Do you have a crafty kid in your home? Why not let them try their hand at sewing? These five simple crafts will boost their confidence in this important skill. Both boys and girls can pick out the fabric of their choice and will be thrilled to create useful items that can be used around the home or given as gifts! It would be quicker to use a sewing machine for these projects but if you prefer to teach your child to sew by hand these are all perfect projects to teach them how to create the perfect stitch! I taught my son both methods and he actually prefers sewing by hand. He enjoys both the process and the final product! My daughter, on the other hand, loves the sewing machine and enjoys creating gifts for friends and family!

Pillow: Pillows are the project that I always start my kids out with. It is simple, fun, and the final product is useful and pretty hard to mess up! When your child creates a pillow let them pick a fabric that interests them⁠—one yard will do. Also be sure to have ½ pound to 1 pound of stuffing available. Measure two equal pieces of fabric and cut them out⁠—18” x 18” each. Place the pieces of fabric together with the wrong sides facing out. Teach your child to carefully pin the fabric together leaving a two to three-inch opening on one of the sides to leave room to stuff the pillow. Make sure they leave half-inch of a seam allowance and teach them to sew a straight line, removing the pins as they stitch. Once your child reaches the two to three-inch opening have them turn the fabric right side out, stuff the pillow, and stitch the pillow closed. Most of the stitches of the pillow are hidden so there is plenty of wiggle room allowed here. Super easy!

Curtains: An older child might be interested in creating curtains for their room. Once they have had a little practice stitching in a straight line, let them try making curtains. All they need to stitch are straight lines for this project, and if the stitches aren’t perfect, it won’t be extremely noticeable. Measure your child’s window and add five or six extra inches if creating two curtains per window⁠—more for a single curtain. Simple fold two inches back behind the curtain and pin on all four sides. Sew around the edges for a clean, crisp look. Once you have all four sides sewn, fold the top down another two inches, making sure a curtain rod will fit through the opening, and sew!

Tablecloth: This project is exactly the same concept as the curtains but since it might be showcased on a dining room or kitchen table have your child work on this once they have more confidence in their sewing skills! Simply measure your table leaving several inches for a seam allowance and several more so it will hang over the edge of the table.

Doll Blanket: Girls love creating simple accessories for their dolls—Barbie dolls, 18” dolls, all kinds! Let your child try to figure out the right size fabric they will need and have them use the same concept as the pillow, without adding stuffing.

Bear: Find a simple bear pattern that uses only two pieces of fabric. One for the front and one for the back (no added pieces) such as this one here. Find a colorful and exiting fabric and have your child sew the two pieces together and stuff the bear in a similar fashion to the pillow project!