The quick answer would be, teach your child just as you would any other person but know you will need lots of patience…
Sewing with a 5-year-old might seem a little intimidating at first but depending on the level of maturity of your 5-year-old they should be totally fine. My 5-year-old LOVES sewing and does projects on her own, but some might not love it as much and might need a little more prompting. I would encourage you to teach your children though because I believe that it is a life skill that they should have. You can even make it part of your homeschooling.
Sewing is a practical skill that is very nice to have in your repertoire. You may think that it is something that you would never use but I promise that you will use it more then you might think.
It might just be little things such as sewing buttons back on or stitch up holes. Or you might even like it and learn how to do bigger jobs. My mom is a seamstress and it comes in handy having her to be able to help us out when we need clothes altered. If you don’t know how to sew I would strongly encourage you to try and learn…
Learning from you
If you need some help I would check out you-tube. Start with small projects and look up specifically what you need to know about that project. Once you have a grip on sewing try having your kiddos help you. This will be difficult but it is worth it…I promise. There is something special about being able to teach things to your kids. Even if we do need you-tubes help every once and while.
If you already know how to sew you are a step ahead. Try having your kiddo help you with a small project. If you can, have it be something that you need around the house. Maybe a pot holder or a dishcloth. This will make them feel like they are making something to benefit the family. My husbands Grandma would just buy dishcloths from the store and put pretty stitching around the edges. It seems a little silly to us but there is something about having pretty things. And that is a nice easy project to do if you are just starting out.
Letting them try
At 5 years old I would start with having them sew by hand. This will get them comfortable with the idea and how sewing works. And hopefully, you will not have as many accidents this way. But once they get the hang of it I would try letting them use a sewing machine. You can get kids sewing machines or just teach them on your sewing machine. I don’t recommend letting them do it all by themselves. I just mean to start teaching them how it works and maybe let them do little things to help as you use the machine.
A kid sewing machine is totally not necessary but it is a good idea for a birthday or Christmas present for your little one. If you are interested in a good one you can check out my recommendation below. I love when I can get my kids practical gifts that they will actually think it cool. I am over all the toys!
Start with little projects
My daughter got a little sewing kit for Christmas and had so much fun playing around with it and learning how to sew. Then we got some material scraps and she went to town designing her own dresses. She had a blast. I totally understand a little girl is going to want to make dresses and fun stuff. But you can also have them make things you can use around the house. They will be so proud that they made something you can actually use. Some ideas might be…
- Potholders
- Dishcloth
- Pincushion
- pillows
They also might enjoy making things for them as well. Such as…
- Doll clothes
- Doll Bedding
- Doll Blankets
Don’t stress
Their projects at this age will not be perfect! And that is okay. You are just starting out and have years to perfect their level of skill. Guide them in the process but also give them a little space to figure it out and make their own mistakes. You don’t want it to be a stressful process you want it to be something fun that you do together as you are teaching them a valuable skill. I have learned that I have to let go and let them do things at their level. If you always re-do what they do they will lose confidence and feel like they can never please you. You want them to believe in themselves and their skills and as they grow you will gently guide them to do better.
Oh and don’t forget the boys. Teach your sons to sew as well. My husband knows how to sew and honestly does more of the little sewing projects then I do. There is no reason that our sons can’t know how to do these things as well. We so often think of things as “girl” jobs or “boy” jobs but so many things are a great skill for boys and girls.
Q & A
Why is it important?
I am guessing you already figured out my answer but I just want to expound on it a bit more. If you have read any of my other posts you will know how strongly I feel about raising our kids to be the best that they can be. I am very disappointed in the public school system and feel that we as parents have to take our responsibility to raise our kids to be fully equipped for the world that they live in.
I’m sure you think I am old fashioned but I think that our kids should know how to do things for themselves. I want my kids to be well rounded and know how to take care of themselves. If I can add in things like sewing, gardening, and raising animals to my children’s skill set I believe I am setting them above the majority and that they will go far in life.
I feel that as a culture we are raising a generation of lazy kids and I don’t want my kids to have such low expectations and be able to get away with knowing the bare minimum. I want them to love learning and be able to take care of things for themselves. Obviously, sewing in itself will not accomplish that but my hope is that as I have my children home with me I can instill many valuable skill sets into them.
Are they old enough at 5?
I would say yes. My daughter is 5 and is doing just fine. Obviously, if you feel like your child is not ready then, by all means, wait a little while. But just start slow and see how it goes. I would use bigger needles and tools that are more age appropriate as they are starting out. You don’t want them to be frustrated and then not want to learn to sew all together.
As I mentioned above I want don’t want my kids to have such low expectations set for them and think that they can’t accomplish things just because they are young. I want to give them the chances to try things and not hold them back in anyway. Young kids are so smart and way more capable then we give them credit for.
Should they just sew by hand?
