Feeling Crafty? You’re not alone. As a country, we have rekindled our love through the Arts and Crafts made in America. From knitted scarves to ceramic birdhouses to felted baby booties, American’s are getting more and more hands on.
According to a 2011 Craft & Hobby Association report, more than half of U.S. households take part in at least one crafting activity, whether it’s canning, sewing baby booties from scraps of felt, fashioning coffee clay mugs, to our young kids making the newest craze fun loom bracelets. Did you know American’s spend more than $29 billion a year on crafting-a figure that has remained pretty stable in spite of the wobbly economy.
People are creating personalized things rather than going out and spending money on the same items, says Keri Cunningham, the association’s director of marketing. “When life is crazy, it’s good to take time to do something that relaxes them.”
New things are being learned everyday in the crafting world. At skills fair in Seattle this year participants learned to make soap, nut milks, and solar cookers. People are recognizing the joy and satisfaction and security of being able to provide for our own needs, proclaimed a flyer for the event. It is kind of like relearning the skills our grandparents knew!
Crafting is not just good for the soul; it’s also good for the body and mind, according to researchers at the University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine. So if you have a burning desire to do a craft find what you are good at and do it. You might make it your next full time job. The most important part is enjoy what you make and do every day.
Article provided by Parade and Teri Reuvers
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