08 Mar 7 Hot Crafting Trends in 2023
A new year is well underway—it’s time again to look at the crafting community and see what everyone is making! A good thing to note as we plunge into the hot craft trends of 2023: hand crafts in general are as popular as ever. Knitting, crochet, weaving, paper crafts, embroidery, punch needling, needlework, quilting, pottery, sewing and more continue to remain popular on social media, with new crafters joining the flock every day.
We may not specifically mention something like visible mending—one of our top craft trends of 2022—on this list, but you should not take that to mean mending has fallen out of fashion for crafters. If you know of a hot trend on this list that we haven’t mentioned, we encourage you to review some of our most recent lists from previous years (summer 2022, 2021, 2020). The likelihood is we’ve covered it in the past and for many crafts, we believe the fascination still holds. Trends constantly rise and fall, and some take a few years to gain a foothold. The following crafts are simply those that we’ve noticed climb the ranks in recent months. If you’ve seen something trending that we haven’t included, please let us know!
Embellishments Everywhere
Clockwise from top left: Leonora Cardigan from Pom Pom Quarterly, Loom Vest by Camilla Vad, Blooming Vest by Charly Kubat, Stranded Braid Hat by Hunter Hammersen, Riso Hat from Pom Pom Quarterly
Knitters and crocheters continue to explore embellishing their garments and accessories. The allure of treating your knit pieces like a canvas cannot be denied. In addition to embroidery, crafters are using beads, sequins, surface crochet, and buttons to embellish their work.
Clockwise from top: La Prairie Cardigan by Joji Locatelli, Enoki Sweater and Grape Juice Sweater by Kara Eng
This year knitters have taken embellishment a step further, incorporating raised stitch work as a means of adding more texture and dimension to their garments. Knits featuring bobbles, popcorn stitch, big bold cables and slip stitches are increasing in popularity.
Clockwise from top left (All Instagram): Card by @yulkayolka, Card by @proptartstudios, Card by @dot_ronaldson, Card by @kraftkreationsbykarla
Knitters aren’t the only crafters embellishing their work with embroidery and ornamentations. Many crafters have turned to embellishments. Paper crafters are designing cards with embroidery and beads, and embroiderers have taken their work out of the loop and into clothing design to create embellished wardrobe pieces. Some crafters combine fabric paint, beading, and embroidery to create one-of-a-kind wardrobe pieces. Right now, no matter what your craft focus may be, taking the multidisciplinary approach is a very popular route!
Clockwise from top (All Instagram): Embroidered Sweatshirt by @dollyandmaisymakes, Embroidered, Painted & Bejeweled Denim Jacket by @fromlydiawithlove, Embroidered Sweatshirt by @dollyandmaisymakes
Pom Pom Crafts
Clockwise from top left (All Instagram): Pom Pom cupcakes by @sam.nice65, Rainbow Hat by @flynnknit, Pom Pom Star Rug by@yarn_kraft, Colourbar Hat by @pompommag
Pom pom lovers: 2023 is your year! Crafters love pom poms right now, and not your traditional pom poms. #Bigpompom has 62.8 million views on TikTok. It’s not quite at the 516.6 million views that #pompom has, but we can see it reaching that point.
You might think pom poms are only for hats, but you’d be wrong. We’re seeing pom poms decorating chairs, uniquely-shaped decor pom poms, pom pom hair accessories and even pom pom wall art. And it’s not just plain pom poms. Think eyeball pom poms, strawberry pom poms, toadstool pom poms, striped and polka dot pom poms, and rainbow pom poms. All poms welcome.
Clockwise from top left (All TikTok): @karynaroo, @simply_spacey, @hyphygrandma, @karynaroo, @ianmadethat, @ellenthepimp
Macraweave
Macrame and weaving remain popular among crafters, but we noticed last year that macraweave was on the rise among crafters. We believe the hybrid may become more popular than its constituent parts this year.
Clockwise from top left (All Instagram): @raes_of_love_creations, @knottinghillblue, @create_express_transform, @decasacraftsaus
The combination of macrame and hand weaving allows crafters to create really unique works of art. Weaving adds depth to macrame, and can give crafters the freedom of incorporating colors and designs they might not otherwise be able to achieve with macrame or weaving alone.
