Whether you're a regular arts-and-crafter, or haven't dabbled since childhood, here's a reason to get into it: arts and crafts are great for your mood and mind. Yep – research shows that your creative hobbies (crocheting, collaging, you name it) can help alleviate the symptoms of anxiety, depression, loneliness, and even dementia. 

In light of Mental Health Month, here are all the reasons why crafting is good for you – and a few of our favorite ideas for getting started.

The Health Benefits of Crafting 

• Research has shown that any type of crafting can help bolster mood, improve self confidence and generally reduce stress. It's also been shown to reduce symptoms in those suffering from PTSD, anxiety disorders, depression, insomnia, and chronic pain. 
• Crafting can help bring people together in all sorts of ways. Take the UK for instance – where they have craft clubs aimed at boosting mental health through knitting and crocheting. A member of one of these clubs even claimed it saved their life giving them a deeper sense of purpose and belonging (Source). 
• Additional research specific to basketwork (hey, no craft too specific for us to get down with) showed that it helped re-establish neural pathways and improve brain plasticity, aiding stroke recovery and even triggering memories in dementia patients. 

Ideas for Getting Started

• Make candles! Here's a Q&A with our friend Hannah who founded Maine-based Near & Native candles to get you feeling inspired. 
• Scrapbook. It's hard to mess up, plus a great way to figure out what to do with all those years of photos living in your phone. 
• Mood or vision board. Use magazine cutouts, pictures, markers, fabrics... whatever you find lying around has a place on your own personal vision board. 
• Embroider, sew, or repair your clothes. This may take a little more time to master, but the feeling of turning something old into something new can be totally meditative. 
• Paint something. A wall, furniture, a cabinet... And if you're feeling like going further, here's our guide to splashing color into every day for more easy ways to make joy all around you. 

The possibilities are really endless, but whatever you can do to channel that inner-child and creative spirit, we promise you'll feel the benefits. 

And if you just want to wear something that feels a little crafty, shop our Women's and Men's Primo Embroidered Crew Tees.