Love Creative Therapy is exactly what it is - a love of creative therapy!
Today, as well as crafting endeavours, Love Creative Therapy is a brand of handmade handbags and accessories. Each product is handmade by me, in my little library, and each is special.
The Love Creative Therapy story starts with knitting. My Nanny taught me to knit when I was little. I have to admit, I could do it, but had little interest in it! It wasn’t until I was in my twenties after Nanny had died, that I found her needles. I was going through a rough time and couldn’t really sit still without fidgeting. So, I started knitting. First plain garter stitch, then purl stitch. Then the obligatory scarf made from different coloured stripes, but I found the repetition boring and started making little toys. After a while, I decided to try crochet because I love Granny Squares. After conquering crochet, I moved on to sewing. When I got my first sewing machine, it terrified me… it looked set to stitch right through my fingers because it moved so fast. So, I took a dressmaking course, learned how to tame the beast and haven’t looked back since! After deciding dressmaking wasn’t for me (I’m not careful enough with my measurements! And a cm out is a different dress size.) I tried smaller projects that would be challenging and made three bags for charity from patterns I found on the internet. I then auctioned them off, and donated the proceeds to War on Want. But people liked them! So, I started experimenting, trying different bag patterns and materials – naturally, due to personal preference, I used tartans and tweeds, often upcycling material from pleated skirts. Love tartans and tweeds :) Only after an impulse buy of Harris Tweed from eBay did I try tweed, and it made such a beautiful bag! I was hooked! I used a pattern from Charlie’s Aunt (on etsy) that was quite vintage – the Sudbury Saddle bag. It was so pretty. I found something I love to do!
For me, crafting was the silver lining to a fairly horrible time in my life. It was my therapy. It allowed me to set myself a goal, have something to work towards and gave me such enjoyment. It still does :)
The Love Creative Therapy story starts with knitting. My Nanny taught me to knit when I was little. I have to admit, I could do it, but had little interest in it! It wasn’t until I was in my twenties after Nanny had died, that I found her needles. I was going through a rough time and couldn’t really sit still without fidgeting. So, I started knitting. First plain garter stitch, then purl stitch. Then the obligatory scarf made from different coloured stripes, but I found the repetition boring and started making little toys. After a while, I decided to try crochet because I love Granny Squares. After conquering crochet, I moved on to sewing. When I got my first sewing machine, it terrified me… it looked set to stitch right through my fingers because it moved so fast. So, I took a dressmaking course, learned how to tame the beast and haven’t looked back since! After deciding dressmaking wasn’t for me (I’m not careful enough with my measurements! And a cm out is a different dress size.) I tried smaller projects that would be challenging and made three bags for charity from patterns I found on the internet. I then auctioned them off, and donated the proceeds to War on Want. But people liked them! So, I started experimenting, trying different bag patterns and materials – naturally, due to personal preference, I used tartans and tweeds, often upcycling material from pleated skirts. Love tartans and tweeds :) Only after an impulse buy of Harris Tweed from eBay did I try tweed, and it made such a beautiful bag! I was hooked! I used a pattern from Charlie’s Aunt (on etsy) that was quite vintage – the Sudbury Saddle bag. It was so pretty. I found something I love to do!
For me, crafting was the silver lining to a fairly horrible time in my life. It was my therapy. It allowed me to set myself a goal, have something to work towards and gave me such enjoyment. It still does :)