A recent study has found that painting is the most googled therapeutic craft in the UK. SVG marketplace Design Bundles based their research on the number of times each therapeutic craft was searched for online each month. Painting was found to have an average of 136,000 Google searches each month, which makes it the most popular craft that helps with mental health issues.
Therapeutic Crafts for Mental Health Relaxation
It was recently discovered that one in four people experience mental health problems in the UK each year. Many people who deal with mental health issues turn to therapeutic crafts to help them cope with the symptoms of their condition. It can be soothing to spend a few hours creating something without time constraints or outsider expectations.
Painting
After the First World War, many veterans found that doing crafting activities helped them to cope with their post-traumatic stress disorder. Art therapy was found to help improve mental health issues as well having physical benefits. In modern times, the link between crafting and mental health benefits has been studied in further detail. Any form of art, whether it be textile crafts or visual arts can help to improve an individual’s social interactions, as well as their cognitive abilities.
Drawing/Colour
After painting, the second most commonly googled craft is drawing. There are an average of 98,000 online searches each month. Internet users can find drawing tutorials online, as well as advice on where to buy art supplies.
Although colouring had a lower average search volume of 30,000, this art form also made it into the top ten list of therapeutic crafts. Adult colouring books have become more mainstream as more and more people realise the benefits of taking a few hours to decorate pre-drawn pictures.
One of the reasons that these two crafts might be so popular is that they only require paper and a few pencils. Research has also shown that colouring therapy can relax the fear centre of the brain and help to ease a restless mind.
Origami
Origami is another paper-based craft that has seen a surge in online searches in recent months. There are an average of 34,000 Google searches every month, which places the Japanese art form as the eighth most popular therapeutic craft in the UK. It is a craft that is enjoyed by people of all ages as the patterns range from simple to more complex.
Calligraphy
Many people have taken to googling calligraphy if they would rather learn to write on paper than fold or paint on it. The artistic writing form has been searched for an estimated 46,000 times every month. There are various tools that can be used for calligraphy, such as specialised brushes, although beginners can start learning the basics with just a pen and paper.
Calligraphy has been proven to improve the cognitive function of older people who have mild cognitive impairment. This means that their abilities for problem-solving and abstract thinking are helped through the creativity and physical demands of calligraphy.
What are the top ten most googled therapeutic crafts in the UK
Aside from the paper crafts, there were also art forms that required other materials. Crochet was the fourth most googled therapeutic craft with 54,000 average searches each month. This number was over double the number of searches that knitting had, which was googled 24,000 times on average.
Wool and Yarn Crafts
Both crafts use wool or yarn, although crochet uses a single hook whilst knitting is generally done with two needles. There are a number of stitches that can be learned, which can be used to make clothing garments and household decorations. These crafts are traditionally associated with women, although men have also started picking up the hobby in recent years. The internet has helped showcase the diverse nature of crafting and shown that people from all backgrounds can enjoy the same art forms.
Tie-Dye and Macrame
Other craft forms that received high Google search volumes in recent months were tie-dye and macrame. Tie-dye is most commonly associated with the hippy movement in the 1970s, largely thanks to the concept of reusing old clothing and psychedelic patterns. However, as with most fashion trends, tie-dye clothes are becoming favoured some years after they were previously popular.
The art of tie-dye involves a relaxing process of tying rubber bands around the chosen garment and placing different coloured dyes onto it to create an abstract pattern. There are different types of materials that can be used in the craft, such as yarn, string and twine. As with crocheting and knitting, there are simpler types of knots that beginners can start with, as well as more complicated knots for advanced crafters.
Another old craft form is macrame, which is the art of tying knots to make intricate patterns and decorations. People search for macrame online around 36,000 times every month, which makes it the seventh most commonly googled therapeutic craft.
This knotting craft can be traced back centuries to Arabic weavers around the 13th century. Although crafts such as these would have historically been taught from one generation to the next through physical demonstrations, this research study shows that more and more people are learning crafts through the internet.
Below is a table showing the most commonly googled therapeutic craft in the UK. The search volumes show the average number of times that a craft is googled each month.
| Therapeutic craft | Average monthly searches per month (UK) |
| Painting | 136,000 |
| Drawing | 98,000 |
| Photography | 66,000 |
| Crochet | 54,000 |
| Calligraphy | 46,000 |
| Tie Dye | 44,000 |
| Macrame | 36,000 |
| Origami | 34,000 |
| Colouring | 30,000 |
| Knitting | 24,000 |
Using art as a form of occupational therapy can help to reduce the negative feelings that often accompany mental illness or physical ailments. It can help to channel emotions into creating something, which in turn can help to build self-esteem.
Art Events
Some communities have started hosting arts events to help reduce social isolation. Using non-medical alternatives such as this could ease the number of patients needing to use the national health service. Many people might also feel more comfortable seeing an art therapist than a traditional doctor too.
A spokesperson for Design Bundles commented on the study and said:
“792 million people are affected by mental health conditions worldwide, so it’s important that people know there are lots of different approaches they can take to help improve their mental wellbeing. These figures show that there is plenty of interest in crafts which also have therapeutic benefits, so hopefully, we will continue to see activities such as painting, photography and calligraphy helping people manage their mental health.”
I know for a fact art helps with mental health. If only schools and colleges made this more of a requirement and stop taking art programs out we would encourage adults to be more artistic
Coloring is my go to when I’m feeling stressed. It helps me and I always really do feel better.
I can see how crafts can be beneficial in so many ways. This is a good food for thought post.
We have been doing those gem color by number things recently, which really helps ground and yourself. We take that time to reflect as well and calm down, which has been good.