Snack Bags!

(Owen's Olivia)

We're making these to go with our lunch bag!  Click the caption to go there.

Cozy Pillow Bed

(dabblesandbabbles.com)

How cool is this!  I am totally making this with my daughters!  Click the caption for the tutorial.

Cute and Easy Skirt

(Life is Beautiful)

We are SOOO making this!  Maybe this weekend!  Click the caption to go to the site.

Invisible Stitch Tutorial

(Fern Freckle)

So useful for stuffed animals!!!  Click the caption to go to the tutorial.

Lanyards!

(twopeasinapod.com)

So EASY!  My daughter really needs this to keep track of her keys.  Click the caption to go the site!

Fabric Headbands!

(aliceandlois.com)

We LOVE these headbands!  Totally easy and fun for your daughter to sew!  Click the caption to go to the tutorial.

Baby Swaddling!

(www.babysavers.com)

This is genius!  I wish I would have had this pattern when my babies were small!  Click the caption to go there.

Skirts!

(www.babble.com)

These skirts look so easy!  My daughter and I are going to make one!  Click the caption to go to the tutorials!

Sew a Kindle Case

(ebookfriendly.com)

This is going to be our next project!  I love how you can keep the cord with the case! Click the caption to go to the tutorial!  I'll post ours when we get it done.

25 Fast and Easy Projects!

(Crazylittleprojects.com)

I loved this post!  It has lots of ideas that would be easy to sew with children!  Click the caption to go there!

Sew a Wallet!

(thegloss.com)

How cute are THESE?  I want to sew one for my daughters.  There was no pattern, but I think it would be easy to make by just looking at the picture, don't you?  You can also buy them on Etsy (click the caption to go there).

Curtain Idea

Here's an idea for sewing curtains.  I did not sew these particular curtains, but I layered two different fabrics for the windows in our living room.  (Please ignore the lack of an iron and the bad photography, my daughter, the real photographer, wasn't home yesterday).  I like the way the lighter fabric brightens and cheers up the area.  I think this would be fun to do in a child's bedroom.

How to Help your Daughter's Sewing Look Professional

(ecofriendlyinteractive.com)

There are 6 things to teach a child to help their sewing look better.  Here they are in order of importance.

• Use PINS!
• Measure, and re-measure
• Iron the seams.  Do not skip this step, it really makes a huge difference.
• Push out corners with the edge of a ruler or a dull pencil.  Don't use anything sharp or you'll risk punching a hole.
• Use a seam ripper if you need to.  Don't just shrug and move on.  If you need to start over on a part of the project, you may have to put the project down and come back to it another day, so as not to discourage your child.
• Clip all the stray threads.

And the Winner IS.....

This is the lunch bag we made together!  My daughter decided she liked this style best because it would fit better in her backpack!  We are going to use a binder clip to keep it closed, because I'm not such a fan of velcro.  (I hate how it gets unusable after the first wash).   It took us only 1 hour to make.  So easy!  Here is the tutorial we used!

What's in a Young Girl's sewing Kit?

(www.amazon.com)

Here's what a young girl will need in her sewing kit to get her started, if you are considering getting your daughter set up.  These are items that my daughters have found useful.

• measuring tape
• marking chalk
• fabric scissors
• ruler
• pins and pincushion
• needles
• seam ripper
• needle threader 
• fabric scraps and thread (opt.)
• buttons and velcro (opt.)

Lunch Bag with Handles!

(growingagreenfamily.com)

I like the idea of handles, so I'm leaning toward handles.  Here are some we are considering.  Click the captions to go to the sites.

(etsy.com)

(ecouterre.com)

Another Cute Lunch Bag!

(sewdesignstudio.blogspot.com)

Another lunch bag we are trying to decide between.  Which one do you like better?  I'll post more in the coming days.  (Click the caption to see the tutorial)

Cute Lunch Bag

sewmamasew.com

How cute is this?  My daughter and I want to make a lunch bag.  We are trying to decide which one we like best.  For the next couple of days, we will post the ones we are trying to choose from!  You can help us vote!  Click the caption to go to the tutorial.

Curtains for the Argosy Trailer

(www.viewrvs.com)

We have a 1976 Argosy trailer that we've fixed up and remodeled.  I finally finished sewing the curtains for it!  I used earth magnets to attach them to the walls for ease in taking them off and on.

We painted the walls and cupboards white and put in an ikea butcher block countertop, sink, and faucet. I sewed lined curtains in a red fabric purchased at fabric.com to lend the all-white decor some cheerful color.  We also put wood-look vinyl on the floor.  (I need to work on a backsplash.  Any ideas?)

We reupholstered the couch cushions in grey (The curtains here dip a bit on the top as they have to go around some bunk bed frames).  I also sewed vinyl cushions using this online tutorial for the front table, so they would withstand kid-use.  All in all, I think it turned out great.  

BEFORE PICTURE:

Below is not a picture of our argosy, but this is similar to what ours looked like inside before we remodeled.  I love our new look!

(airforums.com)

Sew a Scripture Cover

(azuremoondesign.com)

My goal is to post at least every other day except for Sunday, but I scheduled this post to appear this Sunday because it's so appropriate.  I want to sew this scripture cover with my girls. (Click the caption to go to the tutorial) Here is a link to more ideas for scripture covers.

Help your teen get SEW organized!

(pbteen.com)

This is a bed organizer found at Pottery Barn!  I am so making this for my son.  He needs it in a bad way.  I think if you just used a ruler and measured the bed and then sewed pockets on a strip of fabric with some sturdy material like canvas, it should turn out great!  Let me know if you try it!

Easy Zippered Pouch

Here's a picture of my 12 year old daughter.  Together our first project was this zippered pouch below.  I think it turned out rather well!  What do you think?

Below is the tutorial we used. (Click the caption to go there)

www.buttercreamandasewingmachine.com

New Year's Project to Try

(crazylittleprojects.com)

Besides posting our own projects, I wanted to post really cool projects I find on the web.  Here is a great one for the new year from one of my favorite blogs, Crazy Little Projects!  Click the caption to go there!  They have 14 other journals and organizers to make

Which Machine Do We Use?

(www.qisforquilter.com)

If you can believe it I own an old Bernina Record that my mother-in-law found for me at a yard sale.  It is AWESOME.  Very sturdy, and also simple for the kids to use.  I recommend a simple sewing machine for use with kids.  One with just the basics.  If you can find an old Bernina Record sewing machine on ebay or at an estate sale then you are in luck!  It's one that will never die!

Why I started this Blog

(www.offset.com)

This is a blog to document daughter's and my sewing projects in hopes of inspiring other mothers and daughters to sew or craft together.  I hope that you will find ideas here of things to sew together with your children, or for your children.   I have 12 year old and 15 year old daughters (five children altogether ranging in age from 8-19), and I'm just starting to teach them to sew, so we'll be starting with fun easy projects that you can do with your kids.  I hope you have SEW much fun together!