Quilter 65

My little girl grands have recently learned to sew in 4-H. I saw a video on MSQC using a wacky web template and piecing papers. So I saw a chance to use my scraps and it is pretty forgiving. I cut the center part out and attach to paper with a dot of glue. Then they have at it using the scraps. Learning to press, sew, and press. The 10-year old said "this is fun." She also confided that she had had to rip the seam out of a pair of shorts TWICE so she was thinking that this was pretty easy and cool. She is now amped to make a quilt for her bed and had to show her dad the start of her quilt up on the design board. Now the others are getting excited to start theirs.

mckwilter

I would recommend that you ask her if she wants to do clothing or quilting, as the skills for each are similar but different. If she wants to make a quilt, start with a simple 4-patch or 9-patch, and she will learn sewing a good 1/4" seam, matching seams, chain piecing and pressing. You can do scrappy or planned blocks, and she wil learn about coordinating / contrasting colors. Then she'll learn about sashing, borders, batting, layering, quilting and binding.

Nettie

I started my granddaughters out with a stack and whack. I cut it for them and then gave them the pieces to sew. If their seams were a little off it didn't matter as we had to square up the blocks. Since none of the seams had to match they felt a real sense of accomplishment at their beautiful squares. They all picked out their fabric from Grammy's stash and that was just part of the fun we had. We even left the three year old give it a try while I guided the fabric she pressed the pedal. What a blast we had.

coopah

Clothes (of any size) are tough. Start with straight line sewing. A small quilt would work, as would the pillow tops and potholders others mentioned. If you pick something too hard, it might get discouraging. Enjoy working together!!

GailG

With one of our DGD, I helped her to make throw pillows. We took a nice sturdy solid fabric and she learned to do decorative stitching by following the grid she had done on her pillow top. She had brought a little friend along so they each made their own pillow.

Another DGD went to a sewing school with my daughter (her aunt). They did a simple pajama pants and a camisole. They also did a rag quilt and a simple paper pieced wall hanging (the jar block).

You could also let her make a doll quilt or wall hanging for her bedroom.

You have been given lots of good ideas. Keep it simple so she can succeed. Soon you'll have a quilting companion!

Boston1954

Maybe she could do both. A dress for her favorite doll, and a little dolly quilt for her also.

quiltyjax

My grandaughter started off with a charm pack that she fell in love with when I took her to a local quilt exhibition. She was spent ages arranging the pieces but thought it would be bigger. So a hunt through my stash found some suitable fabric and she sewed 4patches, sashing with cornerstones and 2 borders to make it big enough to top her bed. It was lovely to be with her and see her through her first quilt.

Chis2

I had my grands make pillow cases from the tutorials on u tube. They were all straight seams and were done in no time. It was instant gratification. And they turned out nice. The project isn't long enough to lose interest. Now the 9 yr old wants to make more . He also wants to make a pillow. Have fun with your grands. The quality time spent together is wonderful. He arranged the pins on the table to say I love u and then said for me to read it. That sure made my day.

bjgallent

Pillowcases or an elastic waist skirt. My 8 year old granddaughter's first item was a pillowcase. She is now 10 and likes to sew when she visits.

Jakers1

Thank you all for the great ideas. She is in cartoon camp (and doing puppets) this week and comes home and wants to sew. The camp is 6 hours long and she still has that energy. I think I will ask her what she wants to do. She did make several small bags, just two pieces of fabric and a zig zag top hem, and was trying to sell them for $1! I think a 9 patch or similar small quilt will be great or some pajama pants. And I will be glad when she is back in school so we don't have to fight over the sewing machine!