My rule of thumb has been anything with a face . There\u2019s nothing like it for grabbing their attention and engaging them.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Your books cover lots of crafts. Do you have a favourite craft activity?<\/strong><\/p>\n I don\u2019t have a particular favourite. I\u2019ve always enjoyed having a go at different things whether it\u2019s paper mache, pots or knitting dolls. Trying new things too, just recently I attended some workshops on ribbon embroidery and needle felting. It\u2019s the process of making as much as the finished thing that I enjoy.<\/p>\n If you could only keep one book you\u2019ve published what would it be?<\/strong><\/p>\n I am really pleased with the way Made by Me turned out. I think the 8 year old me would have loved it. If I could sneak in another book it would be The Halloween Book. It was the first one that all my children were involved in with their friends.\u00a0 They all became regular models and inspired me to make the books that followed.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n What do you like most about your work?<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019m lucky. The best bit about my job is that it doesn\u2019t feel like \u2018work\u2019.<\/p>\n What advice would you give to parents who want to interest their kids in crafting?<\/strong><\/p>\n 1. Spark up some ideas \u2013 What are their interests? Find reference for inspiration \u2013 there are lots of craft books, kids magazines and online sites. Look out for workshops where they can join in to give them a taster.<\/p>\n 2. Be prepared \u2013 Keep a craft box to hand, gather up materials and equipment such as scissors, sticky tape, paper and pens. There\u2019s nothing more frustrating than having a youngster enthused about making something and you don\u2019t have basics ready.<\/p>\n 3. Join in \u2013 To get things started it helps if they see you having a go too. More often than not you\u2019ll be needed to help with cutting and sticking and figuring out instructions.<\/p>\n 4. Getting messy \u2013 Being crafty can generate a bit of mess but don\u2019t freak out. Cover up tables, floors\u2026and children if necessary.\u00a0 Things can soon be packed up and tidied away.<\/p>\n 5. Encouragement \u2013 Be positive, nothing needs to be perfect. It should be fun.<\/p>\n What do you think kids learn from crafting?<\/strong><\/p>\n They can learn so much. There are all the developmental things like co-ordination, dexterity, reading and comprehending instructions. There are new skills too, understanding how materials work, confidence with using equipment. And above all for the kids themselves it\u2019s creating something of their own and having a sense of achievement.<\/p>\n How did you get into publishing books for kids?<\/strong><\/p>\n I come from a family of teachers going back generations. Although I didn\u2019t want to follow the family tradition I was interested in information and how best to show it. After studying Graphic Design I got a job in publishing. This gave me the opportunity to design books about all sorts of subjects that would teach and inspire kids. As the years have gone by I\u2019ve been fortunate to combine my love for craft with book design.<\/p>\n Do you remember the first craft project you made?<\/strong><\/p>\n The project that feels the most fully formed is when I was 6 years old. I learnt to knit at school and we made a beany hat with bobble and a scarf with fringed ends. I used the exact same pattern for the teddy in The Crafty Art Book.<\/p>\n Is there one craft project you\u2019ve made that people seem to come back to again and again?<\/strong><\/p>\n There\u2019s such a variety to choose from that I get to see pictures of all kinds of things people have made. My favourite at workshops are the glove toys where kids can bring along woollen gloves and make any creature their imagination allows. It suits all ages and abilities and they are way ahead of me with ideas.<\/p>\n What was your best crafting experience?<\/strong><\/p>\n Doing workshops with kids making projects from my books. The best feeling is seeing the sense of pride they get when they\u2019ve made something and go off clutching it showing their Mum or Dad what they\u2019ve been up to.<\/p>\n I remember seeing some of Jane Bull’s books many years ago and loving them\u2026 many of the craft books for kids that I’d come across seemed either too simple or too complicated or too boring\u2026her books were like finding a little oasis of colour and fun and life. Jane lives in London with her husband … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":4735,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[108,107],"tags":[123,124],"class_list":["post-3694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews","category-tips-for-teaching-kids-to-sew","tag-interview","tag-jane-bull","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3694","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3694"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3694\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4735"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"DKJaneBull-wp\"](\"https:\/\/sewasoftie.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/DKJaneBull-wp.jpg\")
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