A Lego Sewing Machine

Today I published the new Creative Kids page here on my website and I'm super excited to kick it off by sharing with you the latest project my son and I put together.  I'm one of those moms that has been blessed with a Lego-kid.  His creativity and attention to detail never cease to amaze me, and I myself enjoy getting down on the floor to rifle through our mountain of bricks with him when I can.

Quite some time ago, I stumbled across an image of a little sewing machine designed out of Lego.  I don't actually remember which version was the first one I saw, but there are a few of them out there, including some pretty elaborate ones.  I filed the idea away in the hopes that at some point I might try making one of my own..  

My son came to me with the idea of making a video of him assembling something made of his beloved bricks, and I remembered the little sewing machines I had seen.  Inspiration!  I agreed that this would be fun... and suggested we design something brand new for this project.  With thousands of bricks spread across the floor, we rolled up our sleeves and got to work!  Several hours later... our Sewing Machine was complete..

As you can see, our version is very colorful.  Wouldn't it be fun if there was a full sized model this vibrant?

There are a couple things I especially love about our little sewing machine.  The foot petal, how cute is that?  And we found a little hammer in our collection that made a perfect presser foot.  We used an old window (this one is vintage... quite a bit of my son's Legos are the same ones my siblings and I played with when we were kids!) to use as an electronic control screen.  The hand wheel on the side actually turns, and the thread on top can be changed out for different colors.  There is even a bobbin winder and buttons.  

This machine my son and I made together.  I needed his input to make sure it would be one that other kids could make too, and as such we tried to use not too many pieces and only ones that are quite common.  I think we succeeded, so I've put together the instructions for you, which you can download or follow along online! 

And what about that video my son wanted to make?... We did that too!  

If you have a minute (well, a minute and a half, to be precise), have a look.  He's super proud of it, it's really fun, and I'm sure it will make you smile. 

~ VIDEO ~

Inspired by our cute and colorful machine, a few nights ago I got busy digging through our bricks once again to see if I could make a little more "grown up" looking version using our basic design.  Here's my modified version, in classic white (mostly):

This version uses a number of more specialized pieces, including flat tiles and slopes.  The window is wider, and the buttons on the front are horizontal instead of in a square.  I have to admit... I'm kind of in love with this little thing!

So now it's your turn!  Grab some bricks, and start building!

Heidi

---

Lego Sewing Machine Tutorial...

I've set this up as a slide show.  Click on the right side of the image to advance, or choose a thumbnail below.  
To download a PDF version, click here.

That stuff I should probably mention:  This project is in no way associated officially with the Lego company.  We just love the bricks and wanted to build!  Shown here are both Lego brand and BricTek.