Saturday, March 3, 2012

Sewing day with Lili


My daughter has been begging me to sew with her for a while now.  We got her a machine last summer and she sewed a few practice lines on fabric, but since school has been in we haven't done anything else with her machine. Although, for today's project I let her use my machine.  I kept thinking of fun things we could make that were somewhat fast, knowing me I kept adding more detail in my head - but to make it easy I had her pick out 4 layer cake squares.  Here she is on her first two squares.  


Since she has a perfectionist mother (poor thing) - I made her resew two of the squares because the lines weren't straight enough.  I showed her how to pin and she controlled the foot pedal to make sure she stopped right before the pins and then took them out. 


Here's the top - simple enough, but we aren't done!  We cut out batting and a backing - she did that too. It was so darling how she kept saying "I can do it myself Mom." Then we drew one inch lines using a blue water marker.  I held the ruler, she drew the lines.  


Now, to the quilting.  I told her to just sew along the blue lines.  She's really concentrating here - see her tongue sticking out?  She may or may not have gotten that from me :) 


She quilted this whole thing!  I am so proud of her! 


I confess, I did the binding - she wanted to do it.  But, the perfectionist, almost impatient mother in me had to take over.  I promised to teach her that some day. I am proud of the fact that she had fun, and that I didn't get too crazy not being able to take over and quilt it quicker!


We took it outside to get some pictures - I let Lili do that too.  I told her to get a close up of the quilting.  She did awesome for her first quilting project!  When she was showing Clint the finished quilting, she kept point out her mistakes - funny, I think we have another perfectionist on our hands.  


Another picture by her - I just couldn't resist posting this with her foot in the picture.  I want to remember this little project and the fun we had.  I am so happy she is showing an interest in my interests.  It's going to be so fun to teach her everything I know. 


She did awesome! 


Now she has a cute little night stand topper that will go great with the quilt and pillows that I am making for her.  What a day!  

60 comments:

Kristi said...

She did a great job...super adorable!!

Terry@ a quilting blog said...

Lili did a fantastic job!!! Love her little table topper and how fun that she enjoys what you do!! TFS
~Terry~

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

job well done!! I hope she will stick with it.
Karen

Mary Grace McNamara said...

This is a day she will never forget, and she will tell her own children and grandchildren about how her wonderful mother taught her how to make her very first quilt. I must do the same with my own 7 yr old very soon!

MGM

Sharon - Lilabelle Lane said...

Congratulations Lili, you did an amasing job xx My little girl (also a Lily) is getting a sewing machine for her birthday in a couple of weeks and I lookforward to teaching her

Melody said...

I"m so happy for you both. My daughter didn't start wanting to learn sewing until Christmas a couple of years ago when I bought her her own machine. 25 years old but she's enjoying it and thats what counts.

Marjorie's Busy Corner said...

What mistakes?? It looks wonderful.

Linda at Roscoe's Ma said...

Love this post. What special time! The quilt turned out great, too! Love that fabric...

Leeanne said...

Stunning, clever little chickie bird! look out you guys will have no fabric left to sell!
I love the tongue poking out in concentration!

Dawn said...

Wonderful job, Lil!!! And, Judi, good for you, too. You both did a great job. Congrats!

Jennifer said...

How fun!

Quiltjane said...

I think you have a quilting prodigy on your hands. That is so beautiful to have a daughter that wants to sew. I have boys that think my quilting is 'dumb'.

Dirt Road Quilter said...

What a day to treasure...for both of you! Well done Lili! Your quilt is fabulous. Looks like the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Before long she'll be dragging you to quilt shops!

Sarah Craig said...

Way to go, Lili!! You have a great teacher, and you did an awesome job!!!

Julie said...

That's great! I remember my mom drawing lines on paper and having me practice sewing straight, curvy and zigzag lines before I graduated to fabric. What a great mom you are.

Janine said...

She did a great job! She looks just like you....

Marisa said...

Fantastic job, Lili!

LiteMotif said...

How wonderful!!! She did a great job.

Pat said...

Your daughter did a wonderful job. I'm sure this is one of many quilts in her future.

Pat said...

Your daughter did a wonderful job. I'm sure this is one of many quilts in her future.

Jana said...

YAY! for Lili!

Sharon said...

What a nice day the two of you had. Great memories made!

Crafty Newbie said...

Nice work, lili!! Very, very pretty! :)

Teresa Silva said...

Great job...how fun to have her sewing with you. She is adorable.

a Matula ikrek said...

It's so nice to infect the next generation with the desire to create. Lili did a great job and Judi, you did too. I know it's not easy to let her make some mistakes but try to remember how did you start. :o) I have my own experiences that it could be the hardest part. :o)

regan said...

I want Lili in my sewing group! Look how perfectly matched her seams are, and her quilting lines are so straight! She rocked it! Woohoo!

Jane said...

She did an excellent job, and a beautiful reminder of a happy day. It's the hardest thing to do, standing back and letting them do it, but it's what will feed her creativity

jofridsquilt said...

I can see why you are proud. She did such good work. Hugs Jofrid

peawink said...

