Complete Kids Sewing Supplies Guide For Non crafty Mothers
Today I give you the gift of a complete kids sewing supplies list for all ages and how to purchase them!
Have you ever said a version of the following?
“I’m not crafty. I don’t understand the difference between different kinds of needles. Fabric stores are confusing and I don’t understand what I am looking at! I need an easy to follow complete sewing supply list for my different aged kids and where to buy them! Does any one out there hear my plea? ARGG!!!!!”
I hear you, and like a fairy godmother have come to help you save the day with 5 easy steps!
Today we will be talking about:
- Supplies you needed for 3-4 year old’s
- Supplies for ages 5-9
- Supplies you need for 10
- Quick and easy storage solutions
- Where to buy your supplies and approximately where in the store to find them.
Put your stress away mama you don’t need to worry over supplies any more! Your fairy godmother is here!
Complete Kids Sewing Supplies For 3-4 Year Old
“Me do it!” has been heard many times in my house. The younger children see all the things their older siblings are doing and they don’t like being left out. After all, aren’t they just as capable as big sister who is twice their age?
I am the youngest of 10 children so I know all about fomo! I was convinced that I had to wait longer than anyone else to get my ears pieced, to learn a new skill, etc. My soul burned with the injustice of it all at the time. I laugh about it now, but to your little ones it’s no laughing matter!
This problem is solved with two words, SEWING CARDS!
They come with shoe laces so there are no needles, threading, or knotting. The holes are big for little hands to poke the tip of the shoe lace through, and it feels like real sewing! And really it is real sewing, the basic motions are the same!
You can make your own or your children can make their own, but I do suggest just buying a set to start with. Keep it simple. If you don’t you may never start hand sewing with your children.
The sewing cards below are some that my children have loved. The rooster comes in a set found here. The fairy ones aren’t sold anymore which doesn’t surprise me because these are about 10 years old!
Complete Kids Sewing Supplies For Ages 5-9
Of course these age recommendations from my own experience. As we mothers know, especially homeschooling mothers, that all our children are so different from one another, but these recommendations are often right, and a good place to start.
Supplies for this age group are:
- Embroidery hoop
- Blunt tip large eye needle, (don’t worry I’ll explain what this means in a bit)
- Fabric scissors
- Burlap
- Skinny yarn, or embroidery floss (thread is to thin for burlap)
My current 4 year old enjoys using burlap now, but he’s been using the sewing cards for over a year and was ready to start using burlap.
What Did I Just Read?
If you asked, “What did I just read?” I don’t want you to worry. I will explain what each item is and where to find it in a typical craft story.
Embroidery Hoop- This is a wooden or plastic circle with 2 pieces, an inner and outer circle. Put your fabric in the middle, tighten it and it will hold the fabric in place to make it much easier for your younger children to sew. You can find it in the embroidery section.
Needle- Needles come in many different shapes and sizes. The eye of the needle is the hole at one end. There are small, medium, and large holes. For this age group you want one of the biggest eye, (hole) the store has. The tip will come pointy or blunt. The pointy one hurts and the blunt one doesn’t, which is perfect for younger beginner sewers. Find it in the sewing section along with sewing machines, sewing baskets, elastic, pins, etc.
Fabric scissors- Paper scissors just don’t cut fabric well. They cost more than paper scissors but they are worth. It’s like trying to cut paper with finger nail clippers, you can but it just doesn’t work well. Buy one pair and everyone shares. Warning, don’t let your children use them to cut paper! This dulls them quickly! This is a huge no no in my house! Find it in the sewing section along with sewing machines, sewing baskets, elastic, pins, etc.
Burlap- It’s a kind of rough fabric that has large wholes in it making it ideal for small hand sewers. Think potato sack and you will have a good idea. Find it in the fabric section.
Small piece of felt/Needle Storage- Cut a rectangle, and you can put the needles in it for now. or you can buy a pin cushion that will be found in the same area as the needles. Later I will teach you how to make a needle book and a pin cushion, so you can save money for now with just the piece of felt. Felt it in a separate section of the store from the other fabric. At my local Hobby Lobby store it’s found by the pipe cleaners at the other end of the fabric part of the store.
Skinny yarn- Skinny yarn works great, and embroidery floss will work too. I don’t recommend thread with sewing with burlap because it is so thin and the wholes are so large. Thread is what you will need for the next age group. Find it in the yarn section.
What I have done for this age range is I started them out using a large embroidery hoop. Put the burlap in there and tighten it up. This prevents sewing the burlap into a big lump by accident. I learned this the hard way when I was little, and then remember when I was a mom, but only after seeing the lumpy mess! Haha. Oh well!
That’s it for them!
Complete Kids Sewing Supplies Ages 10 Plus
Fabric- A 14 count aida cloth to start with. This just means how small/large the squares are on the cloth. Aida cloth makes learning the basic stitches easier. After that you can buy white fabric. It can be either, broad cloth, cotton, or linen with a 1 to 1 weave being the best for beginners. Broad cloth is the cheapest, followed by cotton, and then linen. To learn my sampler lessons they will need a piece 4 by 5. buying 1/2 yard is plenty for a large family to practice on. Aida cloth can be found by the embroidery area. Cotton, broad cloth, or linen fabric can be found in the fabric section. Head for the white areas and you’ll find it!
Small piece of felt/Needle Storage- Cut a rectangle, and you can put the needles in it for now. or you can buy a pin cushion that will be found in the same area as the needles. Later I will teach you how to make a needle book and a pin cushion, so you can save money for now with just the piece of felt. Found in it’s own section. I think it should be by the fabric. Found in the felt section.
Needle- Long and very pointy, with a bigger eye, (hole). Search for the number______ or one similar to it.
Fabric scissors- Again, much needed to make the cutting of the fabric so much easier. Warning, don’t let your children use them to cut paper! This dulls them. Find it in the sewing section along with sewing machines, sewing baskets, elastic, pins, etc.
Thread- Speaking of sharing, thread can be shared too. Red floss is suggest for learning the basic stitches in my free sampler tutorial because red is bright and easy to see what you are doing. Find it in the sewing section along with sewing machines, sewing baskets, elastic, pins, etc.
A Quick And Easy Storage Solution
“This is great Merrilee! But how do I store everything?”
Storing fabric can be in a drawer, cupboard, box, basket, or just on a shelf. I store mine in two baskets behind a cupboard to keep little hands from playing with it, which only sometimes works! ( I have a very curious 2 year old 😉 The fabric scissors can be stored there as well.
Everything else or you can buy a sewing basket that is especially designed for it. Sewing baskets have special compartments that are for specific things.
The down side they are around $20 a piece and if you have 5 of them to get then spending a $100 for sewing baskets is A LOT of money and you really don’t need them.
Jars don’t take up much room, can be easily fitted in a cupboard, and are free if you use the pasta jar from last nights dinner. It also helps prevent accumulating to much stuff. If you have more than one child, tape their names on the jar and you are done!
Where Do I Buy All these Things?
You can find all these supplies on Amazon, Etsy, Hobby Lobby, and Joanne’s. Ask for help! Tell them what you need, and you can be done quickly and painlessly!
If you buy online all you need to do is search for each item you need.
To Re Cap
Your fairy godmother has told you:
- What materials you need for all the ages you have
- What stores to find these materials and
- Where they will be located in the store
You are now ready to go out into the world, and concur this thing called, “hand sewing”!
But this is not where you fairy godmother leaves you, oh no! I have created family styled hand sewing lessons, meaning lessons that the whole family can participate in.
Enjoy the first lesson by clicking here!
See you next time. 🙂
