Textile Work with Young Children

Judith Baines

Once children are comfortable with basic stitching and can make collections based on colours or objects, such as buttons or shells they will enjoy making pictures with fabrics and threads. Sharp scissors are essential to this activity! Pieces of suitable fabrics can be cut out and applied. Bondaweb is very useful: it is a fusible web that comes on a paper backing. If the fabric is ironed onto Bondaweb first it is easier for children to cut, it prevents any fraying and the backing paper can be removed and the shape ironed on to the backing fabric eliminating the need for pins. Here is a five-year old`s dolphin picture, taken from her drawing, in the process of being stitched down.

This Christmas card was made in the same way.

The ten year-old who designed this split shape pattern pinned her pieces of felt into place and experimented with new stitches to hold them down and decorate the spaces.

Creating pictures in this way is very satisfying. Each of these has a clear starting point; a child`s own picture, a Christmas bauble and the child`s own design cut from a split circle. Found objects can also be used as starting points for sewing, thus harnessing children`s immediate interests.

Next month we will look at work from favourite shells, flowers, etc.