02 Mar 9 Hot Crafting Trends in 2022
We’re approaching the second quarter of the new year, which is a great time to look ahead at a new crop of crafting trends. Every year Stitchcraft turns a gimlet eye toward the vast community of makers to suss out their current inspirations. What moves their needles, hooks, and shuttles? Knowing the direction of trending crafts makes it easier to help them pursue their passions.
Overall, crafting is still on the rise. We’re still navigating a global pandemic—with many of us remaining at home—and makers continue to grow the skills they have picked up over the last few years. Crafting by hand is, by definition, an act of mindfulness, and you’ll notice that the trends for 2022 embrace the art of being mindful—slowing down, concentrating on a single focused task, and creating something that requires all your attention. Given recent events, it is unsurprising to see crafts that force us to slow down rising in popularity.
So, let’s dig into what’s new and hot for 2022. Some of the crafting trends are holdovers from last year and earlier, proving that once a maker picks up their tools, the passion for crafting carries on.
Time Keeps on Stitchin’
The following crafting trends have held crafters’ attention for a few years now and show no signs of letting up. You’ll notice that focus has honed in on particular areas, allowing certain crafts to rise to the top of internet searches and social media hashtags.
A Touch of Embroidery
Adding small touches of embroidery to clothing and accessories was huge last year, and it shows no signs of slowing down. Knitwear designers like Carina Spencer are hosting classes demonstrating the technique, and both knitters and sewists are exploring the possibilities of adding dimension to their craft with a little bit of embroidery. Simple designs like Rachel Kurihara’s Lazy Daisy Cardigan (above) and Laurel & Poppy’s embroidered sweatshirts (below) reign supreme, offering multicraftuals easy entree into the trend.
Visible Mending
Visible mending is here to stay. Another favorite of knitters and sewists, the slow, careful practice of visible mending continues to rise in popularity. Aside from darning wool, crafters are also investing in lots of mending accouterments like darning kits and Speedweve-style mending looms (below) for making small, colorful repairs on clothing.
Sewing by Hand – English Paper Piecing
A lot of new sewists continue to sew by hand, perhaps due to the portability, smaller investment requirements (no machine necessary) and the slower, mindful pace. In particular, we’ve noticed a lot of English Paper Piecing popping up in social media feeds. English Paper Piecing is a method of wrapping fabric around pieces of cardboard or heavy paper, and then hand sewing the pieces together into intricate shapes. It’s a meticulous, thoughtful, slow sewing practice that requires a lot of patience and time.
New for ‘22
Granny Square Fashion
While granny squares are certainly not new, granny squares are huge for 2022. They’re as prevalent on the runways as they are in fast fashion markets like Target. TikTok crocheters went viral on two separate occasions in recent months, and both times concerned the humble granny square.
In the first instance, a young TikTok influencer crowdsourced her followers for granny squares and crocheted squares, which she then turned into a cardigan, pants, bags, and more. In the second instance, a granny square cardigan on sale at Target prompted angry crafters to flood TikTok with educational videos about the actual cost of crochet, which—unlike knitting—has yet to be duplicated by machine and must be done by hand.
Paper Crafting
#Papercraft has 4.7 million hits on Instagram, while #Papercrafting has 1.8 million hits, and those numbers are only climbing. Another craft that requires a slow, focused hand, paper crafting started its upward trajectory last year but it’s really exploded this year. Crafters are opting for folded paper flowers in lieu of live bouquets that wilt by week’s end, and the art of the hand crafted card is enjoying renewed appreciation.
Terrazzo
Last year, it was all about resin. While resin crafting is still holding strong, a new contender in the poured liquid arts has entered the arena. The two trends are actually fairly similar. As with resin, terrazzo involves pouring a liquid element—in this case, cement—into a mold, and letting it dry. And as with resin, the fun part is all the little bits that get added into the mix. With terrazzo, it’s usually chips of marble, stone, polished colored glass, quartz, and even gold foil. #Terrazzo has 94.6 million views on TikTok, with crafters focusing on small objects like jewelry trays, coasters, and containers. The terrazzo look is also being imitated in a lot of polymer clay art and jewelry.
Tufting
#Tufting has 2 billion—yes, billion!—views on TikTok. In tufting, a tufting gun loaded with yarn punches through a surface fabric to create loops of fiber, resulting in three-dimensional textiles. While a tufting gun will cost aficionados a pretty penny, it looks like tufting is still a hit among young crafters. The alternative, of course, is punch needling, which also remains quite popular. Punch needling duplicates the process of tufting, but without the tufting gun. Instead, crafters repeatedly push a single punch needle through fabric by hand. While significantly slower, punch needling is a much more affordable and accessible option for the general population.
Macrame, etc
Macrame—in several different forms—is enjoying a renaissance. And it’s not the standard hanging planter the mind conjures when you hear the word ‘macrame.’ We’re seeing macrame earrings, bracelets, necklaces, bags, shoes, and more. #Macrame has almost 700 million views on TikTok.
If we reduce the idea of macrame to the art of knotted thread, then we can include friendship bracelets and jewelry made with DMC thread under the macrame umbrella.
The latest iteration of macrame, macraweaving is slated to rise in popularity this year. As the name suggests, the craft is a combination of macrame and hand weaving to create wall hangings with a highly unique, multidimensional look.
Social Crafting
This one is for all crafters, and we see it as a direct result of the last few years of pandemic life. 2022 is the year of clubs and online social events. The above example, Imagined Landscape’s Year of Gnomes, calls for crafters to knit gnomes throughout the year, with participants eligible for prize drawings. Imagine Landscape’s Sarah Schira is hosting monthly Zoom sessions so knitters can work on their gnomes together. Whether it’s a Yarn of the Month club for knitters and crocheters, or a quilter’s Block of the Month club, or a Make Along (mystery or otherwise), crafters are gathering together virtually (on Zoom, FB Live, and IG Live) to make things communally.
2022 is a fantastic year to think of ways to create kits, projects, or an ongoing virtual course (perhaps highlighting one of the crafting trends above?) around your own offerings. We’re all longing for that feeling of community, and crafters have expressed renewed interest in monthly clubs, kits, and classes.
Want help incorporating these crafting trends into your marketing strategy? Contact us today!
No Comments