A Birthday Stitching Kit

I wonder to myself - when is the right time to introduce a child to stitching and what projects are suitable age/skill appropriate to avoid frustration and make for an enjoyable experience?

For the last few months our little girl has taken quite an interest in my stitching.  I often find her poking about in my stitching bag (a bag where I keep my embroidery floss, needle case, scissors and embroidery hoop) and sometimes find my embroidery hoop with a bunch of random 3 year old stitches on it.  Often she gathers different coloured cottons from my thread board and cuts off lengths of it,  happily telling me " I'm making a dress mama!"  Not to mention I have to be ever so careful leaving a pair of scissors lying around anywhere near fabric!

Well, when our little girl asked for a stitching bag of her very own, I thought well why not?  One delighted little girl chose the fabric from my stash. Her wish was for pink and purple flowers and a bumble bee - this was followed by her spending ages carefully choosing and re-choosing which floss colours she would like for the flowers (it is a very serious business choosing colours!)

So during the hot summer days whilst she played outside with water and teapots and the like,  I sat quietly with her in the shade, my feet up, creating a sweet little stitching bag.

Progress is checked regularly by a wee girl in between pretend tea parties and fairy conventions.

Flowers inspected.  An extra bumble bee ordered - it needed to have a friend...

This wee bag was part of her birthday present.  Included was a pink embroidery hoop, ball of pink wool, some large sized needles in a little case, some sharp pink scissors with rounded ends and of course some pink cotton thread (as she has long since used all mine up in her favourite colour....)

She absolutely loves it.  "Lets do some stitching mama!"  Ok, I say.  She cuts the thread and threads the needle herself, then passes it to me to make a knot.  I breathe and for a few very short blissful minutes, mama feels ridiculously happy and proud as her little girl creates her beautiful haphazard stitches.  

Long may it continue :)

xx