On the Fourth Day of Christmas, I present a collection of my favorite sewing themed books for kids.   These will surely inspire young minds to use basic sewing principles and easily accessible materials to express their individuality.  The thrill of taking some plain cloth and creatively cutting and adding trim is quite appealing to children.  It teaches them that we can liberate ourselves from our roles as passive consumers to passionate creators!  As an added bonus sewing (or being absorbed in any creative pursuit) trains young minds to concentrate deeply, which undoubtedly benefits them in other aspects of life.  

When teaching sewing to kids, I really take a design forward approach.  Often times, kids will come in with some fantastic idea.  We discuss it and try to break the design down to the essence that they love but in an approachable way for them to feel successful and satisfied.   I try sequence the difficulty so that they can avoid the frustration that comes with a too challenging project and total abandon of their skills.   I hear from so many adults about boring projects that they had to suffer through before they could advance to the great stuff.  I'd rather meet kids where they are creatively.  If they stick with sewing, there is always time to learn fine sewing skills.  If they loose their passion to perfection, then they may never find the simple pleasure of creative expression.

These are all books that I own.  They provide simple, clear explanations for technique, combined with a great deal of inspiration.  I hope that they will enable your child to feel successful and encouraged to explore sewing and design.

Crafty Chloe by Heather Ross.  This is the first of two Crafty Chloe books.  I hope there will be many more.  They are hysterical and so on point for kids!

I had a Favorite Dress by Boni Ashburn.  This book has been at the top of our gift giving list for years for fashion loving girls.

Isabelle, An American Girl, She's an American Girl doll who has pink hair highlights, dances, designs clothes and sews.  What more needs to be said?

We love to sew, by Annabel Wrigley.  This is the first of the series of books that Annabel has written.  The projects are very fashion forward and so fun!  Do yourself a favor and check out her other books and videos.  Annabel lives in Winchester, VA and runs Little Pincushion Studio.

Sewing School, by Amie Plumley.  These projects are popular for boys and girls of all ages.  Amie has also written Sewing School 2 and is actively working on number 3!  She teaches very young children how to sew in Memphis, TN.

Corduroy, Don Freeman.  A true classic. I remember reading this as a child and loving Lisa for caring for Corduroy, sewing a button on his overalls and bringing him home to her tidy little room with that pretty quilt.

One Hundred Dresses, by Eleanor Estes.  This is a story about a young girl who is quite poor and is made fun of for wearing the same clothes everyday.  She tells the other kids that she has a hundred dresses at home, but they don't believe her.  She moves and they find out the truth.  Is it too late to make things right?  This is a beautifully written but painful portrait of a young creative child.  This was my favorite book as a child.

See and Sew by Tina Davis  As the forward says, "This book is an invitation to sew".  It is full of fun and easy projects to learn and build sewing skills.

My First Sewing Machine Book, This is a skill based book written for a child.  The pictures are colorful and the projects are attractive.

Pockets, by Jennifer Armstrong.  This is a beautifully written picture book that will surely inspire children to dream.