Name: Klara
Age: 22 years old
Country: Netherlands
Instagram: @luna_wear
About the series
The Healing Craft Series features creators sharing their thoughts and feelings about crafting and healing through crafting.
“[…] crocheting is like a crutch that I can lean on. It is one of the steady things in my life. Also, being creative always makes me happy.“
Klara, @luna__wear
What kind of craft do you do and how long have you been doing it for?
I crochet and I have been doing it since I was eight! In the beginning it was an on and off kinda hobby for me. Since about 2017 I have been doing it aloooooot and I’ve also started my instagram in 2018. I try to sell custom items and might start to sell patterns later on.
What is your favourite place/time of day to craft and why?
Honestly it doesn’t matter to me! All day crochet baby! I can sometimes crochet for 12 hours at a time.
What inspires you (in life & in crafting)?
I get my inspiration from people in the street, creators on Instagram and vintage stores. Lately I have been very into the 1970’s style, and so is my mom. Honestly my mom is one of my biggest inspirations! She has a very good taste in interior design that I really like & get inspiration from for my pieces as well. Sometimes I see other crochet patterns and get inspiration from them. I also watch some sewing related Youtube channels. Although I sew less often, I can still get inspiration for my crochet from them.
How has/is crafting helping you and your mental health?
For a couple of years now I have on and off struggled with depression. Although therapy and medication are necessary for me to deal with my depression, I have noticed that it is also really important for me to have a sense of purpose. I do still go to school and that makes me feel productive, but during holidays and covid lockdown that was hard. In those times crocheting is like a crutch that I can lean on. It is one of the steady things in my life. Also, being creative always makes me happy.
It is sometimes hard for me to just do nothing. Dwelling on my thoughts might happen, and that is not something I want to do. Crochet can help me be active while still being able to rest physically. I can take it anywhere and most importantly it makes me feel like I’m doing something productive. It also motivates me to come up with new ideas and keep the creative cycle going.
What is your advice to other creators (or newly started creators)?
Learning something new is always hard. It’s the very nature of learning something new. Remember that you are not doing this only for the result. You are doing it for the proces. It’s almost a meditative practice; in the beginning it feels hard and you only want to achieve an end result. But after a while, you realise that the fun of it is in the doing, not the finishing.
Anything else you’d like to share?
I hope everyone can learn to appreciate handmade and ethically made clothing a little more after reading stories like this.