Comments on: The Benefits of Arts and Crafts https://the-orbit.net/almostdiamonds/2013/04/22/the-benefits-of-arts-and-crafts/ Politics. Sex. Science. Art. You know, the good stuff. Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:14:37 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.1.6 By: Giliell, professional cynic https://the-orbit.net/almostdiamonds/2013/04/22/the-benefits-of-arts-and-crafts/#comment-22811 Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:14:37 +0000 http://freethoughtblogs.com/almostdiamonds/?p=5081#comment-22811 I’ve been crafty all my life (or artsy. I deeply loath the distiction made between those things because it usually puts “crafts” (mostly done by women) on a much lower scale than “arts” (mostly done by men). I tried many things until I finally stuck with sewing and embroidery, working with fabrics and thread and buttons and stuff.

I’ve been in a bad place mentally, and I don’t know where I would have ended up if I hadn’t maintained my crafts. When your depression is screaming at you that you’re a worthless piece of shit, only good for maintaining the household, craft is like a small guerrilla force showing up here and there, asserting your value and your competence.

And it also became part of my therapy, to express those feeling and things in pictures. Those are a handful of works, but I kind of treassure them because they allow me to keep track and to look back and remember.

]]> By: left0ver1under https://the-orbit.net/almostdiamonds/2013/04/22/the-benefits-of-arts-and-crafts/#comment-22810 Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:27:05 +0000 http://freethoughtblogs.com/almostdiamonds/?p=5081#comment-22810 It doesn’t even have to be arts and crafts, it could be learing basic carpentry or calligraphy. The course where I learnt the most about drawing and sketching was a drafting class, not an art class.

Making and creating things with one’s own hands can be euphoric and inspiring, especially to those who’ve never done it before or never had the chance. I’ve had students do things like setting up and connecting basic motors and lights to batteries, to see the effects of power in series, of switches. They’re fascinated and then want to learn more on their own.

]]> By: WithinThisMind https://the-orbit.net/almostdiamonds/2013/04/22/the-benefits-of-arts-and-crafts/#comment-22809 Mon, 22 Apr 2013 21:19:53 +0000 http://freethoughtblogs.com/almostdiamonds/?p=5081#comment-22809 I’ve often found crafts a wonderful way to get out some bad feelings that I am limited in my ways to express. I crochet, and use that craft often to make little ‘voodoo’ doll type things. Then I give them to the cats as toys. I’m also occasionally subversive in other ways. It’s a good stress reliever. If I’m occupied with my crochet hooks and want to keep the item I’m making at the proper tension, it’s much harder to give in to the temptation to stab people with the aforementioned hooks. As my cross stitch on the wall says ‘I knit so I don’t strangle people’.

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