Not every craft project that your kids do needs to take up the whole table, the entire front of the refrigerator, or every square inch of the floor. While life-sized drawings of themselves are pretty cool, encourage your kids to also learn to make tiny things.
Klutz has put out Tiny Stitches, from which your young stitcher (boy or girl) can learn how to embroider pendants, necklaces, or other projects.
Embroidery is a great project for kids because they can make it how they like, following a pattern, drawing their own design, or making it up as they go. It’s also incredibly portable, needing only fabric, embroidery hoop, needle, embroidery floss, and scissors to do basic projects.
Tiny Stitches has everything you need to get started with particularly small projects, other than scissors. It comes with an embroidery hoop, three pendants, plenty of thread, needles, fabric, and more. The book also comes with guides for how big to do your patterns, plus dozens of patterns to copy, or you can make up your own. There are enough supplies included for at least 25 designs, though you’ll need to get more pendants or find other ways to mount the finished pieces.
The book is chock full of tips for better stitching practices, along with complete directions for the included projects. First, transfer a design onto the fabric using transfer paper and the included stylus tool, or trace it, if you find that easier. You can fit three small embroidery projects on one of the included pieces of fabric, and they all fit into the embroidery hoop at once. Secure the fabric, and begin stitching! When finished, cut out each piece, and mount them in the pendants. Hang from a chain. Voila!
In addition to the pendants, the book teaches kids about sewing a sampler, which is a sampling of a variety of stitches all on one piece of fabric. The book teaches how to embroider several kinds of stitches, including the running stitch, the back stitch, the split stitch, the satin stitch, the chain stitch, the cross stitch, couching, the French knot, and more.
The projects are indeed tiny, but once you’ve used the three pendants, kids can use the same skills for larger projects. The included embroidery hoop does slightly larger, yet still manageable-sized, projects. The finished pieces can then be kept in the embroidery hoop (which means you’ll need more hoops), it can be framed, or it can even be integrated into another project. Cosplay, anyone?
The projects in Tiny Stitches are intended for kids aged 10 and up. I’d say that was about right, given some of the intricate work needed. But it’s also fun for teenagers and even adults. It’s a great multi-generational activity. The resulting crafts are adorable, and are great for gifts, trading with friends, or displaying on the wall. I wish I knew where to find more replacement pendants!
Tiny Stitches is perfect for any kid, aged 10 and up, who loves to make things or customize what they already own. Embellish clothes with Minecraft characters, butterflies, or words. Add a bit of electronics to make fireflies. Or just follow the directions and create tiny masterpieces.
Note: I received a copy of the book for review purposes.
Usually kids have lots of demand when it comes to choose there favorite logo on T-shirt or Embroidery. I had a experience once and I stitched out the file from my machine. Good thing is that I outsource my Embroidery Digitizing and let the company handle digitizing need so that logo stitched out properly in one go.