Kids get creative at Bonnie's

By Jennifer Lord
NH Mirror Staff

If they think sewing is a lost art, children in Greater Manchester can find it at Bonnie’s Creative Stitches in Hooksett.

And they can start learning how to do it at about the time they reach school age.

“Because we use sharp objects (scissors and pins), we like to start them at the age of 6,” said Linda Filiau, a teacher at Bonnie’s. “We start off with simple projects that they can complete in a short time. They will start off with pajama bottoms or other projects to help them learn to sew straight lines.”

Bonnie’s Creative Stitches has all the supplies available, including sewing machines, in the store. They use Kwik Sew patterns, which are easy to read and use.

If children have access to a sewing machine at home, they can work on projects outside of class.

“Some kids will work at home to finish their projects,” Filiau said. “Others like to wait until they return to class to make sure they have assistance if they have problems.”

Bonnie’s now has gift cards for the kids to use. Parents add money to the card and the kids learn how to “shop” for the fabric and notions they need.

Filiau said they are getting a lot of kids who want to learn to sew.

“It may be that the kids today want to have something unique and different from what you will find at the stores,” she said. “They also like to be able to say, ‘I made it.’”

In addition to sewing, Bonnie’s also offers classes focusing on quilting, knitting and embroidery. They offer some classes just for adults, and girls and boys alike are welcome at all the kids classes.

“For the most part, we have girls in the classes,” Filiau said, “but we do have several boys in the weekday classes and we get many who will come to the vacation classes.”

February school vacation class
During February school vacation, Bonnie’s Creative Stitches will offer a class from 10 a.m. to noon on Friday, Feb. 29. Kids will create a pillow using squares of fabric they had painted using a shaving cream technique during the December vacation class. If a child did not attend in December, they can use squares of fabric of their own choice.

Ongoing weekly classes
Schedules are posted online at www.bonniescreativestitchez.com.
• Mondays – beginner quilt class (adults also welcome) from 3:30 to 5 p.m. for kids over the age of 10.
• Thursdays – teen fashion sewing from 3:30 to 5 p.m. for kids over the age of 10.
• Saturdays in February – “Sew Fun, Sew Young” class for kids over the age of 10 on Feb. 9 and 23 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Also, “Sew Fun, Sew Young” for kids over the age of 6 on Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to noon.

Bonnie’s Creative Stitches is located at 1238 Hooksett Road, Hooksett. To learn more, call 627-2733 or visit www.bonniescreativestitchez.com.