I would have them start by just sewing by hand. They can even use tools that are more age appropriate. Normal size needles might be hard for them to hold onto and they might get annoyed that they can’t do it and want to quit. But depending on the maturity level of your child I would definitely let them help with a sewing machine. At this age, they will need guidance and a lot of it. Do not let them use the sewing machine on their own. But I would get them familiar with it and teach them how it works.
When I was young my mom would let me help do little things like threading the bobbin or hold the material as she sewed and I thought I was pretty big stuff. Even if you just let them sit on your lap and help you they will love it. This will help prepare them so that when they are ready to use the machine themselves they are already comfortable with it and can just go for it!
What if I am not confident in my abilities?
If you have learned what you can from you-tube and still feel like you don’t know enough to teach your little one then I would recommend taking a class or learning from a family member. See if your grandma knows how to sew and see if you can meet with her and she can teach you. If you don’t have a family member you can go to your local craft store and they generally have classes that you can sign up for. This is also nice if you have a project you want to do they can be there to answer questions as they come up.
They should even have classes for kids that you can take your kiddo too and they can get a start there.
My Recommendations
The singer is a brand of sewing machine that has been around for ages. It is the machine that my mom has and my grandma. ( Who is also a seamstress) It is the brand that is most well known and from what I know has the best product. Obviously, it depends on exactly what you want to do. But for a beginner, I think you will be completely pleased with their product.
If you are looking for a machine for your little one to start out on I would check out their beginner model. Any beginner can use this machine, so if you are just getting started with sewing then you could also start with this machine.
If you are in the market for a little higher end of a machine you should check out singers top model machine. This machine is their heavy duty machine and should be able to do anything you need it to.
Extra tips and tricks
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Set time aside
If you have other little ones running around you will want to make sure they are occupied. Sewing is one thing that takes a bit of time and will be tricky if you have other little ones demanding your attention. I have a little guy myself and it can be a bit of a nightmare trying to do projects with him grabbing at everything. If you need some ideas on how to entertain your little ones check out my post.
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Clear a space
If you have a table to work at where you can leave everything for a little while that is best. Maybe a home-school table? Sometimes the projects last for a couple of days and it is nice to be able to spread things out and work on it as you can.
If you little one has an issue sitting tall enough at the table they may need to just sit on a couch or a chair. My kiddos are really little and can’t sit tall enough at the table in order to be able to be comfortable enough to work. If they have their own little school desk that would work well too.
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Start with Scraps
You won’t want to spend a lot on material and stuff up front because there will be lots of mistakes. So if you have old scraps or old clothes that don’t fit anymore I would suggest you start with those. That way when mistakes happen it is no big deal. And trust me they will!
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Recycle
Speaking of using old clothes you can actually do that and make some pretty cute things. My sister turned her old skirt into a skirt for my little girls. You can also turn your kid’s old jeans into shorts and so on. It is fun to teach our kids not to waste in fun and creative ways. And when they are little they will think it is so cool!
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Don’t make a big deal about it
Sewing is something you want your kids to learn. But if they don’t want to then just don’t make a big deal about it. You continue to do the projects and just show them as you go along. I promise they are learning just by watching you and hearing.
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It’s not just for the girls
I kind of already touched on this but sewing is not just for the girls. I know what you are thinking. How in the world would I get my boys to think that sewing is cool? Well, My husband is a total outdoorsman and like I said he knows how to sew.
Show your boys things they might need to sew someday. What if they are camping and they get a hole in their tent? They will need to know how to repair it. Or maybe their Sleeping bag? Mom won’t always be there to take care of things for them. They need to know how to do these things for themselves.
Sewing Essentials
If you are already an avid sewer then you can just skip over this part. But if you are just getting started and have no clue where to start here is a list of things you will need to get started. This list is very basic and will just be what you will need for general projects. Nothing to fancy here.
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A good sewing scissors
This is very important. You want a very good sharp pair of sewing scissors to get the job done. If you use a crappy pair you will not get a good line and it might mess up your fabric. Also, make sure to not use this pair of scissors for anything besides on your fabric.
2. An Iron
This is helpful so that you can make sure your fabric looks good before you start your project.
3. Pins/Needles and a pin cushion
This is obviously a must-have. You will use the pins to keep your fabric in place as you are working on your project. And obviously the needles for the actual sewing.
4. Seam ripper
Remember those mistakes 4. you are going to make? Yah…this little guy will make your mistakes go away much faster.
5. Tape measure
You can get ones that are soft and are made for sewing. Just trust me this will come in handy.
I know you are probably wondering why you would need all of this just to sew with your 5-year-old. But You want to make sure you have all the right tools because you will be sewing too and I am sure you will continue to find projects to work on yourself. I find myself using my sewing kit all the time.
As always I hope this was helpful and I would love to hear about the projects you have done with your little ones in the comments.
Happy Homesteading!
~Courtney