NoIt’s not a revival, nor nostalgia, nor even a trend. But a need and a cultural change. Millennials and Gen Z, the most connected young people in history, are increasingly choosing creative hobbies, manual and analogue activities. Away from screens and notifications. “Grannycore” (grandmother’s style) has hundreds of millions of views on social media, but initiatives in real life are increasing exponentially, with courses of all kinds: from crochet to ceramics and goldsmithing, through DIYpastry making, decoupage, gardening, latte art (to make drawings on cappuccinos), creation of mandalas and scrapbooks (the old collage).
Knitting (crochet and knitting) is the new aperitif. Balls of yarn are now being rolled out everywhere: at bars, at the cinema, on the train, in the squares, during dedicated festivals and fairs. According to the research firm Global Growth InsightYes, the global market in the sector is worth 9.5 billion dollars, but thanks to the passion of the very young will reach 18 billion by 2034. It was above all TikTok that drove the trend. The hashtag #Knittok has over a billion global views. But all the “slow hobbies” are growing.
«It is the younger segment of Gen Z that has pushed this trend» he explains Alice Avallone, digital anthropologistresearcher of cultural insights (the reasons for social behaviors, ed) and director of Buns, a digital anthropology studio in Turin. «Kids are looking for authenticity, they want to dedicate themselves to activities that can be done with their hands. After many years of digital and virtual, now we want to slow down and escape the algorithms. And then the pride and satisfaction of creating something are enormous. The social dimension of these hobbies should not be overlooked. The kids want to be part of a group, to feel less alone.”
NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 5: The top model Daria at the “knitting party” organized by the IMG Models at Knit New York agency in February 2004. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Getty Images)
Online communities are central, which host video tutorials and are sources of inspiration. But more and more often communities emerge from the virtual and become real. Like that of Scifé in Milan: «Together with two friends, architects like me, Sofia Rodriguez and Chiara De Giglio, we organize workshops on crochet, ceramics, both modeled and painted, goldsmithing, costume jewellery, embroidery and painting» says Vittoria Venditti. «The meetings take place once a week, during aperitif time, in various venues in the city. Who participates? Especially high school and university students, but not only. PWe think that manual work is very important, it helps to detach from the screento reconnect with oneself and communicate with those around.”
Crochet at the cinema
Rosa Marvulli invented the “crochet movie night“, crochet evenings at the cinema. «We created the first event years ago, at the time of the film The devil wears Prada” remember. «I work in a multiplex and it seemed natural to combine the two things». Marvulli is a knitting influencer. He started with TikTok and his tutorials have hundreds of thousands of views. «The most requested designs? Lycra hats and bags. All age groups follow me. On Facebook the more mature people, on Instagram the very young and on TikTok I have a varied audience.”
Murrillo’s workshopa hobby shop in the province of Pescara, offers Instagram live broadcasts, advice on Telegram and videos on YouTube to teach the art of scrapbooking (diaries decorated with different ornaments) for making cards and postcards. In Turin, the Panacea Social Farm cooperative offers sourdough bread-making workshops.
In Rome, from October 25th, through the Nathivia platform, the artist Paola Schiavoni teaches the art of the mandalacolorful geometric design of Buddhist origin. Also in the capital, the Magazzino artisans in social cooperative is planning a mosaic course for October. The program also includes courses in glassmaking, gardening and much more. For carpentry, DIY and restoration, courses are planned in Milan and other cities.
Repetitive gestures that relieve thoughts
Choosing slowness over the immediate gratification of likes and comments is good for your mental and physical health. «Making something with your own hands helps you gain confidence in your abilities. Creating leads to thinking in an unusual way, adapting what is available to shape new results” explains psychologist Eva Pascoli, president of the Order of Psychologists of Friuli-Venezia Giulia.
«Repetitive gestures, such as those for knitting, for example, can produce a calming effect because they isolate the mind from everything that surrounds us. Hand movements regulate the rhythm of breathing and heartbeat and induce relaxation».
The non-profit organization Gomitolorosa commissioned a study on knitting (knitting) from the Carlo Besta Neurological Institute in Milan (also published in the journal Scientific Report) with surprising results. Knitting or crocheting is similar to meditation. «It is good for the brain, reduces anxiety and fear, increases the level of attention and, in the case of cancer patients, it makes them more concentrated during conversations with doctors” explains the general director of Gomitolorosa, Ivana Appolloni, who has brought “wool therapy” to over forty Italian hospitals. Analog pastimes also have another advantage, dear to the younger ones: they are sustainable.
Avallone reflects: «Repairing a piece of furniture, sewing a dress, reshaping old clothes with waste materials are more or less consciously political gestures. Claiming time for yourself and leaving a tangible footprint is a form of freedom, a going back, a profound cultural need that will not go out of fashion.
For girls there is added value. Hobbies that until now had been considered typical of housewives and, in some ways, an instrument of the patriarchy that did not want the independence of wives now take on a different meaning. They can represent an economic resourceon many online platforms people sell their own products, from jewelery to handbags, creating a micro-enterprise” concludes the anthropologist.
«And women’s work, until now trivialized and depreciated, is now valued and celebrated».