Artsy Crafty Library: Crafting community

I love crafting, almost as much as I love community building. And I love combining the two. Adding a hands-on crafting experience to any event or gathering adds opportunities for community building and encourages connections between your attendees.

Community building with crafts

Invite people who may not know each other and give them a common interest or purpose to share. Getting to know other people and finding common interests is accessible and fun when you add hands-on activities that encourage creativity and supplies that encourage interaction. (Crafting won't appeal to everyone and that is okay.)

I've successfully added arts and crafts activities at many events in my professional and personal life. For example, adding a spin art machine at an outreach table for the library draws people in to try something new. While they are creating their painting we chat about their other interests and how the library resources and services can support them. 

I've hosted community events where I invite people to write an encouraging note and decorate it with markers and stickers to include with information we will give to others. This helps people imagine the person who will receive their note, which builds empathy along with sharing their creative expression with someone else.

Add crafting to your community events

Here are some questions and tips to help inspire you.

First off, consider what your main purpose is and how crafting can help you achieve it. Which of these purposes is a priority for you?

• To bring people into a particular space/location
• To help people interact with other people
• To help people learn more about an issue or topic
• To engage people in taking action on an issue
• To produce something to be shared with others

Group crafting supplies

Consider the expense and amount of supplies you will need for a group craft. Small or mini projects are inexpensive. Tiny creations are also fun! You can reuse glass jars or other common containers as craft supplies - flower vases, candle holders, plant propagation jars. (The fish shown is made with bottlecaps.) In an open-ended craft or process art project people don't need the exact same items, which gives you flexibility in gathering supplies also.

If your event is ongoing, invite others to contribute supplies or ideas for future crafts. Ask people to bring supplies to share or to donate supplies they don't need anymore.

Give people freedom to create but limit the quantity of projects they can each make. Encouraging people to spend more time on one project helps control overall supply needs and helps them focus their creativity.

5 craft ideas for your community-building event

1. Coloring is an obvious option. Have crayons and/or colored pencils and coloring sheets for adults readily available. 
2. Simple origami or paper folding with fancy unusual paper is accessible and fun.
3. Choose a message or quote to decorate with stickers and metallic markers.
4. Painting a small wooden ornament, a rock or a mini canvas is always popular.
5. Handwritten note cards or handmade greeting cards make it feel personal. 

Add community building to your crafting event

If you are hosting events around a craft like a knitting class or a pottery workshop, this is a great place to also help people get to know each other. While your purpose my be improving or practicing an art or craft, we can all use more friends.

1. Provide name tags and encourage people to learn other people's names.
2. Avoid an exact project with rigid instructions and individual kits of supplies, which encourages isolation and "getting it right."
3. Set up the activity to require some supplies to be shared, which encourages interaction.
4. Create the artwork or craft project to benefit someone else – like knitted hats to be delivered to the rescue mission –  to shift the focus toward the collective action.
5. Collaborate on a single artwork.

Welcome and include new people in your event

If possible, the following recommendations will help add people to your event:

• Make your event free and don't require registration.
• Hold your event in a public space and invite people in who notice it happening.
• Allow people to arrive late or leave early without judgment.
• Be flexible with the needs of people who attend. As needed, rearrange your space and supplies to accommodate people:
  • using a wheelchair or walker,
  • who are comfortable joining a group,
  • who are comfortable watching the activity from a distance,
  • or people who may have a companion with them who isn't participating but wants to remain nearby. 

Whether you consider adding crafting to your community building, or community building to your crafting, I hope you try at least one of these tips soon. If you have your own crafting community stories to share, I'd love to hear from you. Talking about crafting community is definitely something we could have as a shared interest!