daughter's first skirt

At 7, my oldest is finally of age to participate in some of our local fabric shop's sewing classes for kids. She loves to sew and has been eager to learn more. Today was the second session of her first experience in sewing class; a 2-day class. She was pretty well petrified on the first day upon learning that several of the kids had their own sewing machines and had been sewing at least weekly for up to 3 years. Speaking up in a group of strangers in not her strong point. Of the 7 kids in the group, most were 10-12 years old, although there were two 8 year olds. She held tight to my hand. I was the last parent to leave. There is quite a difference between 7/8 and 11/12 year olds.

The end result however.. a very proud little girl with a very proud Mama. She did it! She cut her pattern & fabric, did all of her pinning and learned to iron, wind her own bobbin and thread the machine. According to her teacher she even helped remind other kids several times to put down the presser foot when they were stumped as to why their machine wasn't working. At pick up today, she looked totally crestfallen. She had accidentally made a 2" gash across her fabric trying to use her seam ripper and her side seams had some pretty dramatic curves and jagged lines. I helped her to take out the seams, re-pin and draw a line to guide her for a 5/8" seam. Back at home I guide her step-by-step as she did the work to finish it up, elastic waist casing and all. It was clear that she needed to finish her project her in order to celebrate her accomplishment.

A drop0-off class for 3 hours both days, and with older kids who all showed up paired with a friend, was accomplishment enough. The finished skirt is icing! She might not see it exactly this way, but I can tell she is proud of more than just the skirt.