Get crafting: The Bulletin’s guide to artisan hobbies

When Kaleidoscope opened six years ago, it was among the first of its kind in the city: a shop devoted entirely to the arts of knitting and crocheting. At the time, these pastimes were just starting to unstitch themselves from the old-granny image they had held, slowly emerging from the dark age of the unhip.

Now, waiting to cross the street on my way to meet Kaleidoscope’s owner, Rosalind Finlayson, I notice three trees on the other side are bedecked from soil to branch in cheerful knitted garments. Where did it come from, I wonder, this flood of hand-knitted hats, self-made birthday gifts, the scrapbookers, the bicycle builders, the potters, the pan-pipe carvers and the yarn bombers (the official term for those who make it their business to kit out trees, railings and other objects of the city landscape in homemade jumpers)?

Much has changed in recent years in the world of crafting. In the knitting scene alone, all over Belgium you can suddenly find workshops, ‘tricotheques’ and knitting circles like the Stitch n Bitch Brussels Facebook group all dedicated to practising the art.

But it’s not just needlecraft that’s engrossing the people. Today you can readily find cabinet-making lawyers, acrylic expressionist marketing associates, policy advisers practising molecular gastronomy in their free time. In Brussels, there’s even DIY Day, a yearly festival taking place around June devoted to all things do-it-yourself.

“It’s everywhere right now. You see people wanting to find new ways of creating something with their hands,” says Finlayson. “It’s a generation of people who didn’t have their mother or grandmother to teach them how to do these things. So you have all these workshops – cooking workshops, music workshops – and people are thinking, ‘Yeah, why not learn how to knit or crochet?’”

Véronique Bogaert, owner of the ceramics studio Atelier Nikisan in Wezembeek-Oppem, echoes Finlayson’s observations, but she sees something even more primal behind the trend: “There is this interest in everything that’s handmade, because I think people need to go back to the source. In a world of technology, people have gotten a little too far away from the basic things in life.”

Both she and Finlayson see people using crafts as a way to relax. Bogaert compares pottery to meditation, saying she sees many clients coming in after they’ve had a burnout and are looking for ways to “calm down and reconnect with the earth”.

Finlayson calls knitting “yoga for the fingers”. “My clients and I often discuss how if we’re worked up or have had a bad day, you just need to sit down for fifteen minutes with your knitting and it helps you let it go. It’s such a pleasure to just empty your head and concentrate on your project.”

Then there is the social aspect of crafting. For people who are new to the city, it can be a way to meet like-minded folk. “Knitting and crocheting are really very sociable activities,” says Finlayson. “You can sit on a terrace having a conversation with your friends over a glass of wine while you’re crocheting, for instance. Then at the end, people feel the satisfaction of having made something themselves, a totally unique piece.”

Where to start

Workshops and courses in crafts of all kinds can be found all over Brussels, from cooking to painting to sewing. Here are a few places to start.

Les Midinettes Café-Couture: You can stop by this café-couture in Saint Boniface with its several sewing machines to mend your favourite jeans, take a sewing workshop or ask for help from one of their young, professional sewers. 30 Rue Ernest Solvay, Ixelles

La Maison de Couture: Offers one-off sewing courses for those looking to pick up a few skills, as well as complete two-year training courses for people ready to take their sewing to the next level. 223 Avenue Louise, Brussels

Atelier Nikisan: Véronique Bogaert offers 10-week courses for adults in beginners to advanced ceramics. You can also rent time in the studio to work on your own projects, using her potter’s wheel and oven. Courses in English, French and Japanese. 13 Parvis St Pierre, Wezembeek-Oppem

C. Ramic Art Café: This ceramics studio near Flagey primarily hosts parties for children and adults in ceramics painting. They also run a summer workshop programme for kids that lets them explore a range of creative art including painting ceramics, African dance, mosaics, sewing, collage and every pastry-making. 112 Rue Lesbroussart, Ixelles

Crafting goes hand in hand with recycling and do-it-yourself repairs. Repair cafes are events where people can bring in their broken things – be they bikes or microwaves – and get advice on how to fix them from experts and hobby tinkerers. Repaircafe.be provides a comprehensive listing of all the repair cafes throughout Belgium.

Where to buy

Maison Lefebvre: Plenty of people are on hand in this art supplies shop, in Brussels since 1926, to help you find almost anything you need to complete your craft. 25 Rue de Midi, Brussels

Schleiper: The largest and most comprehensive art supplies stores in Brussels, Schleiper has two locations and a factory outlet in Brussels filled with every type of glue, paper, pen and frame you could imagine. 149-151 Chaussée de Charleroi, Saint-Gilles

Kaleidoscope: Primarily a yarn and thread shop selling unique, all-natural materials. Knitting, crocheting and sewing workshops also available. 17 Avenue Adolphe Demeur, Saint-Gilles

Chien Vert: There are two shops about 100 metres apart. One offers higher-end fabrics, while the second has lots of bargains and small rolls of fabrics sold at discounted prices. 2 Rue du Chien Vert, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean

Mondial Textiles: A draughty basement full of fabrics in the Marolles, where you’re likely to find plenty of discounted rolls and scraps. 20-28 Rue des Capucins, Brussels

Le Lion Droguerie: In existence since 1875, this iconic Brussels shop is the place to go for all things paint. You can buy pigments to mix yourself as well as any chemicals or solvents you might need. It’s also a general craft supply store. 55 Rue de Laeken, Brussels

Atchoum: A bead and jewellery-making shop just off Place du Jeu de Balle in the Marolles. 20 Rue des Renards, Brussels

Lokilino: A toy and craft shop that specialises in materials and art kits for children carrying brands including Djeco and La Fourmi. 45 Hoornzeelstraat, Tervuren

Créacorner: Extensively-stocked chain with materials for all crafts. Woluwé-Saint-Lambert, Waterloo, Wavre, Namur

Photo: Corbis

This article was first published in the Bulletin’s Newcomer autumn magazine 2015