{"id":94785,"date":"2026-02-25T09:04:38","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T15:04:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=94785"},"modified":"2026-02-25T09:04:39","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T15:04:39","slug":"crafters-social-hour-builds-community-creativity-at-hays-public-library","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=94785","title":{"rendered":"Crafter\u2019s Social Hour builds community, creativity at Hays Public Library"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>By LAURA DANIEL<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Tiger Media Network<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A welcoming space for creativity and connection is taking shape through the Crafter\u2019s Social Hour, organized by Hays Public Library Cataloging Coordinator Sara Doyle. The event offers community members a dedicated time to work on personal craft projects while meeting others who share similar interests. The Crafter\u2019s Social Hour takes place from 5:30-7 p.m. every Wednesday in the Schmidt Community Commons at the Hays Public Library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Doyle said the program was created in response to community demand.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cCrafter\u2019s Social Hour began because of requests from the public wanting to have a designated time to work on their projects and meet new people,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The gathering follows a \u201cbring your own project\u201d format, allowing participants to explore a wide variety of crafts. Doyle noted that seeing others\u2019 work often sparks fresh inspiration.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSeeing and discussing different projects can provide new ideas,\u201d she said. \u201cAlso, having a dedicated time to work on projects can be motivating.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Among the most popular crafts are knitting, crochet and cross-stitch, though participants are welcome to bring any project they choose. The group prides itself on being accessible to all experience levels.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cParticipants love to teach their crafts, so supplies are kept on hand to teach others,\u201d Doyle said, emphasizing the group\u2019s supportive, beginner-friendly atmosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Beyond creativity, Doyle highlighted the mental health benefits of crafting. She explained that repetitive motions can have a calming effect, while working alongside others fosters a sense of connection and community. Completing a project, she added, provides participants with a strong sense of accomplishment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Building the crafting community has been especially rewarding for Doyle.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s rewarding to expand knowledge and inspire creativity with this group,\u201d she said. \u201cThe crafters love to talk about their hobbies and get people interested in learning something new.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Participants regularly share skills by discussing their projects, asking questions and offering advice, creating an informal learning environment where everyone contributes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For those considering attending for the first time, Doyle said preparation is simple.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf you aren\u2019t working on a project, you only need to bring a desire to try something new,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you do have a project, just bring your supplies.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By LAURA DANIEL Tiger Media Network A welcoming space for creativity and connection is taking shape through the Crafter\u2019s Social Hour, organized by Hays Public&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":142,"featured_media":94786,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3397,11],"tags":[16277,3126,14325,16256],"class_list":["post-94785","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-area-news","category-news","tag-crafting","tag-hays-public-library","tag-hpl","tag-laura-daniel"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tigermedianet.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/webentwicklerin-sewing-kit-5063401_1280.jpg?fit=1280%2C854&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94785","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/142"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=94785"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94785\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":94787,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94785\/revisions\/94787"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/94786"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=94785"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=94785"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=94785"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}