Comfort in crafting
Above: CRAFTING GALLORE: Clarke Central High School Craft Club member Amelia George, a senior, draws in his sketchbook in Room 325 during a Craft Club meeting on Nov. 11. George discovered the club in the weekly GLAD News at the beginning of the 2025-26 school year, and felt that it was a good opportunity to explore his creativity. “(Craft) club has a really great energy, and getting to sit down and make something each week is personally very creatively satisfying for me,” George said. Photo by Maypop Wren
CCHS’ Craft Club serves as an emotional outlet for students to build relationships and find relaxation in creation.
When stepping into Room 325 on Tuesday afternoons from 3:45 to 4:30 p.m., the sound of playful conversation and ambient music fills the space as students create crafts that vary from keychains to Shrinky Dink charms.
Founded in 2021, Clarke Central High School’s Craft Club was created when students returned in-person after the COVID-19 quarantine to help them rebuild human interaction and a sense of community. CCHS English department teacher and Craft Club faculty sponsor Cat Mills, believed that the club allows members to freely create on their own without the creative discipline in art classes or school projects.
“The students lead (the club), and they mostly enjoy working on individual projects together,” Mills said. “I (like to) see students find a place to be creative, to connect with people, and to make things that bring value to their lives, no matter what club they’re a part of.”
Above: BEAD BY BEAD: A Clarke Central High School Craft Club member picks out beads for her project during a CCHS Craft Club meeting in Room 325 on Nov. 11. CCHS Craft Club member Amelia George, a senior, found that members inspire one another because of their differences in age and creative ideas. “There’s a lot of people (in) different grade ranges in the club, and I've definitely met new creatives from around the school,” George said. “I think seeing everyone's different ideas and ways of going about their crafts really helps people brainstorm and gain inspiration for their own craft.” Photo by Maypop Wren
Craft Club primarily shares their meeting information by hung posters in the hallways and the club’s Instagram account. Mills wanted the club to encourage students by eliminating the amount of stress and emotional turmoil, and open the doors to innovation and connection.
“The act of making and creating is a powerful force against the current emotional environment students have to live in,” Mills said. “It allows them to say, even if it is just one (craft), ‘This is something beautiful I’ve brought into the world, and more beautiful things are possible.’”
George hopes that the future of Craft Club increases in attendance and familiarity, and that interested students realize the impact that crafting can have on their emotional well-being.
“If (students come) not for the club’s benefit, then (they should) for (themselves), because I really think making something with your hands from scratch is one of the most cathartic things you can do, and that could really help people, especially in high school,” George said.
Story by Finley Sleppy
Finley Sleppy is a junior at Clarke Central High School in Athens, Georgia and is the Managing Editor for the iliad Literary-Art Magazine. This year, she hopes to grow as a leader and overall creative person by trying things out of her comfort zone and supporting the CCHS community creatively. In her free time, she enjoys playing music, eating all different types of food and hanging out with her friends and family.