The Healing Power of Art and Crafts
What happens when given the opportunity to make open-ended art and connect with caregivers through prescriptive craft projects?
The answer is magic.
Making art can strengthen emotional expression, self-esteem, and self-awareness. Together, art and crafts can boost a child’s mood and reduce stress. They offer an outlet for emotions that words alone cannot convey, while creating opportunities for connection and fostering a sense of belonging. Honing fine motor skills, improving patience, and developing concentration are just the cherries on top.
We ship art-and-craft kits directly to foster families nationwide. We also work with local organizations to distribute kits to kids in foster care, students in under-resourced schools, and patients in children’s hospitals. Volunteers in Portland, Oregon create and assemble the kits themselves. We have no big machines. No conveyer belts. No automatic counting or sorting devices. Just the loving hands and hearts of people who care about making kids happy.
Our Mission
Craft + Boogie Collective is a 501c3 charity that makes art-and-craft kits for kids in foster care, patients in children's hospitals, and students in under-resourced schools in the US, with a mission to encourage self-expression, boost self-esteem, and create memorable moments of bonding between vulnerable children and trusted adults.
Since its founding in 2018, Craft + Boogie Collective has prepared 25,000 craft projects for more than 8,000 children in need across the United States.
“I applied for one of your kits as a foster parent pretty much the moment it was announced, and it arrived on Monday. The moment I told my foster son the package was for him, the smile on his face could have lit up a room. He delighted in exploring everything in the box and then choosing a project - his first choice was the bunny ears. He figured out how to make most of it on his own just from the pictures provided in the guide. An ocean of glue and a whole lot of patience later, he was gleefully hopping around the house with his bunny disguise, demanding that everyone else also take a turn with it. The sheer joy he got from this simple project is such a blessing, because life hasn't been (and probably won't be for some time) easy for this sweet boy. But he loves art and creating. So I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your generosity and for making this small blessing available to him and to other children in similar situations.”
— Leanne Thurman