As AI and automation increasingly seep into both work and leisure, a cultural counterforce is growing. People are picking up crochet hooks and knitting needles and dusting off sewing machines to escape screen time and embrace a more ‘analog’ life. Nostalgic crafts are having a moment.
“This year globally we have really seen a craft movement,” says Yazmin How, head of emerging communities at TikTok UK. The hashtag #CraftTok has seen a 60% increase in videos globally over the past 12 months, according to the platform, while #SewingTok videos are up 90%. “From knitting and crochet to upcycling and pom-pom creations, [there] has been a move toward more mindful hobbies.”
Pinterest’s 2026 Hobbies Trend report also highlights crafts among trending pastimes. Searches for “thrift flip ideas” are up 610%, “sashiko ideas” have increased 1,509%, and “crochet upcycle” searches are up 523%, according to Pinterest data shared with Vogue Business.
Rather than seeing the growth of skills that allow people to make, repair and upcycle their own clothes and accessories as a threat to sales, some brands are embracing it. On October 1, Levi’s will expand its Wear Longer Project into Europe. Launched in the US in January, the initiative is designed to educate young people to repair and reimagine their clothes through a free digital curriculum, in-classroom lessons, and community workshops that teach skills such as sewing buttons, patching holes, and repairing hems.
“Gen Z has helped make secondhand shopping, thrifting, and vintage fashion a cultural phenomenon. But we also saw a gap between that interest and the practical skills needed to keep clothes in use, with many young people lacking access to the repair knowledge that was once more commonly passed down through generations or taught in schools,” says Alexis Bechtol, director of community affairs at Levi Strauss & Co, who was the architect of the project. “For us, encouraging people to wear and care for clothing longer is not at odds with our business. We’ve long believed there is value in creating products people want to keep, repair, pass down, and continue wearing.”
Research commissioned by Levi’s found that Gen Z were the least likely of all generational groups to know how to do basic clothing repairs, and the most lacking in the right tools and materials, yet were the most interested in learning how to repair their clothes.
While Levi’s is focusing on Gen Z, TikTok’s How says no single generation has a claim on the craft boom. “We are seeing creators of all ages embracing this trend, for example Gen Z who are leaning into all things analog and trying wholesome activities, [and] older generations who are sharing their own skills and inspiring others,” she says.
