Crayons, coloring books aren’t just for kids at Craft Club by Cozy Crafts
At Saturday's Craft Club by Cozy Crafts event, crafters decorated coffee mugs together. Attendees said said they appreciated the cozy, relaxed atmosphere at the event. Latina Jacobs | Contributing Writer
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For Syracuse resident, Laney De’lee, her favorite way to express herself is by creating. Since she was young, De’lee has always been a crafter. She does it all: interior design, nails and vlogs. She spends her free time browsing Hobby Lobby and scrolling through Pinterest, looking for her next craft.
“I like to say I’m a serial crafter,” De’lee said. “It’s my way of expressing myself.”
De’lee started Craft Club by Cozy Crafts in September as a way for people to come together to create. The club’s mission is simple: to build a welcoming, cozy, adult space for fellow crafters in Syracuse. Her second seasonal event, held on Saturday, attracted over 80 attendees.
As life goes on, the connection to childhood tends to be forgotten, De’lee said. She wanted to curate a place where adults can come together to relive and remember their childhood creativity.
“As an adult, we kind of forget our childlike side, that expression, the freedom, the community,” De’lee said. “A lot of times, we don’t have places to gravitate toward where we could come together and just curate something and not have judgment.”
De’lee and business partner Chyna Harrison own Lux Gurl Lounge, a salon in Syracuse. De’lee decorated the salon herself: installing marble pedestals, floor designs and vinyl decorations, Harrison said. When her clients saw this creativity, they encouraged her to create a space to show it off and connect with others.
“Just talking to my clients and getting to know them, they also wanted to do something like that,” De’lee says, “They always say, ‘How do I do it?’ or, ‘Why don’t I make a club?’”
Craft Club offers a space for people like Harrison who don’t want to go out to a bar or a club. Instead, it has a laid back atmosphere where adults can come together to curate something to take home, De’lee said.
De’lee credits some of her creativity to growing up with a crafty family. Her mother, Jenny Towns, said De’lee has become more artsy as she’s grown up. Towns herself has always loved crafting and creating, and is proud of what De’lee is accomplishing.
“I am 100% proud of my daughter. Everything and anything she does,” Towns said.
Hanna Smith, a local resident, shares the cup she decorated at The Society. It was Craft Club by Cozy Crafts first event. Latina Jacobs | Contributing Writer
Craft Club hosted its first event, Color & Chill, on Sept. 28. Crafters from all over upstate New York — some traveling hours from Buffalo and Rochester — gathered to color adult coloring pages. De’lee said her vision for the event was to create a “no pressure zone” for attendees to relax and connect.
“There’s no judgement. Color however you want: inside the lines or outside the lines,” De’lee said.
De’lee hosted her first two events at The Society, but she said she hopes the club will grow to a point where crafters could meet in their own space. For now, future events will be hosted downtown, a deliberate choice to keep the events central for both locals and college students, she said.
At the club’s second event, attendees used paint pens to decorate their own cups and mugs for the autumn season. Along with crafting, the evening also included a live DJ and complimentary finger food.
Attendees said they appreciated the cozy, relaxed atmosphere, with many saying they’d come again.
“I’m always looking for something new and different to do,” Liverpool resident Nickeya Robbins-Doy said.
With success from both past gatherings, De’lee said she plans to host both paid and free events in the future. She said she’s committed to keeping prices reasonable for those who are on strict budgets, and hopes to eventually partner with local businesses.
The club creates a space for connection and calm, something that’s not always easy to find, De’lee said. That’s exactly what she hoped Craft Club would bring.
“I think we live in this instant gratification world, where we get so caught up on fast paced,” De’lee said. “I hope that this is a space where people can slow down and just enjoy the moment.”
