Fun Sewing With Tessa

Tessa's 7th birthday present from me was an antique doll bed AND the fun of our "dressing it" together. Five days later it was finished.
The mattress and pillows were made before it was given to her. She and I took a trip to the fabric store to select the fabrics and trims. All the choices were made by Tessa with a bit of input in the the form of questions from me. She had not realized there were so many different pinks and that the one she liked best has a bit of orange in it.
She chose coordinating flannel prints for the sheets and pillow cases. They were made first so she could put her doll to bed the first night. It was too warm for a top sheet and quilt anyway. In the photo above Tessa is arranging the 5" cut blocks for the quilt.
Tessa sewed most of the seams on all the bedding while I stitched a few complex ones. However, most of the long seams and quilting lines were stitched by both of us. The chair was deep enough for the two of us to sit in while I guided the fabric and she operated the levers and foot pedal.
The backing of the quilt is "Minki" fabric. Because it is thick and has a bit of loft there is no batting inside the quilt.

Needles to say, Tessa is pleased with the resulting present and her accomplishments ... especially that she got to operate the sewing machine all by herself (even threading the machine with no help). I'm pleased that she was willing and capable and persisted to the conclusion of this beautifully dressed bed. It's fun sewing with Tessa.