Crafty in the City: Our Blog's Advocacy

I've been crafting since 2006. I have also lived in a huge, bustling city since 1994. Hence, the reason for using Crafty in the City for my blog's title. 

I started out with paper crafts like cardmaking and scrapbooking as my gateway to the world of crafts. 

And then, what was formerly an avocation became a vocation when I began selling handmade greeting cards. 

Over a period of 18 years, my interests in crafting branched out to diamond painting, accessory making, and creating other paper products like gift tags and bookmarks. 

Here are just a few of the key points on which our blog's advocacy was built:

Crafty in the City: Emphasizing Self-Expression and Creativity Through DIY 

The majority of families are trying to operate within a modest budget. Therefore, you can only afford to buy generic-looking school supplies, clothes, and shoes for your kids. 

The solution is to infuse their tastes and preferences through crafting and DIY. They can use leftover wrapping paper or scrapbook paper, washi tapes, or stickers to cover their plain composition notebooks. 

Your kids can make their own phone straps with beads, and crochet bag charms for their school backpacks.

You can help upgrade your kids' wardrobe by sewing or ironing on cloth patches on an old pair of jeans or jacket to make them look new. 

Crafty in the City: Proof That Crafts Can Be a Frugal Way for Adults to Have Fun and Socialize

Rather than bonding over drinks and just "shooting the bull," different demographics can work on a craft project. 

Women can crochet, knit, sew, or quilt, while men can learn to whittle, or carve objects from wood. 

Nearly anyone can take an interest in macrame, paper mache, making shadow boxes, and string art. 

Crafty in the City: A Way of Showing How Different Individuals are Reaping the Benefits of Engaging in Crafts

While children in various stages of development, people with disabilities, and senior citizens have different needs, they all benefit from crafts in ways that are quite similar.

Some of these benefits are: 

• Improving creativity and imagination 
• Improving fine and gross motor skills 
• Improving hand-eye coordination
• Reducing time spent in front of a screen 
• Encouraging active engagement 
• A boost in self-esteem

Crafty in the City: Encouraging Generosity While Staying On a Budget

Now that we're living during the aftermath of the pandemic, the majority of us has found it necessary to hold a tight rein over our purses.

The price of craft materials that could be turned into a dozen or so gift items is relatively inexpensive, compared to the equivalent of the price of a couple of store-bought presents.

To illustrate, I have been creating keychains, phone straps, and refrigerator magnets for the past years. 

I have given some of them away as presents, and the sum I have spent on craft materials to create a few dozen of them was quite negligible compared to the total I could have accumulated after buying gifts from a store.  

Crafty in the City: Integrating the Value of Recycling, Refurbishing, Upcycling, and Repurposing

Crafting can also be an eco-friendly activity, since you won't always need to buy new craft materials. 

With plenty of creativity and imagination, and knowledge of different techniques in crafting, almost anything can be made out of junk like old magazines and catalogues, clothes, cardboard boxes, and leftover paper.