Crafting is a great hobby to have, whether you enjoy crochet, paper crafts, woodwork or a type of DIY. Being able to move your ideas forward and improve your skills is essential in crafting, but sometimes it can feel like you are stuck creating the same pieces without any clue how to progress. We’ve put together a list of the 10 best effective ways to improve your crafting in order to help you get new inspiration.
Practice
Practicing your craft is a surefire way to improve your crafting skills and progress each piece that you make. Practice really does make perfect, so getting to grips with a new technique or hobby will be easier the more you try. It’s very rare for anyone to be good at something the first few times they try and even experts need to practice regularly to keep their skills fresh.
Make Time For Regular Crafting
Incorporating time into your schedule every week to work on your crafting will help to open up your imagination as well as improve your skills. If you’re working on a large project then you’ll be able to feel the sense of achievement as you see it unfold. As practice is important in crafting, it’s helpful to know that you have time set aside to devote to your hobby.
Join Classes
Joining classes and groups that focus on your chosen craft will help you connect with like minded people. You’ll be able to chat and share ideas and tips that will help to improve your skills and give you new techniques to think about. If you have a particular hobby then you can regularly learn and practice, or you could try a new craft to learn something a bit different. 
Use Social Media
Facebook and Pinterest are full of groups and boards related to hobbies and crafts, so joining one or more will put you in touch with information and new people to chat with. You can also check Twitter for craft-related hashtags and search YouTube for the hundreds of videos that will help you to improve your crafting.
Attend Events
If there are events in your area then attending them and joining in will give you a new burst of inspiration and creativity. Festivals, exhibitions and fairs are all great places to view other people’s work and new products as well as get chatting to people. If there aren’t many events in your area then visiting your local craft store and taking a look down the aisles relating to your hobby will help you to learn about the new trends and products on offer for you.
Read Books and Articles
If you have a local library or bookstore then take a look at all the crafting books available, you’re sure to find at least one that speaks out to you and will help you improve in your chosen crafting area. Similarly, searching online for articles, blogs and tutorials will bring up a vast array of knowledge that you can learn from and use in your practice.
Try a New Technique
If you’re finding a particular crafting technique or hobby difficult even with practice, there is no need to give up completely. Trying out a new technique will help you to see things from a different perspective and you’ll be able be able to find a new type of skill that is more suited to you.
Perform Exercises and Stretches to Help You
Your crafting will be improved if your body is in a good state to cope with the demands placed upon it. Hand exercises are great to ensure your hands stay healthy and to prevent any pain from performing repetitive movements as pain can impact on your project. Take a look here for some great hand exercises that will help crocheters, as they’ll also help to prevent pain in many other types of crafts too.
