Make It, Don't Buy It: Sewing Cards
by Amy Brayfield
The one activity that can seriously engross both my 16-month-old and my 7-year-old is sewing. They both love projects that require them to carefully manipulate thread or yarn in a designated pattern. I’m glad because it’s good for developing patience and fine motor skills, but honestly, the best part is that it keeps them out from under my feet now and then when I really need to check my email/clean out the fridge/start dinner.
My daughter’s old enough to do “proper” sewing projects, but our little boy is just getting started with sewing so he’s doing the same thing his big sister loved to do when she was his age: sewing cards. You probably had some when you were little: sturdy paper cards with holes punched out that you thread yarn through. They’re not expensive to buy, but since it’s free to make them, I’m not sure why anybody would spend money getting them. They’re easy to make, too, even if you’re not a very artistic person.
We’ve tended to make them from loved-to-death books because I hate to throw away a book, so that’s what this project involves. If your children are gentler on books than mine are, library sales and thrift stores are great sources for used books. But obviously, you could just as easily draw your own pictures.
What You Need:
- Old books
- Sturdy cardstock
- Scissors
- Glue or rubber cement
- Hole punch
- Yarn
- Blunt or plastic needle with wide eye
What You Do:
- Start by choosing pictures that you’ll turn into cards. Ideally, you want graphic images that take up most of the page and will be easy to “trace” around with your hole punch. Carefully tear or cut the pages you choose from the book.
- Next, paste the page onto sturdy cardstock so that the image you’ve chosen is visible. Let the pages dry. If you need to, trim the page and/or cardstock so that they are the same size.
- Now, grab your hole punch and punch holes around the edges of the main image. You want the holes to be a couple of inches apart so that your child can draw the yarn through them.
- Help your child thread the needle, and show him how to work the yarn through the holes around the image.
It’s easy entertainment that most kids love. And you can't beat the price.
Amy Brayfield is a cheapskate, and she's not afraid to admit it. In addition to torturing her children by not taking them to McDonald's every day, she writes about parenting and family topics for various national and local magazines. She lives happily in the Midwest with her husband and two children.
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