Wow Lili, great job! Here's a small tip for mom ... To give Lili more ownership of the binding, round the corners ... A plate or cereal bowl works great and no one has to deal with those pesky corners ... Win win for everyone!

Elena said...

Es genial el trabajo de Lili!!
Por supuesto que tiene una gran maestra, pero ya sabes... la meta del alumno es acabar superando al maestro, y Lili tiene muchos años por delante.
Felicidades por poder compartir bellos momentos con tu hija.
Un abrazo para las dos desde España.

Josie McRazie said...

I remember my Mother telling me when her Mother tought her how to crochet, she had done like six rows and showed her Mother, she proceded to rip them out, said great job, and made her do them again. Mom said it hurt at first, but she understood that if you don't practice if it is not quite right you will never get it right! I think she did an AMAZING job! What a great Mother she has for teaching her!!

Sunnybec said...

Wow ..like mother like daughter...she will be helping you with the quilting next!! Good job Lili.

Victoria Paige @ Boutique Uniquely said...

A little pro already! She looks so proud, as she should be. What a cutie :)

Purl Buttons said...

Absolutely lovely!

Nielsen Family News said...

That is priceless- well done Lili!

Sherri said...

Lili did an amazing job...the lines are so straight! What a fun post!

Jenny said...

It's days like that...your daughter will never forget!! Great idea...having her quilt it on the sewing machine!

Dawn Hendrix said...

OOO watch out.. Those poor boys and Clint will be living with 2 wild crazy quilting WOMEN!
She did a FABULOUS JOB!

Deborah said...

Good job you two! It is adorable and so memorable. I still remember Billy sitting on my lap pushing and I do mean pushing the fabric through. We made a blankie for his stuffed animals. He is getting married this summer. It seems like yesterday.
Deb

Jane S. said...

That picture of her sewing away with the tip of her tongue out, well that's about the cutest thing I've ever seen! She did a wonderful job. :)

Sallie said...

Great job, Lili!

Kelsey said...

She did a great job!! What a fun project to make together

Laura T said...

What a fun day together you must have had and what an awesome job she did all the way through! I love how it turned out:)

LauraT

Diane E W said...

Both of you must be very proud. She must have had very good control, her quilting looks great.

Carmen María said...

Congratulations Lili! Great job!

Barb said...

She is so adorable, and what a fantastic job. You crack me up about being a perfectionist, that is great, teach her the right way...you both did great.

Loved that tongue hanging out....is that a Judi trait?

Tammy said...

Wow, Lili did a wonderful job on that little quilt. I've been wanting to teach my niece to quilt. She'll be 9 years old next month. You've encouraged me to "get on with it." Thanks.

Joan said...

Well done Lili...that really is awesome!

Karen Baking Soda said...

You did a great job Lili, perfect points and great even quilting!

(I am a sloppy perfectionist in a hurry so you can imagine what my first quilting squares looked like...)

Second Hand Rose said...

Well she's definitely inherited your talent! What she's made is so sweet! XxxX http://thesecondhandrose.blogspot.com/

Pam said...

She is so sweet! My mother was a great seamstress, and she inspired me, and gave me her love of sewing, but did not have the patience to teach me to sew or knit. By 3rd grade I was in a 4-H sewing group, I think that was a smart move for our relationship! Let go of the perfectionism & allow her to make her own stuff. That way she can look back on her progression. I look at the binding on my first quilt with amazement!

Linda said...

Lili is so sweet with her little quilt!!! She is going to follow in your footsteps for sure. I love that her straight line quilting is way better than mine ever dreamed of being!! :-) No kidding.

Borderline Quilter said...

You two are going to make a great team one day!

Great job Lili....

Best Wishes
Kay in Scotland

Eliana Zerbinatti... said...

In Brazil we have a popular saying: Son of fish, small fish are.
Lili is talented like her mother.
Congratulations Lili.

Maria said...

So fun! All five of my kids have made their own quilts. You have to catch the boys when they're about 7 or they won't do it!!!

SewingKaren22 said...

Your daughter did an AMAZING job! That's a great starter project! The apple doesn't fall far...

Pamela said...

Fantastic job...she is headed in her mother's footsteps!

Purple Quilter Queen said...

What a great job! And how awesome that you had the patience to hand down such a great gift. Jenn

Oh Sew Nice said...

I love it! I am teaching my daughter to quilt too. She has been begging me for years and this summer we have been doing a few sewing projects together. http://ohsewnice.blogspot.com/2012/06/teaching-kylie-to-quilt.html
I love all your quilts and think you are very inspiring quilter and mom!
Sarah

Barbie Mills said...

This is so sweet! I can't wait until my daughter is old enough to learn how to sew.

I wanted to point something out that I learned a few months ago. I think it's true, anyway. Apparently the area of the brain that controls the tongue is right next to the area that controls fine motor skills. When we stick out our tongues, it helps the brain to "fire" more and helps us focus our fine motor skills. Apparently that is why kids stick out their tongues when learning how to write. I used to teach junior high sewing, and would jokingly tell my students that it would help them thread the needle if they stick out their tongues (because I often do!) and I guess I was actually right!

So your daughter must have been concentrating really hard. So precious.