Saturday, July 21, 2018

Ghosts and Fairies and Learning to Sew.

One of the best parts about having 2 children is seeing how different they can be. Freya has been going to day camp three hours a day and she is loving every minute of it.  Every day I pick her up she's bouncing to tell me about her day.

"I had a great day at camp. I listened to all the teachers and I played with all their toys" 
"I made a jelly fish!"
"My name is Freya. F.R.E.Y.A. That spells Freya"

This past Friday was "Dress Up as Your Future Career" day.  A little heady for an almost three year old but I asked her the question. Her answer: "When I grow up I want to be a ghost so I can scare all my friends."

Unusual but I decided to roll with it.  I tried to get Freya to wear a big white undershirt as her "ghost" look.  She was furious - showing me that real ghosts wear it completely over their heads.  Freya proceeded to walk around the apartment like this, increasingly frustrated as she bumped into walls and furniture.  We were at a stalemate.  Freya had to be a real ghost who couldn't see through the shirt on her head or nothing.

Then Clara stepped in and said: Freya, I'll help you find something else. After a few minutes alone in their room, Freya reappeared magically transformed into a fairy princess by her big sister.  Fairy princess...ghost....both  equally legitimate future careers. 

Freya even got to present her career to her class.  Other notable presentations included: "I'm a firefighter. I have water.  I'm a doctor, they use stethoscopes." But come one people, who needs water and stethoscopes when you have a magic wand?  Am I right?

Waving her wand.
Over summer break Clara has become very interested in sewing.  Her aunt got her a doll dress-making kit for her birthday.  True to form she immediately went off script and wanted to use the fabric to make a much smaller dress as well as a stuffed animal.

It was good we started small.  Clara was frustrated by the idea that conceptualizing, cutting out a pattern, sewing, and stuffing all didn't happen in a 15 minute sit down.  But she persevered (with some helpful stitching from her mom) and pulled off her first 2 original designs.  I present to you, red dress for Barbie, and Pig-a-Lig the doll.

Oversize sack dresses are in!
Pig-a-lig.

Clara has since moved onto more complicated projects.  She's learned that smaller stitches help the stuffing not fall out. She is not interested in real patterns - she wants to draw them herself and cut out the fabric.  See the round cheeks sewn onto her panda - which she named Bamboo.

Bamboo the Panda.

My friend Rachel who happens to be a costume designer hooked me up with a bunch of fun fabric remnants - this blue paisley inspired Clara's current project - a whale. Gerald sent this over to me at work.  I haven't heard back about the name yet, but that whale sure is wearing a dashing ascot?  Scarf?  


Note: After I got home I was informed that this was a dolphin and her name was Dolphinia.  I still love that saucy ascot...even though Clara told me it was a fin.  Hmpf.