“I’ve always been into arts and crafts because my grandmother was a preschool teacher, so I was always around crafts,” Sara Kravitz, a senior at Malden High School who attended this program said, as she expressed her love for creating designs and beaded bracelets.
Kravitz, along with some others who also enjoy art, showed up to the beaded jewelry program hosted by the Malden Public Library on February 8th, 2024.
When it began, Patrick Brennan, who hosted this bracelet-making event, was very welcoming to all the kids walking in.
“We do programs all year long. I’ve been working here for about ten years and we try to do at least one arts and crafts-inspired thing per month,” Brennan explained.
All the supplies that were available to the kids. HASET TESFAW
Once people started getting seated with their supplies, Brennan walked over to each table and taught them how to get started.
Brennan helping the kids with their bracelets. HASET TESFAW
“I know a lot of kids like to collect these kinds of bracelets. Some of them enjoy trading their designs with their friends or even gifting it to them. It’s like a fun prize that you get to make yourself. Oftentimes, people make it for their friends,”Brennan said, “The main purpose of a friendship bracelet is to gift it to a friend.”
Kravitz and her friend, Alexandra Rodrigues, were making matching bracelets for each other. “I’m making a bracelet with the letter “A” on it for Alexandra, with blue and purple beads on it and she’s also making one for me with my initials.”
Kravitz (on the left) and Rodrigues (on the right) holding up the matching bracelets they were making for each other. HASET TESFAW
Brennan hopes to try new things in the future to get more people interested in attending the events.
“Two weeks from now, we’re doing a make-your-own lip balm program. I’m excited about getting a variety of programs that they’d really enjoy and hopefully, they decide to go to it in their free time as well. This would give them the skills and the confidence to try it out at least once here, in a very low-stakes environment, before they do it on their own.”
“This is our first time coming to this one, and I didn’t have work today so I was like ‘Let’s go out and just have some fun,’” Kravitz explained. “Alexandra sent me the flyer for it and I thought it looked very fun.”
Brennan emphasized how he would like to give more kids “a variety of things to do at the library and reasons to come in, besides books.”
Kids showing their finished products. HASET TESFAW
“Oftentimes we get people who are very excited when it’s their first time, and they’ll try and do it more than once and get excited for when we would do it again. I did this program in September, and this is the second time that I’ve done it and it’s been great,” Brennan said.
People showed up to this event for a variety of reasons. Some may have just had nothing else to do or wanted to gift it to a loved one, but some decided to come as a way to calm down and unwind.
“I’m a senior and a lot of things are happening at school and it’s very stressful. So just getting to sit here, make a bracelet, and relax and talk to Alexandra is really peaceful for me,” Kravtiz stated.
The Malden Public Library encourages you to check out the events that they always have going on. “All of our programs can be found on our website on the online calendar. We also post them on Facebook and other social media,” Brennan finished.
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