About this time of year, most kids start circling things they want out of toy advertisements. My kids? They start circling things in the JoAnns ad. Little Miss got a hold of it and circled a little sewing machine. And then she asked me how many stitch patterns it could do. Naturally. You can’t have a machine that doesn’t do very many stitches! When I told her the one she’d circled only did straight stitches, she pointed to the one below it. “How many does that one do?” I looked at the ad and said, “Sixteen.” She took her pencil and crossed the first one out and circled the other one. “I want that one instead.” And then she started circling fabric. I asked her what she wanted to make with it. “Hmm…you know how you make robes and things? And hats? All kinds of stuff like that.”
Little does she know I found a PINK children’s sewing machine at a garage sale awhile ago and have been saving it in my closet for her. It’s fully electric, and a real machine, not a toy. I can hardly wait for her birthday. The lady I bought it from said her daughter barely used it because she started using her Grandma’s bigger machine instead.
T-Rex decided to join in the fun as well. He pointed to some monkey fabric and told Little Miss to circle it for him. “I want a pillow made out of that.”
I often wonder if my sewing is worth it – the time it takes, the space it takes, the mess it (well, I) make. But then I see 
the creativity my craft sparks in my kids. Every time I sew, they pick up my scraps and start tying them together, and asking me to sew pieces together, and soon they have a world of flags and bags and costumes for their toys. They don’t see scraps of fabric that belong in the trash, they see a canvas for creation. When I’m making something for them (like their Halloween costumes) they ask for customizations – a ruffle here, another one down there, a Batman logo here, a belt there.
To them, the possibilities are endless. And they’re right. When you create your own, the sky is the limit. I hope they never forget that.
My Aunt Kim is a wonderful seamstress, and when I was about 6 my cousin got a Batman cape for his birthday, and I got a Robin cape with CHRIS The Boy Wonder sewn on the back. I still have it. 🙂
Here’s to the third or more generation of sewers. Grandma always has odds n ends of neat stuff to play with and they usually are in my basement going through them. I enjoy it! Never give up sewing!!!! What wonderful creations you are making and inspiring others as well.
I remember that sewing machine find!!! I KNEW it would come in handy soon! 🙂 The costumes look WONDERFUL.
I love your talent. And I LOVE that LM & T-rex have it too. What a fun life you guys live…and you make the most of EVERYTHING, whether it’s a scrap of cotton or a situation. Love that about you! You’re just such an inspiration…oh yeah, and I LOVE my curtains.