I have been crafting for as long as I can remember. As a little kid, I would take my mother’s sewing scraps and orphaned socks from the laundry and make puppets. Every birthday deserved a hand-crafted card from moi, which often included a very poorly rhyming poem.
My sisters were not far behind me when it came to making things, and really, our whole family had at least something in the works at any one time, even if it often was done from necessity such as my mother sewing us clothes to wear or my dad making furniture for the house.
Lately, though, I’ve been wondering: Has the enjoyment of crafting (or even the need to I suppose) skipped a generation? Clothes are now very inexpensively available from Wal-mart. Even furniture can be found pretty darn cheap. Video games, cable TV, and the Internet seem to be much more compelling then playing with a strand of beads or a skein of yarn.
Recently, we had relatives down, which meant my parents’ house was full of teenagers and toddlers. I came as well to meet, greet, and craft. I had food and beads and yarn, all items I thought would lure maybe at least one youngster into crafting. The food, of course, went over well, but alas, it was just the old folks who were making jewelry and hanging out. The rest were off watching videos, or if they were there physically, they were text messaging with friends or surfing the net on their laptops.
Now, I realize that when I look back on my own sporadic meetings with aunts and uncles I wasn’t glued to their sides hanging on every word, but I do have some wonderful memories of us all making stuff together. One summer in Colorado we were all on a tie-dye kick, and if you stepped into my aunt’s house with anything white (socks, t-shirts, canvas shoes), you left much more colorfully attired.
Can I really blame this change on the digital age? Maybe I’m totally off and it just happens that our own little group have not inherited the crafting gene? How do you urge young people to craft without making it into some kind of chore (turn off the video games and get to those earrings!)?
August 5, 2009 at 12:22 pm
I have wondered about this as well. I’d hate to lose an entire generation, as it’s not always easy to recapture skills. Think of tatting or manuscript illumination. It’s possible to learn it all from books, but so much more special to discover it in the company of friends and loved ones.
August 6, 2009 at 10:20 pm
I just finished my term as president of a Crafting CLun in Arlington TX and we have also discovered that crafting is becoming passe or something. We used to have a 3 to 4 yr waiting list to join the club and now the membership is down 50%! Most of the members that are left have been there on an average 15 yrs! The crafts themselves have gone a dramatic change, of course the economic situation didn’t help things everyone is holding on the their money and not spending it on crafting projects. It was noted that they youngest member is 34! Youngsters are not interested for many reasons including those that you stated. They are bombarded with so many electronic gadgets! I am proud to say that my three grand-daughters are interested and like when we craft together, they even have their own sewing machine! Itruly hope that crafting will have a re-surgence and that it is not the end of it. I have noticed thata places like Hobby-lobby are more decorator stores than Crafting stores they carry fewer crafting materials each year!
August 7, 2009 at 8:11 am
I can see a case for both yes and no. My daughter is 10 and while her favorite artistic activity is drawing, she’s always making things (jewelry, book covers out of old jeans, and mixed media projects are just the tip of the iceberg). This fall, my mother is going to give her (and me, as I obviously need a refresher) sewing lessons. Many of my daughter’s friends enjoy making things as well. That said, many kids are so overscheduled (with extracurriculars and/or summer camps) they don’t have time to sit down with their imaginations and create.
The economy is likely keeping many away from classes and such; I know we’re investigating online tutorial options and looking for knowledgeable friends/family members who don’t mind giving us a few pointers before signing up for a class. I’d rather take the class and meet new people, but my freelance has all but dried up and my husband will not get a raise this year. As such, we have to watch our pennies.
August 7, 2009 at 9:33 am
Love the feedback on this so far. Thank you everyone. Time is probably an issue as well as money. Though, I think crafting can be done pretty inexpensively if some thought is put into the process.
Linnea – Friends are a great option for learning. While my my taught me to sew, a college roommate whose mother was a home ec teacher really helped me learn a huge amount when it comes to sewing. Mom gave me the basics, but April (my old roomie) solidified and added to those. Another option is to check out adult ed classes. I have found some that are super each, as little as $1 an hour. I took a few tailoring classes for something like $30 for a 16 week class & this was through an adult ed program. Call your local public high school to find out more.