Needlework

Throughout history people have expressed their creativity in a variety of different ways. Needlework is nothing new, but the continuous innovation in the field has made it easier than ever to pick up a sewing machine and create whatever your imagination can come up with.

Creativity in a plethora of ways

To be creative in the modern age means a whole lot more than it did a few thousand years ago. Today, a creative person is someone with a large arsenal of ideas. More is often expected from creative people, which can both have a positive and negative side to it. We will mostly stick to the positive. After all, it is often when we are being creative that we forget about time and space.

Many people often use painting or drawing to process hard times. When expressing themselves through creativity they discover a way to materialize their pain and grief. It is not a feeling that is easily explained to the uninitiated.

Today needlework is also used to soothe sickness and pain. Many people take to painting. Other people get busy with cross stitching or complicated motives for patchwork or patchwork or bobbin lace. You do not need to be a pro to be creative. It is all about the feeling of being productive. The feeling of creating something with your hands that suddenly turn into a painting or another kind of creative piece. It is simply about letting go. Forgetting everything that might stress you in your everyday life. Giving yourself the freedom to not worry about anything for a while. As Piet Hein said: “Art is not to have an idea, everyone can easily get two. The art lies in choosing between the two, or other everyday ideas. To see which of the ideas are actually good.”

Conventions with spades of needlework

There exists a vast number of conventions with just as many purposes and themes. Creative people generally are drawn to conventions with possibilities for viewing, being creative with and sharing ideas. When attending a convention, you will find most of the attendees to be women. Recently though, a shift towards a more gender-diverse crowd has been taking place. Perhaps men finally discovered that it is alright to blow off steam with needlework. More and more men have taken up knitting. It can be anything from scarfs to socks, but steadily their numbers are increasing and it is nice to see this new creative side of them.

When attending a convention, you are often met with a plethora of new ideas. It is a regular occurrence to return home from a convention with a collection of unexpected items such as buttons or sewing accessories. It is okay to be creative in more than one way. Branching out through your creativity allows your fantasy to see things that many other people often miss. As Pablo Picasso said: “Others have seen what is and asked why. I have seen what could be and asked why not?”

One of the arts that has become easy to get started with for practically everyone is embroidery. It provides almost endless opportunities for being creative. Buying embroidery fabric with or without pattern makes the bar for entry as low as need be when trying out the hobby. Other hobbies like painting are also beginner-friendly with the help of painting canvases designed with premade patterns.

Besides needlework conventions, there exists plenty of needlework workshops for every kind of needlework regardless of skill level. Another possibility is to take an online course. A quick internet search will reveal plenty of sites providing these kinds of services.

Needlework for children and childlike souls alike

The imagination of a child is often on a whole other level than their older counterparts. They see possibilities no other people do. Beads are a great example of just that. Almost every child has at some point tried their hands at beads, whether it being at kindergarten, school or their grandparents’ house. A motive made of beads makes for a great present regardless of the occasion. Needlework is also an excellent way for children to connect with their grandparents. Especially the grandmothers that grew up with needlework as part of their daily routine, often serving a more practical purpose.

Needlework is not just about the physical task of creating or improving an item. It can be a way to connect with other people or a way to escape everyday life. Needlework can even have a therapeutic effect on adults and children alike. It is also a fantastic way to materialize your creativity. Colours, textures, patterns and techniques all further the child’s creativity, problem solving, patience and fine motor control.

Many children, regardless of gender, show an interest in needlework at some point or another while growing up. The kind of needlework depends on what catches their interest. It can be knitting, crocheting, embroidery or any other kind of physical creative expression. Needlework is for everyone. If its your first time trying your hand at needlework, we offer one-in-all solution starter kits. These kits come with everything needed for a rookie to start discovering new sides to their creativity.

To be creative means to invent, to break the rules, to make mistakes but most of all: To have fun.

We hope you will enjoy your visit at Ritohobby.co.uk