Why Crafting Is so Good for Our Mental Wellbeing
We may be a little biased, but nothing beats a good crafting session - it’s always a boost to have something you’ve made by hand, for some it can be a rare breather from a busy life, and ultimately, it’s just fun.
We have seen a resurgence over the past few years within a younger generation of people who are making more time for crafts, with those between the ages of 18-34 making up 41% of crafters nowadays (source), but why could this be?
A key reason could be the fact that prioritising our personal wellbeing is not seen so much a luxury nowadays, but rather a necessity. In a world that can easily feel too hectic, and with rising awareness about depression and anxiety, we are all being encouraged to engage in more mindful activities – which is something synonymous with crafting. There’s been a whole lot of research into the benefits to our mental wellbeing that crafting can bring, so much so that organisations are beginning to include creative workshops in their own corporate events as ‘wellness’ activities for staff. In addition, mental health charities like Mind have endorsed the benefits of it, having organised ‘Crafternoon’ events twice a year for the past six years around the country where people get together, craft, talk, bake, and donate money to the cause. We’ve hosted two so far, one each for summer and for Christmas, and we love how they’re able to bring people together in a really uplifting atmosphere.
Due to all the positives we’ve been reading about, we thought we’d delve into the key reasons why crafting can be so good for us…
It’s a meditative activity
The word ‘mindfulness’ has been thrown around for a few years now, and we are more aware than ever that focusing on the present, rather than worrying about future or past events, is a key way to feeling more content in life. Crafting fits into the mindful activity category perfectly, and helps to create a sense of ‘flow’ in a person, which is described by psychologist Mihàly Csíkszentmihályi as “a state of concentration or complete absorption with the activity at hand and the situation. It is a state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter.”(source)
To back this up, there was recently a survey of 3,545 knitters conducted by UK-based knitting therapist Betsan Corkhill, which showed that those who knitted frequently (around 3 times a week) felt significantly happier, less anxious, calmer and more confident than those who didn’t (source).
It brings people together
Crafting is a great way for people to connect with one another. Attending craft workshops takes you into a comforting space where you can chat with like-minded individuals. Taking your makes to craft fairs gets you talking with fellow artisans and craft enthusiasts. You don’t even need to leave your house, crafting in your own home can give you a sense of togetherness too; with many people sharing ideas and discussing tips in online craft communities like on Pinterest and Instagram. It’s a means of self-expression, and it generally welcomes very positive feedback from others and can help those who may be feeling disconnected to feel seen.
Not only this, crafting can help to shine a light on different aspects of peoples’ personalities due to the relaxing nature of it, and this is why creative workshops have become an increasingly popular choice for businesses when organising corporate team-building activities. People have found that crafting and undertaking creative challenges has been a very effective way to establish a better-connected team, reduce stress and can even help inspire creativity from employees away from the workshop.
It strengthens your cognitive abilities
When developing new skills, you’re also developing and strengthening connections in your brain. According to Mind Body Green, while crafting you’re also developing hand-eye coordination, fine motor dexterity (coordination of fine muscles, often in the hand), focusing your attention, and helping to strengthen memory formation and retrieval. Not only this, but problem solving a key part of making items by hand, and the strengthening of these cognitive functions is massively important for every-day life too, not just when you get down to crafting.
We hope you found this information interesting - we certainly did! If you want to leave any comments, or any of your own thoughts on the topic, we’d love to hear what you have to say.
Author: Emma Coppen