Needle craft for 5-yo?

[momileigh]

My dd is 5 and seems very impressed with needle crafts. I am (arduously) learning to knit and she wants to do it too, and she'll sit and watch me and say, "You're knitting! You're doing it!" (I need this encouragement ). When we look at picture books (the Little House picture books particularly) that show girls working on quilts and such she just goes on and on about how amazing it is that little girls can sew. She also LOVES helping with the sewing machine. I let her push the petal while we guide the fabric. Increasingly she asks to guide the fabric herself. I let her a couple times. (Don't get the idea that I'm handy. The project I'm working on is sewing square wipes to use for tp... nothing fancy, and the moment the sewing machine acts up I call my mil over )

I'd say her dexterity is average for a 5 yo. I was wondering if I should start her on cross-stitch? Would that be the easiest thing to start with? (I've never cross-stitched but it looks pretty easy.) She already has threading toys where she threads a shoelace through the holes, but I think she is over them. She wants to "make" something.

Any recommendations welcome, and TIA!

[tinasquirrel]

There is a cool idea in The Creative Family about putting burlap on an embroidery hoop, and then letting the child make a random embroidered design (whatever they want!) with floss and a darning-type needle. There are a lot of examples of the finished products in The Creative Family's Flickr Group.

Can she learn to finger knit? Or maybe knit with one of those knitting mushrooms (is that what they are called?).

It's so wonderful that she is showing such interest!

[lifeguard]

My grandma taught me knitting at about 6 - nothing every turned out fabulous but I had fun.

I was also handsewing & embroidering at about 5.

I know I have seem some nice looking kits aimed at children. Plastic canvas with yarn can be an easy to handle first project as well.

[momileigh]

OK, awesome...

I'm having my library get me a copy of Creative Family. That book looks really neat!

I had never heard of finger knitting, but it looks promising. Neither had I ever heard of that mushroom! It is really cute. Now I'm wondering which way to go. On the one hand, finger knitting is free, considering we have miles of yarn at our disposal. On the other hand, that mushroom is adorable!

Yesterday she was casting on with needles. I can't believe it. She learned it so much faster than me, and she's GOOD at it. I didn't even want to try to show her because I was sure she'd get frustrated. I must stop underestimating her. She does have crafty genes on dad's side. I just can't get over those tiny hands doing what I consider to be intricate stuff.

[SuzyLee]

I had these plastic needles when I was a kid that you threaded with yarn. I can't remember what I sewed on though.... maybe cross stitch fabric? I would just do random "embroidery" patterns with the yarn. Anyway, she also might like a little loom to weave things.

[momileigh]

Her grandma got her one of those potholder looms, but it was way too difficult. I could barely do it. It was all so tight and difficult to work.

The free-style embroidery sounds neat, but I don't know if she would be able to envision a design and make it. But she could make a random pattern I suppose and go from there.

[tinasquirrel]

If she wanted to embroider "something" as opposed to random (but don't assume that to be the case!), you could draw a simple picture of an animal on there, and let her stitch around it. Do a search for animal stencils or animal silhouette stencils, and you'll find lots of easy line drawing types of animals that shouldn't be too hard to follow. You could use a fabric pen that will eventually fade, or can be washed out.

You could also check out A Child's Dream Come True for craft ideas. They have lots of things, and it might give you some ideas. You don't necessarily have to buy their kits.