 5th, 2011 on 2:03 am
This is the cutest idea ever! I’m so impressed. Wish I had a little girl to make one for!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:19 pm
Thank you so much, Molly!!
January 5th, 2011 on 12:25 pm
Wow! When you do a favorites for 2011, I can’t imagine anything topping this. It is really COOL! (But I loved the gumball machine, also.:))
January 8th, 2011 on 11:20 pm
Oh, that is so sweet, Susan — thank you! xoxo
January 6th, 2011 on 12:18 am
This is SO cute! I still have my first sewing basket, and I plan on passing it on to Ava in another couple of years. I like the materials and small bits of colored yarn you have come up with to keep it fun. At my house, we use the hard plastic needlework material (like Grandma’s tissue box was made from
cut into manageable-sized shapes. We use needles similar to yours and Ava likes to incorporate large beads into her “sewing,” too. Thanks for the post. Very fun!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:24 pm
Oh, how cute! We have some of that plastic canvas stuff here — I think beads would be fun to add too!
January 6th, 2011 on 5:04 pm
Cute! When she gets older you can switch it out to embroidery thread and needles, and pieces of felt. I’ve got links to some cute thread cards that you can print on cardstock here: http://theprudenthomemaker.com/embroidery.aspx and you can see the sewing housewife that I made for my daughter (she’s 9) for her to keep her needles and embroidery thread together. I just have to figure out something for my boys, since they want to learn, too!
January 8th, 2011 on 11:26 pm
Those are amazing!! I love the thread cards — SO cute!!!
January 8th, 2011 on 10:41 am
What a fabulous idea! I have a little one turning 4 next week and this would be a wonderful gift. Thank you!
Found you through Frugal Granola.
January 8th, 2011 on 11:27 pm
Oh, I’m so happy you found us, Elizabeth! Welcome to FFFB! I hope your 4yr old enjoys this as much as Clara does — it was a big hit here! xoxo
January 10th, 2011 on 6:20 pm
What a cute idea! I love it!!
Cheers!
Jen
January 11th, 2011 on 11:46 pm
Thank you, Jen!!
January 10th, 2011 on 9:00 pm
LOVE it!
You can tell by her facial expressions that she is on cloud 9!
January 11th, 2011 on 11:47 pm
I still can’t believe how happy she is to do her own sewing! It melts my heart every time!
January 11th, 2011 on 4:59 am
Your child’s beeeeeaming smile says it all! I love the wonderful recycled materials and the neat little spools of thread! This would make a fantastic ziplock bag activity or sewing kit gift … Thanks for sharing!
January 11th, 2011 on 11:48 pm
Thank you so much, Nadene! Clara has been taking out her sewing basket every day — For something so simple, it’s been a big hit around here!
January 28th, 2011 on 10:43 pm
She is sooo happy! I love it. I am so making one for my son, and you’ve given me some great ideas for things I already have around the house to use.
March 7th, 2011 on 7:53 pm
Hi there, just wanted to let you know I love your website, and have referenced your kid’s sewing kit on my blog. Hope that is ok. Cheers, Zoe
March 8th, 2011 on 1:37 pm
I’ve had my eye on this project forever, but watching my girls work on a school project involving yarn has made me decide to take the plunge. I don’t have any appropriate baskets, so I’m going to make plastic canvas boxes for each of them. I LOVE the idea of sewing elastic onto the lid. BRILLIANT!