Crocheted Connections: An Intergenerational Fibre Craft Project

Karen Lints, MI, Liaison Librarian, Library Services, Dr. Ferzana Chaze, Professor, School of Community Studies, and Dr. Kate Dupuis, Schlegel Innovation Leader in Arts and Aging at the Sheridan Centre for Elder Research initiated a research study called Crocheted Connections: An Intergenerational Fibre Craft Project with the support of a SRCA Growth Grant and the Centre for Elder Research.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the potential well-being implications of an intergenerational fibre craft group comprised of both older adults and Sheridan students.

Structured as an eight-week intervention, participants worked, learned, and interacted over crochet with the goal of stitching blankets for charitable donation.

The research team is creating a final report that will share best-practices for communal care settings, community centres, libraries, and educational institutions who wish to develop age-inclusive spaces that focus on shared activities.

Seven blankets were created by project participants and facilitators, and will be donated to local organizations in 2023