Don't give up - I come from a family of 'sewers' but didn't really have any interest until I had my own children. There's nothing cuter than a pre-schooler in a home made costume.
BTW - I like the pot-holder idea. Small, fast and I have plenty of insulbrite inthe house. I also like the idea of doing a binding so that she sees that the finishing can be fun too. One more plus - it would use up scraps.