The coastal grandmother aesthetic is about curating a wardrobe and home like that of a super-chic grandma who lives at the beach. Coined by TikTok influencer Lex Nicoleta, the trend is all about tuning into your inner coastal grandma by way of linen pants, caftans, bucket hats, nautical striped sweaters, and farmer’s market bags — a.k.a. channeling Diane Keaton in Something’s Gotta Give or Meryl Streep in Mama Mia!
Although the coastal grandma trend typically refers to personal style through fashion and home decor, it also extends to hobbies, including crafting. After all, many grandmothers are expert makers and even love wearing or decorating their home with a good artisanal find.
Slow crafting is a great way to lean even more into the trend if you want to expand your coastal grandmother horizons.
Coastal Grandma Meets Slow Crafting
Regarding coastal grandma-worthy crafts, projects that fall under the category of “slow crafting” fit the coastal grandma aesthetic best. Slow crafting is the art of slowly working on a project over time. These craft projects also tend to have repetitive motions that feel very meditative and allow you to wind down and relax, grandma-style.
Slow crafts typically consist of fiber materials, such as yarn or thread, but could also incorporate other elements like beading or painting. Of course, the crafts are also something you’d probably see in your chic, coastal grandmother’s home or wardrobe — we’re talking about knitted garments, crocheted blankets (hello, granny squares!), cross-stitched wall art, and latch-hook bathroom rugs.
Slow Craft Ideas
If you want to take your coastal grandma aesthetic to the next level — and reap the benefits of crafting, which can positively impact mental health and give you a nice break from screens — there are plenty of slow crafts to choose from, depending on your creative interests.
Crochet
Crochet is a beautiful fiber craft that allows you to create textiles through a repetitive process of hooking and looping yarn. We love it because it incorporates those meditative motions and is also a project you can easily work on over time, emphasizing the slow in slow crafting. If you’re a beginner, we love this simple crochet tote pattern, which doubles as a coastal grandma farmer’s market bag. For a more intermediate crochet project, this gingham tote is fun. And, if you’re super new to the art of crochet, YouTube videos are a fantastic way to learn the ropes (or, shall we say, yarns?). We love this crochet beanie tutorial for beginners, which goes over the basics of some crochet stitches.
Knitting
Similar to crochet, knitting involves making loops of yarn to create textile—only, instead of a hook, you use two large knitting needles. Nothing feels more grandma chic than learning how to knit, plus it’s a handy skill to have as you can make anything from winter wardrobe staples like chunky knit sweaters and socks to home decor items like placemats and table runners. For a beginner-friendly knitting project, we love this mock neck tank pattern. And, if you’re more of an intermediate knitter, this checkered sweater vest is so cute.
Weaving
Weaving is another amazing hobby, with all the benefits of slow crafting. The art of weaving involves making textiles—anything from rugs to tapestries to wall hangings—by weaving yarn through a loom. Whether you work on a small and portable loom or a larger, more stationary loom, it’s something you can work on here and there as you take breaks from a fast-paced schedule. If you’re brand new to weaving, we love this starter kit, which teaches you how to make a wall hanging. And, if you’re a little more seasoned, we recommend having some fun with your skills and trying a new medium such as this basket weaving kit.
Cross-Stitching
If creating textiles isn’t your thing, but you still want to try a slow craft, making art through cross-stitching is a fun alternative. This slow craft involves decorating a textile with X-shape stitches. We love cross-stitching because it doesn’t take up a lot of space, it is super easy to pick up where you left off, and you can make all sorts of cool things, including wall art, signs, and decorated garments. For a beginner-friendly cross-stitching project, we recommend this mushroom cross stitch kit. The design is simple, and the kit comes with easy-to-follow instructions. This floral cross stitch kit is a great choice if you’re more on the intermediate side of the spectrum.
Embroidery
Embroidery is a lot like cross-stitching (actually, cross-stitching is technically a type of embroidery), except it’s a lot less uniform and utilizes a variety of stitch sizes and techniques. And, similarly, it doesn’t take up a lot of space — so you can take it wherever you go!—and is something you can repeatedly return to. If you’re new to this slow craft, there are lots of fun, beginner-friendly kits on Etsy. We love this floral one because it looks way more advanced than it is. For something that is still easy enough to follow for new embroiderers, yet a little more on the intermediate side, this moth embroidery kit is stunning.
Punch Needle
If you love the way embroidery looks but don’t have the patience for all of those stitches (we get it), punch needle projects have a similar look, but use yarn and a tool that punches said yarn into the fabric to create decoration. Like embroidery, punch needling is a popular slow craft with tons of excellent kits to choose from. We love this houseplant design, which comes in a kit with everything you need to start. This punch needle pillow is another fun choice, a beginner-friendly project that would also be fun for intermediate levels.
Latch-Hooking
Latch-hook rugs were popular in the 1970s — your actual coastal grandmother might have even made them — and are back in crafty style with modern designs. This slow craft involves a hook tool to tie small pieces of yarn to a grid-like canvas. The crafting technique typically creates rugs, but you can make wall hangings and pillows with the slow craft. If you’ve never tried latch-hooking, this rainbow carpet kit is a great place to start. And, for a more intermediate latch hook kit, we love this cactus print.
We only recommend products we have independently researched, tested, and loved. If you purchase a product found through our links, Sunday Edit may earn an affiliate commission.
