Lockdown will always be synonymous with certain things: banana bread, the sound of a whole street applauding, Zoom quizzes and plenty of crafting.
Now, nearly a week through the second national lockdown, many of us will be reaching for the glue guns again. So why is crafting proving such an enjoyable way to spend our time?
Katherine Paterson, customer director at arts and crafts chain Hobbycraft explains: ‘During 2020, and particularly the first lockdown, the nation has really embraced crafting for a number of reasons.
‘The first, and most obvious, is people looking at ways to keep themselves, their families and children busy and entertained. The the second is escapism – people giving themselves projects or taking on activities to help them switch off.
‘Thirdly, there was a real sense that people who were spending more time at home than ever before wanted to use that time wisely and find a sense of achievement in a task.’
And it’s not just your ‘usual’ knitting or sewing, either.
‘Crafts such as tie-dye, diamond art, brush lettering and Cricut digital cutting definitely had, and are still having, their moment in the limelight,’ adds Katherine.
Hannah Read-Baldrey, who runs craft subscription outlet MakeBox & Co (makebox.co), believes the urge to craft is here to stay.
‘Because it’s so darn therapeutic, crafting is proven to help you relax and unwind,’ she says. ‘Repetitive crafts can actually put you into a meditative state. It is such a lovely feel-good way to spend your time, not in front of the TV.’
MakeBox has had strong interest in its one-off boxes, in particular rope rainbow-making kits and one with a personal touch.
‘Our first box “Bee Kind” [inset] is a bestseller. It was dedicated to our son, Bertie, who was stillborn. The design is brilliant for a beginner or someone who wants to get back into embroidery,’ says Hannah.
‘The illustration has even become our brand logo. We have a fabulous community too so it’s firing at lots of different “happy” angles. I have used craft time and time again to calm me down during stress, I know first-hand why it’s so good for you.’
For some, however, crafting has become more than a simple way to keep entertained. We chat with those who are now making a living from their lockdown efforts…
‘I wanted original jewellery – so I made my own’: Ellen Holcombe, 27, from Sheffield
After discovering a love of jewellery- making in lockdown, Ellen set up Teeny Bead Co to sell her designs.
‘For my day job, I’m a copywriter, and it’s so lovely to get away from a screen and create things with my hands,’ she says. ‘Threading the beads and designing the patterns is so lovely.
‘I was looking online for a necklace, and just couldn’t find what I wanted – a bright-coloured tiny bead necklace. I like to buy jewellery with high-quality metals where I don’t have to worry about tarnishing. I was struggling to find something that was fun, but made with quality materials. They all seemed to be nickel-plated, which I didn’t want.
‘I ended up ordering something, and when it arrived I took it apart to see how it was made! I’ve always made things, and been crafty and creative, I like to make stuff.
‘After I took the necklace apart, I began Googling to find UK suppliers for the parts I needed to make a necklace – the less distance it has to travel, the better for the environment.
‘Friends started to comment and ask if I would make them something too. Others asked if I sold them, so I thought, “Well, I could!”
‘I don’t know if I’d have done this had we not been in lockdown. Everything slowed down with my copywriting, and it was nice to do something different away from the computer. I’ve often had issues with anxiety, so stepping away and doing something different was invaluable.
‘Making the jewellery is so therapeutic, threading the beads and tying tiny knots. Silversmithing is also something I’m interested in getting into. That’s for the future as the kit is expensive, but this is a way into that.’
See Ellen’s designs at teenybead.co and @teenybeadco on Instagram
Upcycling was a new challenge for me’: Charlotte Evans, 31, from Wells-next-the-sea, Norfolk
An urge to make things for her new home opened up the idea of upcycling to Charlotte, who works in publicity and marketing.
‘I’ve done bits of craft since I was very young, and I’m also an artist, but upcycling has made me expand beyond getting a canvas out,’ says Charlotte.
