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The Kappa In Japanese Folklore

  • Kappas are legendary creatures that inhabit the rivers and waterways of Japan. They have beaked noses, shells on their back and a depression on their heads that holds water. Kappa are mischievous troublemakers. Their pranks range from the relatively innocent, such as loudly passing gas or looking up women's kimonos, to the more troublesome such as drowning swimmers and eating children. They feed on their victims by sucking their liver though their anus. They love cucumbers and if you write your name on a cucumber and throw it in the river, the kappa may be appeased by your gift and allow you to swim in peace.

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February 01, 2008

Sewing with Ivy

Ivy's been bugging me to use the sewing machine since last summer. I'd found some great tutorials online on teaching kids to sew--I particularly liked this one at One Hour Craft. But I was still kind of apprehensive so I told her when she could turn 5 I'd teach her. She'd bring it up from time to time, it was obvious she was looking forward to learning. Well, she turns five in a few weeks and after reading this tutorial coupled with the fact that Ivy was feeling a bit neglected since Miranda had a cousin over to play, I decided to give it a try.

We used a booster seat to give her some height, and put the pedal on a stool. The second link I posted suggested putting a  little stop with felt in the pedal so it won't go as fast, but I couldn't find anything that would work, so I just told her to step gently. We went over all parts of the machine, and I emphasized the needle could sew through your finger if you weren't careful.

Part of my intitial apprehension is that often Ivy wants to do something all by herself, and I knew she wasn't ready to do that with the machine. But I think after talking about the needle, she was fine with me putting my hands on hers to guide the fabric through. And she even remembered to stop and take out the pins, which is better than I do!

Ivysewing1

Ivysewing2 The finished project was a patchwork scarf for her monkey. She was quite proud--and I was too, both with her accomplishment and my own patience. I'm not the best teacher, but I'm glad we did this together. If she starts to really enjoy sewing, I may consider getting a sewing machine just for her, but that probably wouldn't be for a while. Wouldn't this be a great first sewing machine?

Hello Kitty sewing machine

Posted at 06:36 PM in Sewing Projects |

Comments

Amber

What a wonderful scarf!

Oh, now I'm really feeling guilty. I keep putting my daughter off when she wants to sew with me----she usually asks me right when I have a deadline or I'm in the midst of something else. Maybe this weekend?!

Posted by: Amber | February 01, 2008 at 11:34 PM

Wendi Gratz

She did a great job! And so smart to start with a small (finishable) project!

Posted by: Wendi Gratz | February 03, 2008 at 07:59 AM

Amanda

Wow! What a great scarf! Way to go Ivy! (And mama too!)

Posted by: Amanda | February 05, 2008 at 11:14 AM

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