Five Great Ways to Find Craft Inspiration 4 March 2015  |  Nicola

Every crafter we know has suffered some sort of inspiration block during their time as a maker; whether it’s brought on by illness, stress or simple boredom, there’s nothing more frustrating than wanting to get stuck into a good project, but at the same time feeling completely uninspired and lacking in enthusiasm. Today, we’ve got five simple suggestions that should help to get your imagination firing and your next project underway.

1. Magazines

Magazines are a great place to find ideas for craft projects; as well as step-by-step tutorials, they also feature interviews with other makers and designers, and new ranges from art and craft shops – even the advertorial section on the back few pages has provided us with inspiration in the past! There are magazines for pretty much every craft you can think of, but for general crafts we love Mollie Makes, Simply Homemade and Reloved – they cover almost everything, so there’s bound to be something inside to get those creative juices flowing!

2. Blogs

There are absolutely thousands of great craft blogs around, and the beauty of the internet is that it’s so immediate – you don’t have to wait for the next issue, and many bloggers post several times a week. As well as blogs written by artists, designers and makers, there are also those written by craft shops and magazines; we love the Purl Bee, which features sewing, knitting, crochet and embroidery projects, and Slugs on the Refrigerator by crochet superstar and author Kat Goldin; she combines fantastic projects with breathtaking photography – one of our favourites. Other blogs we’re fond of are:

Poppytalk

Beci Orpin (we love her books too!)

A Beautiful Mess

The New Craft Society

If you’re interested in politics, the environment and activism, it’s definitely worth checking out the website of the Craftivist Collective; there’s a whole host of ways to get involved, project ideas and event news on the website, and you’ll end up connecting with lots of other people who have the same concerns and interests as you.

3. Pinterest

Pinterest, ahhhh Pinterest. We could spend hours, days, weeks on this amazing site, with its beautiful pictures, top tips and ace crafty tutorials. Pinterest is literally a goldmine when it comes to searching for your next project, and it’s particularly helpful if you’re into upcycling and DIY; the best thing is that you can create your own boards to keep track of everything you find as you go along. If you’re not a member already, you should definitely think about becoming one!

4. Instagram

Instagram is a little bit like a cross between Twitter and Pinterest, but made up of pictures posted by the owners. Full of travel, lifestyle and craft bloggers, as well as personal accounts, there’s plenty of inspiration to be had – it’s just knowing how to stumble across it. Often searching for your favourite blogger or crafter, and then looking at who they follow to find similar accounts is a good way to start, or you can even search by hashtag; #craft, #handmade and #diy are all popular groups with hundreds and hundreds of posts.

5. Charity Shops and Recycling Centres

One of the best places to find not only ideas, but also materials are charity shops and recycling centres. If you’re an upcycler, you can find old furniture for a few pounds, while charity shops are great sources of cheap fabric; think XXL mens shirts for a good amount of cotton, jeans for denim and even old leather jackets to transform into clutch bags and pouches.