‘It was a fresh challenge for me. We moved into a house in Norfolk a year ago, and it’s a lovely little place on the Holkham Estate, really near to the sea. It’s got lovely features, and I started to think about how nice it would be to make some things for the house.
‘I pulled a lot of inspiration from the outside, the marshes and the beaches.
‘Even though I’m an artist, this was different in terms of the practicalities – constructing a lampshade is not easy!
‘One of the things I wanted to avoid doing was buying in lampshades and painting them, so I bought the raw materials and started making them from scratch, which is an added challenge.
‘I also bought a lot of cotton canvas ages ago, which I was going to use to stretch over a canvas frame, but never got round to doing it. I decided to have a go at making cushions out of them. It’s actually great to paint on, so I hand-painted the fabric, then made them into the cushions.
‘I’ve been trying to sell them, and often a product like a cushion or a lampshade is more accessible to people than a painting.
‘It’s given me more optimism. With everything that’s happened this year, it’s nice to be able to turn your hand to different things.’
Follow Charlotte on Instagram @rubycharlotteartist or rubycharlotte.com
‘I quit my job so I could crochet full-time!’: Louise Murray, 22, from Stockport
When Louise was furloughed, she turned to crocheting every day – and she has now quit her PR job to sell her designs full-time.
‘My grandma taught me to crochet when I was eight, and I’d made a couple of awful blankets over the years, but that was all,’ she says.
‘After leaving school, I went into PR and marketing but when lockdown hit, I was put on furlough and there was nothing else to do but crochet my little heart out. When we went back to work, I wasn’t truly enjoying it, so I thought, “right I’m going to try and make this happen”, with the crochet.
‘Since I was 17, I’ve sold my own clothes online when I’m done with them. I have a mortgage and bills and at first, I thought, ‘what have I done?!’ But things picked up.
‘Before I was in PR, I was a shop manager, so I understand how to run a shop.
‘It’s not easy, but I’m enjoying it. I’m a lot happier and am sleeping well since I quit my job to crochet full-time.
‘I put my whole wage from a month of being furloughed into savings and I’m not spending as much right now.
‘I try to use wool from charity shops when I can, as it’s the same price, but also supports the charity.
‘I’ve always got my crochet out now, on the sofa while I’m watching TV. This is one thing I really enjoy doing, there’s no buzz like that of selling something online.
‘It’s strange to think furlough can be a positive thing, but life’s too short not to try something different.’
Check out Louise’s crochet on Instagram @hookedbylou and depop.com/hookedbylou.
Travelling was off the cards… so I became a potter’: Becky Uclayja, 27, from Banbury, Oxfordshire
Lockdown meant Becky had to abort her plans to go travelling in April, but it opened the door to a new life as a potter.
‘Two Christmases ago, my brother bought me a one-off pottery class as a gift – it’s always been in our family, and my great, great grandpa used to paint Royal Doultons!’ Becky says.
‘My degree was partly engineering based, and not arty at all. I first went into construction, and quit my job in spring 2020 to go travelling. Then, with lockdown, I’d suddenly quit my job and had nothing to do! Craft and art were part of my school work but didn’t go any further than a hobby.
‘I keep seeing it as a silver lining, in a weird way, and I took some classes in pottery to build on the one-off class. My mum was kind enough to convert her shed into a studio for me, and I invested in a kiln.
‘My work has definitely come on a lot over the past few months and now I have started to teach pottery lessons and sell my own work.
‘Christmas fever has already hit and I have started to get some custom orders in for platters and decorations. I’m also studying for my primary school PGCE, and I hope I can get more kids into pottery as a craft.
‘The lovely thing is that you can’t get it wrong – whatever you make is what you make!
‘I was going to travel to India and do a pottery course there, but that plan went out the window! What I thought my year was going to be is nothing like what my year actually is, and it would have been worse if I hadn’t had such focus with the pottery.’
Find Becky on Instagram @uclayja and at uclayja.com
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