Kids Love to Sew: An Interview with Elisenda

Kids love to sew. And what’s even better, its really really good for them. If I could shout this out for every one to hear, I would. I’ve been teaching hand-sewing for years and the more I teach the more I see how much kids get from this simple creative practical and fun-filled activity.

OK, we all know that hand-sewing is great for developing fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination but where I think sewing beats almost every other craft (well, maybe I’m going a bit overboard here but I do get excited about sewing) is that it unexpectedly nurtures kid’s self-confidence and feelings of accomplishment.

All kids can sew something that looks amazing, something that they are proud to have made and proud to show to their friends and family. And it’s not at all trivial that they have an actual object because it acts as a constant reminder of what they can do and yes, that they themselves are pretty damn awesome.

Over the next few weeks I’ll be interviewing awesome kids sewers from around the world and finding out (amongst other things) why they love sewing and what advice they have for other kid sewers.

Today I interview eleven year old Elisenda from Barcelona, Spain whose mum Eva blogs at Plastica Planet

Who taught you how to sew?

My mother and grandmother. I remember how my mother tough me I was six years old.  I was looking how my sister was sewing a teddy bear for a friend of hers. My mother was helping her and I decided I wanted to do a bird, I grab some of the left overs of the fabric an with scissors I cut the body and the legs of my little bird, I cut paper and glue the eyes and beck an glue also the legs; then I saw that my sister was putting some stuff into the body of the bear so I cut another part the same design of the bird body and decoded that I could use staples or the glue to hold the body bird so I could put some stuff in side too. Then was when my mother came over and saw what I was doing. She unstapled the bird and helped me to bast the little animal, I was so happy that I still care about that little bird.  Later on that summer my grandma tough me to sew properly.

What is the hardest thing about sewing?

The hardest thing is to do the knot every time I thread the needle. It seems so easy when my mother does it! So far I don’t sew whit a machine I guess it’s going to have some difficult parts to sew like a professional.

What is the funest thing about sewing?

I love to pass the threat though the fabric! And of course I like to see the piece I have done, sewed, finished.

What have you sewn?

A bird, that one I have told you, a cellular-phone case for a cellular-phone toy that’s the one my grandma tough me to sew, a T-shirt with out sleeves, a dress and an apron like the ones of my favorite character from a book, an aromatic bag collection for a summer sale, project that I did with my sisters and cousins, and this past carnival I sewed a Vilma dress, the one from the Flintstones.

Do you have a favorite sewing project that you’ve made?

The little bird I did when I was six years old.

Do you sew with your Mum or by yourself?

With my mum, also with my grandmother, sisters, cousins and now that I feel more confident by myself although I still have a difficult time knotting the threat!

Do any of your friends sew? 

Not as I do, but two or three know how to do a bast.

Does anyone else in your family sew?

My mum, she mostly darns, (she likes to mend the fabrics we care about). My sisters who are 13 and 15 my too grandmothers ans too cousins that are 11 and 8.

Do you learn sewing at school?

No, it’s not a usual thing for schools to teach, although now some little art studios have started to teach to children.

Do you what to keep sewing when you get older?

Sure, and I think I would love to do clothes and bags for my family.

Do you have any advice that you would give to other children about learning to sew?

I think it’s important that they learn how to do the knot and also I would tell them to start with a project that they imagine, something that they want to create from their imagination, something not real.