If you’re the type of person who loves crafting, you’re always in search of new challenges that can still evoke that same old joy of creation. We are naturally creative beings, and there’s nothing more rewarding than unleashing those old creative skills with a new craft such as diamond painting. In a short span of time it has grown from niche to darling of the arts and crafts community – and here are six great reasons why.
1. Old Art, New Artistry
While it gets a lot of attention as something new on the arts and crafts scene, at its heart, diamond painting is a form of mosaic, allowing users to tap into a much older and grander tradition of artistry and craftsmanship.
Mosaics are some of the oldest and grandest pieces of art to be found in cultures across the globe, from the Greeks and Romans to the Islamic world and Byzantines and Eastern Orthodox Church. They have been used to represent everything from abstract patterns to dazzlingly complex shapes and scenes, and diamond painting allows you to do the same.
Simply fit the different gems in place one by one, and bit by bit you’ll be able to create something that looks like a classic mosaic made modern, allowing you to take an old art form and, like Modernist artists, “Make it New.”
2. Easy to Learn
If you’re working, raising a family, or your days are otherwise filled with activity, you don’t necessarily have time to learn a new, complex craft. Thankfully, diamond painting is incredibly easy and accessible. All you have to do is select the gems you want and press them into place on the board serving as your base.
3. Family and Friends
Art is best when shared with others. From Monet and Renoir living the starving artist life side by side as they birthed Impressionism together in 1868 to Andy Warhol’s Factory for underground experimental art in the 1950s and 60s New York, some of the best art has been the product of communities. This is why leading diamond painting brands like Dreamer Designs serve as a spotlight for contemporary artists, forming a community of diamond artists.
Diamond painting is the perfect artistic activity for family and friends. For one thing, its pieces are accessible enough for everyone to be able to work on a project at once. It can be difficult (and messy) for several people to paint a canvas together. With diamond painting, however, you all have access to the same gems and can simply stick them into place together. In fact, working together can speed up what might otherwise be a slow process.
4. Sharpen Your Mind
One of the best ways to keep your mind sharp and active is to keep it creative. Studies have shown time and again challenging your brain with engaging artistic endeavors can have positive intellectual, emotional, and psychological benefits.
That’s why, if you are looking for a way to stay sharp yourself or keep someone you love mentally and creatively active, a diamond painting kit can be a great idea. Not only is the mosaic-like nature of a diamond painting a natural fit for those looking to bring a touch of aestheticism into their lives, but fitting the individual gems together into something greater can feel like a puzzle.
Part of the magic of making a mosaic is balancing how different stones or gems look on their own or in small clusters as opposed to their place within the greater whole. This brings an air of problem-solving into the process, which can be great for those looking to sharpen their mind.
5. Stress Relief
There is nothing quite as relaxing as an arts and crafts project. It allows you to engage the parts of your brain that are great at puzzle-solving and artistry while turning off the parts dwelling on daily stress. Whatever problems you may have, you can leave them aside and focus on something that requires just enough mental energy to be engaging while being just casual enough to be relaxing.
This makes diamond painting an ideal stress relief activity.
6. An Affordable Hobby
Painting materials have always been expensive. Monet and Renoir really were “starving artists” at the start of their careers, with the former surviving for a time on bread the latter would steal from his family. If money is tight, but you still want to unlock your creative potential, switching to diamond painting can be an affordable way of doing so. The materials are far less expensive, allowing you to cut out the stress and guilt of pricey expenditures and instead focus on your art.
All of these reasons make the reasons behind the ascent of diamond painting into modern arts and crafts phenomenon as obvious as it is glorious.
