You know what it’s like, the minute you sit down and do something for yourself, the kids are all of a sudden interested in whatever you are doing. Now that I actually have a sewing space (whoop whoop!), I will often try to retreat and get a little bit of work done while. My escape attempts usually prove futile – so like my mumma always said, if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.
Taking time out to sew when there are small children around can seem like an impossible task sometimes. But it can be done, even if you can carve out 15 minutes of play (ala Victoria Findlay Wolfe) to make a quick block or cut out some fabric. The small tasks will add up and soon enough your projects will be underway.
My best trick to keeping the small children occupied to get a little bit of sewing done is to let them play with the scraps! I gave Archer (who is three at the writing of this article) a bucket full of scraps and cleared a space on my design wall. It’s like a giant fuzzy felt board where he can choose fabrics and create his own picture on the board. It’s perfect! No mess, no fuss and using what I have on hand.
Now the problem is that he wants to play in the sewing space all the time…
I hope it goes without saying, that you still need to keep an eye on your kids in the sewing room. Make sure there are no pins to step on or swallow, your sharp scissors are out of reach and your iron is not going to fall on anyone.
Safety first you guys!
Ok, so 15 minutes turned into 30 (all right, 45 minutes) and I definitely pushed my luck too far with Archer. Be aware that your little mate may end up taking over and decide to put Disney cards in your sewing machine and take over you table…
Is it politically correct to say digital baby sitting? 😉