“Adults don’t do crafts”—my spouse’s outburst didn’t stop me from getting hooked on crafting
A hobby I picked up in middle age has brought me so much joy, and these days I do just fine with a hot glue gun too, writes producer Natalia Rehbinder.
“Adults don’t do crafts,” my spouse blurted a few years ago, when I decked the dining table with colored paper, wooden beads, paints, a hot glue gun, and cardboard tubes. I no longer remember everything that took shape that evening, but I still remember the sensation of hot glue burning my fingertips and the time it took to peel a stuck sleeve cuff off the table.
Since that night, I’ve crafted all sorts of things and proved many times over that crafting as an adult is every bit as fun as it was as a kid. These days I do just fine with a hot glue gun, too.
”Right now I keep picturing a lidded papier-mâché jar.”
What I love most is crafting with the “free” supplies around the house—toilet paper tubes, leftover candle wax, old magazines, and books that have no other use. The thrill of making something new from an everyday item, and how at first glance no one notices the napkin ring is made from a toilet paper tube. And if it ends in a flop, no big deal.
Right now I keep picturing a lidded papier-mâché jar. It takes a lot of paper, glue, a balloon or a bowl to use as a mold, and a blender. I can’t yet say what color the jar will be or whether it will be angular or rounded along the edges. Maybe I’ll add a paw print on the side. What I do know is that the jar will be placed in pride of place on the bookcase. Inside, I’ll put the ashes of my beloved dog Max, who passed away this summer.
P.S. If you also love crafting with old books and papers, paper dahlias, honeycomb balls and angels make lovely gift ideas!
