Crafts used as a way to socialize

For some seniors at the Golden Hour Senior Center, craft time is something they do to hang out with their friends.

During one of the Lets Get Crafty classes, crafters were busy making wreaths out of pipe cleaners, various colored mesh and wire wreath frames.

"A couple years ago everybody was making them," crafter Theresa Stark said.

Volunteer Judy McClellan said she bought a whole bunch of different colored mesh, cut it in half and brought it for the seniors to use. She just lays the mesh out on one of the tables and lets the crafters decide what to make with it.

Stark said she was going to make her mesh wreath using red sparkly mesh because it will go with her living room.

McClellan said the mesh was cut to 10-inches and then the ladies scrunched up the mesh up to make it look like a bow before using one of the pipe cleaners to hold the bow in place. Once the pipe cleaner was wrapped around the mesh, the other end of the pipe cleaner was used to attach the mesh to the wreath. Bow after bow was placed on the wire frame and the wreath was starting to form.

One of the participants ran out of the mesh she was using, but McClellan said she had more at home. McClellan left and went home to get more mesh. While the lady was waiting for more mesh, she chatted with the other crafters and looked at their work.

She was laughing at Kay Danielson and Gail Heikkinen who were causing trouble and heckling each other.

"We don't like crafts," Heikkinen said. "We just come in and laugh. If we got to do this to laugh, we do."

To that comment Heikkinen and Danielson busted out laughing again and so did the other ladies.

Another crafter, Barbara Little, said she just enjoys being with other people. However, unlike Heikkinen and Danielson, she also loves making the crafts.

"I decorate the second and third floors at Mansface Terrace," Little said. "I decorate every month."

Attending these craft classes is a way Little can create new decorations for those floors.

 

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