When teaching your child how to embroider, it's important to be right there with your child. This will minimize potential frustration on your child's part and keep him safe from the sharp point of the embroidery needle.
So if you have 30 minutes to an hour, you and your child will love doing this project together!
Let's get started.
Before getting your child for this project, get all of your supplies ready. This was Micah's first embroidery project so I wanted to make sure I had his full attention. He's only four years old, so if I had him gather materials with me and get the embroidery hoop ready, I think he would have been done with the project before we even started sewing.
You will need:
cotton fabric (preferably black or white)
cotton embroidery floss (use black floss if your fabric is white and vice versa)
embroidery needle
embroidery hoop
scissors
transfer pen or pencil
Get Your Embroidery Hoop Ready
Unscrew the embroidery-hoop fastener and take out the inner hoop. Place the inner hoop under the fabric and place the outer hoop over the fabric around the inner hoop. Gently pull on the fabric until it is taut. Secure the fabric into place by tightening the fastener.
Make a Spider Web Guideline
Now you are going to draw dots on the fabric with your transfer pen or pencil that will be a guide for you and your child when sewing the spider web.
Each spider web is unique, but a similar method for the dot guideline is used for all of the spider webs. Decide if you would like a full circle spider web, or a portion of a circle. Place one dot where you want the middle of your spider web to be sewn. This dot is the origin of your spider web. The origin of my spider web is on the edge of the embroidery hoop. Place the other dots around the outer edge or what would be the circumference of your spider web 1 to 2 inches apart.
I decided not to make my spider web a perfect circle. So when placing the dots around the circumference of the spider web, I purposely misaligned several of the dots.
Thread your Needle
Thread all six strands of embroidery floss into the needle and knot the end of your thread. I recommend using a long piece of thread (2 feet at least) because your child's stitches will be so big.
Now go get the kiddies!
Time to Sew
Have your child push the threaded needle up through the origin or center of the spider web and gently pull until the thread is stopped by the knot at the end. Choose one dot on the circumference of the spider web and have your child push the needle down through the marked spot and gently pull until the thread stops. That is your child's first (huge) stitch. Let's call these stitches the "runner" stitches.
Your child will now bring the needle back up through the origin pulling gently until the thread stops. Choose another circumference dot and send the needle down through the fabric at this spot.
Help your child repeat this process, sewing large runner stitches from the origin outward until all of the spider web guide dots have been used.
Next, make back stitches with your child, going from one runner stitch to the next, starting on one end of the spider web. Make several rows of these stitches across the runner stitches all at about the same distance apart. Repeat this process until your spider web is complete.
And there you have it. In just about 30 extra large stitches your child has completed his very first embroidery! Hooray for kids!
If your child is not quite ready to embroider, you can still get him involved. Have your child pull the thread through the fabric after you have make the initial poke with your needle. Keep practicing until he feels confident to sew right along with you.
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