Saturday, May 9, 2015

Sew Together, Grow Together


My blogger friend Trixi Symonds of the Coloured Buttons blog
has a new book out - Sew Together, Grow Together.
If you are looking for easy fun sewing projects to do with children,
you might want to give it a try. Her years of experience as a teacher
really come through in her good advice. I particularly liked her comment
that children deserve to work with quality materials. How frustrating
for a beginner sewer to work with a blunt needle!


The book offers easy and more challenging projects
with a lot of tips and variations for each one.
I was looking for very easy projects and we tried out two:
the star and the little flowers. For the little flower Trixi has
a ladybird design but it was too fiddly because we down-scaled
the flowers to use as pin cushions and not as pillows.
But we did add butterflies! These pretty designs are very flexible.


We also made a couple of bunnies from a template of Trixie's blog.
There is an even cuter bunny in the book.
Congrats, Trixi! Job well done.


Triki sells the book in her etsy shop - http://etsy.me/1DXCElv

54 comments:

Butterfly 8)(8 Bungalow said...

Love the little pin cushions. I will have to check out the book. xoox Su

Gloria Baker said...

These are absolutely lovely!:)

Maya Kuzman said...

Amalia, the projects you did are fantastic - especially the flowers with the butterflies!! They are adorable!

Anna said...

So, so cute !!!!! All of your creations !!!!!
Have a fun weekend !
Anna

Carolina G. Ticala said...

Beautiful! Have a nice day! Kisses

mamasmercantile said...

I must check it out it may be something I would enjoy with my grand children.

Deb @ Frugal Little Bungalow said...

Very cute! ::)

Unknown said...

Thanks for the lovely review Amalia :)

Kim said...

I used to make little guys like these when I was young. I bet it's a great book...off to peek!

sweetbriardreams said...

What a great book to inspire the little ones. I used to enjoy making little creatures when I was at primary school. Will go to have a look at the book x

Luciana F. Damiano said...

I love the blog and the work of Trixi.
I have a very cool book, already sewed with my daughters ...

Nancy Chan said...

You have done a lovely job with the pin cushions...so cute!

greenrabbitdesigns said...

That sounds like a lovely book! Your first photo is beyond cute! :)

Quilting Stories said...

All those are adorable things and so well presented with the sweet mini crochet blanket! It reminds be how much I enjoyed making things with my children and I agree as well that they deserve quality tools!

Tanna said...

Such lovely projects! I agree with Trixie wholeheartedly... quality tools and materials makes all the difference! blessings ~ tanna

Anonymous said...

These are so whimsical and colorful. Wonderful job!

September Violets said...

These are so cute! I love the little felt pincushions, and the butterflies are perfect! I agree that kids need to have good quality materials and tools. It's already tricky enough for them to learn the intricacies of sewing, why add to their frustration. Along these same lines, I once knit up a cushion cover from a pattern written in a child's book for learning to knit. The instructions in the book did NOT match the finished project at all. The photo showed a beautiful neat cushion that could not possibly have been made following the same instructions. I had to alter the pattern to make it look the same. No child would have been able to do the same with limited knitting skills.
These little pieces you have shown have inspired me :)
Wendy

Mereknits said...

How cute are these! Good luck to your friend.
Meredith

DD's Cottage said...

What cutie-patutuies!

Amy at love made my home said...

So cute, and every one who sews needs a pincushion! I so agree about the materials thing, it makes all the difference to have the right kit no matter what you are doing, and a learner is no exception to that, whatever their age! xx

La Table De Nana said...

How cute! A+ Cuteness Factor!

Gumbo Lily said...

The flowers with the butterflies are so cute. (so are the bunnies and stars!) My 7 year old granddaughter would love to stitch these up. I taught her back stitch embroidery. Next we are hemming a napkin. I think she would love making such cute things to put in her room or make for gifts. All hand-sewing, right?
Thank you for sharing this book.

~Jody

Julie's Lifestyle said...

I love these projects you made. They are so adorable!

A Joyful Cottage said...

These are super cute! Love the cheery colors. xo

Elephant's Child said...

They are simply lovely - and I hope they were as much fun to make as they are to see.

Carla from The River said...

Wonderful idea. I love it.
Thank you for sharing.
Carla

Fiona said...

What lovely projects to share with children.

eileeninmd said...

Oh wow, these are adorable projects.. Colorful and cheery, the children would love to make them. Great ideas! Have a happy day and week ahead!

Conniecrafter said...

too cute, they all look happy in the basket :) like the crocheted piece to go with them and the cute drawings for the background to the pictures

Unknown said...

OMG, they are so cute!!!!

Gina @ VictorianWannaBe said...

Hi Amalia,
Such cute little guys! Thanks for your recent to my blog and for leaving me a comment. Have a great day!
Gina

TexWisGirl said...

very cute!

Red Rose Alley said...

Amalia, I used to love to work with my hands when I was a young girl. I especially liked to make things with the colored construction paper. Your friend's blog sounds delightful. These bunnies you made are darling.

Have a splendid week.

~Sheri

susan said...

What sweet ideas. Love the basket of "goodies."

Donna Wilkes said...

Love the bunnies in a basket.

Tante Mali said...

Oh, so sweet little creatures!!! Love them all! And this is realy a nice idea!
Happy days
Elisabeth

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

Those are just adorable!

Celestina Marie said...

Hi Amalia, oh how adorable. Love these sweet designs. Thanks for sharing.
Hugs, CM

EG CameraGirl said...

I agree that children deserve to work with good materials! I love the bright colours!

Wonky Patchwork said...

Sounds like a good book, and love the addition of those butterflies.

Tricia Buice said...

I always loved doing projects with my children when they were small. Craft skills are a wonderful thing to own. These are adorable.

handmade by amalia said...

Thank you, Maya, they were fun to make.

handmade by amalia said...

Isn't it funny? Not everyone crafts as an adult but it is rare to meet a child who doesn't enjoy it.

handmade by amalia said...

My pleasure!!!

handmade by amalia said...

Well done, Luciana! A hug.

handmade by amalia said...

The crochet blanket is part of a blanket and pillow set for a doll. The colors worked perfectly :-)

handmade by amalia said...

It is so frustrating when the instructions don't work. It's the same with cooking - sometimes I see in the photo ingredients that are not in the recipe or they don't tell you how high to set the over. It was one of the things I liked about Trixi's book, the instructions are so clear

handmade by amalia said...

Yes, everything done by hand. You know, Jody, both my grandmothers were accomplished crafters and I didn't learn anything from them. It is a shame. You are making wonderful memories for your grandadughter.

handmade by amalia said...

Thank you Eileen! Enjoy the day.

handmade by amalia said...

Thanks Sheri! A happy day to you.

handmade by amalia said...

So true! And thanks for visiting me :-)

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

How cute! I love fun projects like this. I'm off to look at her shop and save it in my favs! Hugs, Diane

Enara Girl said...

Such a beautiful things! I follow Trishie as well :D
xoxo

Sarah said...

Adorable!