Clockwise from top left (All Instagram): @piccolo_tocco, @macramelia.cl (curtains and mirror), @crucru_rainbow
While much of macraweave winds up as wall art, we’ve also seen it used in pillows, curtains, handbags, jewelry and more.
Bold Prints
Bold, colorful prints are everywhere in knitting, sewing, and quilting—and mixing and matching prints is also very popular.
Clockwise from top left: Patchwork Jacket by Claire Montgomerie, Pressed Flowers Cowl by Amy Christoffers, Milis Sweater by Moorit Mag, Alyssum Sweater by Tomomi Yoshimoto
The runways saw a lot of bold prints predicted for 2023, specifically plaids, graphic designs, polka dots, tie dye, dreamy florals, blocky stripes, and checker print. The Spring 2023 issue of Pom Pom Quarterly features lots of bold prints (including the Colourbar hat featured in the pom poms section earlier), as does the Spring/Summer 2023 issue of Moorit Mag and the Winter 22/23 of Vogue Knitting (which also features surface crochet and lots of embellished knits!)
Clockwise from top left: Fragmentation Shawl by Stephen West, Jacquard and Lucent by Pom Pom Quarterly, Puzzle Night by Helen Cosgroves-Davies, Offset Stripes by Purl Soho
Candlemaking
Credit the rise of horoscope culture, but the new year saw many people setting intentions using candles. It should be no surprise, then, that lots of crafters have caught candle making fever.
Clockwise from top left (All Instagram): @Lumo.homestudio, @laellascandles, @spilltheteasisapothecary, @cathies.studio
Crafters are designing and making candles focused on custom mixed fragrances, themes, aromatherapy, intentions, and home decor aesthetics. This translates to a huge market for candles and those seeking candles. #Candlemaking has 3.3 BILLION views on TikTok, so it might be time to think about ways to incorporate themed candles into your marketing plan!
Clockwise from top left (All TikTok): @whiskeyriversoapco, @irresistiblewax @iamcandlecompany, @brittanynah, @iamcandlecompany, @counterculturecompany
Upcycling & Vintage Upcycling
Upcycling remains a hot trend in 2023. Perhaps it’s the influence of exposés on fast fashion companies like Shein, or the fact that the effects of climate change are swiftly becoming undeniable, but crafters are leaning into upcycling clothing—both new and vintage.
Clockwise from top left (All Instagram): @laflorita.sk, @ra.makes, @stoneandwillowco, @moonblossombaby
There’s a bit of crossover between upcycling and another trend, embellishments. Many crafters are turning to beads, sequins, surface crochet, sewing, quilting, and embroidery to turn old clothing into something new and fresh. Stashbusting—using up scraps of fabric, yarn, and leftover notions— only adds to the appeal of upcycling. Upcyclers have also set their sites on furniture and home decor as well, repainting and stenciling old pieces of furniture so they look brand new.
Resin
Resin crafts have been on our radar for a few years now. The craft currently sits at 19.5 billion views on TikTok, and we think it’s attractive for a few reasons. For one, it’s relatively inexpensive. It also requires very little space, and there’s no fancy equipment. And as a bonus, it’s perfect for scrap busting as resin crafters place all kinds of materials in their resin objects, from buttons to sequins to stones, ribbons, glitter, flowers, confetti, and more.
Clockwise from top left (All TikTok): @deswazhere, @shirstruly, @resintreasurescanada, @faithandflowers.resin, @customresinforyou, @made.by_amanda
As resin crafting has been on the rise, we’ve seen crafters focus in on particular types of objects. We initially saw a lot of jewelry, jewelry trays, keychains, and wall art. In the last year or so, however, crafters have devised some ingenious and highly marketable resin objects. Most notably, we’ve seen a lot of memorial and keepsake resin crafts. Think baby hand prints, memorials to lost loved ones, wedding bouquets, celebratory anniversary keepsakes, custom dog tags, and more. With these pieces, the objects fixed in the resin hold sentimental value related to a particular theme. Resin crafting has taken a clever, more customized turn, so expect it to stick around for awhile!
We hope this overview on the hot crafting trends of 2023 gives you some new ideas for engaging with your customer base. Looking for ways to incorporate some of these trends into your marketing plans for the year? Stitchcraft Marketing is a marketing agency of crafting experts. We customize every program to showcase your brand, engage your customer base, and generate sales in a way that is nothing less than magical. If you’d like to work with us, contact us today to get started!
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