Things we do to keep our students involved and interested:
-offer sewing birthday parties
-send out Happy Birthday post cards
-award ribbons for each project they complete
-award ribbons, rosettes, and trophies for each year they have completed
(1st year –small ribbon, 2nd year – rosette ribbon, 3rd year – long beautiful rosette ribbon, 4th year trophy, 5th year plaque)
-go on field trips 2 times a year to visit quilt shops, fabric shops, quilt shows, etc…
-enter sewing, quilt, craft, and fashion design contests throughout the U.S.
-if they are well behaved and concentrating well, we put music on at a low volume
-sleep over all night sewing party where students made pj pants, matching pillow, and a Teddy bear
-offer quilt classes, “My 1st Quilt”, Raggedy quilts, appliqué quilts, T-shirt quilts, Memory quilts
-offer fashion design classes
-offer costume design classes and then enter the, “Make your own Halloween Costume Contest” sponsored by Crafts of Chadds Ford
-offer classes for Brownie and Girl Scout troops
-offer, “Make an Easy Pieced Quilt class” and send them off to our army troupes. You can copy free instructions off of our website www.lovetosew.com/myfirstquilt.htm
-offer a big project (challenge) to make and then put a photo of the student with her project in the newspaper
-have a fashion show…the students can begin working on their outfits just after Christmas and have a spring show
-have a show … invite parents to come out and see what the students have done all year
-have an open house and have the students invite all of their friends and family. You will most likely get many more recruits
-give each students one piece of fabric, one piece of felt, and 3 buttons, then have them all make something different at home and bring it back to you to see how different everyone’s creativity is
-offer a “Sew for a Cause” class. Students will make something for the elderly and donate it to a nursing home. Or they may make something for a children’s shelter.
9 Responses
Cynthia
Hi Judi,
you are a Godsend!!! Thank you Thank you for creating this site. I have been trying to get my teaching sewing business off the ground for over a year now and trying to locate good resources has been a challenge. OMG when I found your site, I begin to tell you…well my excitement is contagious at this point. I was wondering if you will be continuing to add to this site. I’m very interested in trying to get a summer camp off the ground this summer. That is my goal. I saw that no new content had been added for a while. Are you able to be contacted via phone at all? I’m in the southwest. Thank you again for sharing your gift with all the world and those of us who aspire to open our own studios to teach others to sew.
Judi @ Love to Sew Studio/Teach Others to Sew
Yes, I will be adding content as soon as I can. Unfortunately I was diagnosed with both kidney cancer and thyroid cancer and have had 4 surgeries in the last 9 months, so my websites have been on the back burner. My daughter had to take over my sewing studio for over 18 months, but I am slowly getting better and will be adding more info, photos, and ideas very soon!
Lynda Morris
So sorry to hear that. I will be praying for you complete recovery…Lynda
Sena
Hello,Judi, so grateful to you for helping people like me who are looking to start a sewing school. I am sorry to read that you have been unwell for a while. May you be completely healed. You are a blessing to the sewing world and world as a whole.
Judi @ Love to Sew Studio/Teach Others to Sew
Thank you so much, your words are greatly appreciated. I hope you do well in starting a studio!
Cynthia B.
Hi Judi,
I hope all is well with you. I have not been to the site in a while but pray that God is continuing to heal you. I am still teaching others to sew but have been at other locations until I can get my home craft room in order to do so at home. I have been at a quandry about whether it is best to provide all the supplies and fabric myself for students or have them select their own fabric and I just provide the other items as a kit for that project. Your thoughts?
Marie G
I am in England and I find your information very useful and have just set up my sewing class with a friend and your site is very helpful hope you are well
Christol M
Hope all is well with you. Praying you have gotten better and the cancer is in remission or gone. Praying with and for you. Someone had just put this into my brain this morning and I have been researching things and came across this… thank you so much for so much good information. You are awesome and I haven’t even met you yet, That says a lot!
BE BLESSED!
🙂
Beverly
So sorry you are sick. I hope you are well and in good health now. You are such a kind person god will bless you and your daughter. Never give up.