Learn all about the online community of Craftsy! What’s included in the membership, is it worth the price, and what are some alternative online communities? We answer all this and more with our full review here!
If you are an avid crocheter and crafter like we all are, you’ve probably been intrigued by or explored the world of online crafting communities. From Revelry to Pinterest to Etsy to Facebook Groups, there are so many free options out there to get involved with and find a community within.
But there are also many online communities you can pay to be a part of. In exchange for a monthly or yearly fee, these communities offer their members different perks and benefits on a regular basis, as well as special deals and select content.
Today we are going to show and highlight some of the membership perks and highlights of Craftsy.
What Is Craftsy?
Craftsy is an online membership space for those who want to be a part of a “collective group of curious, driven doers who believe in the power of creating”, as quoted from their website.
With a whole range of crafts and skills available, Craftsy has something for just about everyone. You’ll find content on:
- Knitting
- Crochet
- Weaving
- Spinning
- Quilting
- Sewing
- Embroidery
- Cake Decorating
- Baking
- Cooking
- Drawing
- Painting
- Photography
- Paper Crafting
- Jewelry Making
- Home Decor
- Gardening
- Woodworking
- Writing
- Fitness
- Yoga
- Fun For Kids!
This online resource has virtual classes and webinars on a variety of topics to teach you new skills or show you new tricks. Classes range from beginning level for those wanting to start something new, to experienced lessons that teach even the most veteran crafter something new.
Along with knitting and crochet classes, Craftsy has a whole library of patterns that are instantly downloadable PDFs. These patterns are made by creators at Craftsy and can’t be found anywhere else.
You can also find free recipes for baking, cooking, and cake decorating.
Membership Options
There are a few options for becoming a member of Craftsy. There’s the Premium Membership which gives you these perks:
- 24/7 Access to Over 2,000 Premium Classes and Hundreds of Instructional Videos Across 20+ Categories
- Extensive Library of Downloadable Patterns and Recipes
- Stream and Download Classes Anywhere with the Craftsy App
- Share Your Membership with up to 3 Friends or Family Members
- 2 Full-Length Classes to Keep in Your Account for Life
- Access to Ask the Expert Program
- Admission to Exclusive LIVE Streaming Virtual Events
You can purchase an annual subscription for the Premium Membership for $97, or pay a monthly subscription fee of $10 if you are unsure to what extent you will use the online space.
If you enjoy all that the Premium offers, but want more, consider the annual Gold Membership offer. It costs $166 per year and gives you these perks:
- 24/7 Access to 1,500+ Premium Online Classes Across 20+ Categories
- Extensive Library of Downloadable Patterns and Recipes
- Stream and Download Classes Anywhere with the Craftsy App
- Share your Membership with up to 3 friends or family members
- 8 Full-Length Classes of Your Choice to Keep in Your Account for Life
- 10 Patterns, Guides, or Recipes of Your choice to Download to Your Devices
- 20% off Purchase-to-Own Classes in the Craftsy Shop (Select Classes Only)
- Access to Ask the Expert Program
- Exclusive GOLD LIVE Virtual Events
Perks of Membership
You can access some of the benefits of Craftsy without a Membership. You can subscribe to their newsletter and email promotions where you’ll get alerted to new pattern drops and any current deals happening across the site.
Without a membership, you can still purchase classes individually as well as buy a few select patterns. However, the majority of the content on Craftsty is only available to active Members.
After choosing and signing up for your Membership level, all of Craftsy becomes immediately available to you upon login.
Along with the classes, recipes, and patterns available, Crafty also offers extensive sales, perks, and benefits for their members with the affiliated businesses they partner with. Some examples of the current deals available to members are:
- Exclusive Kit Deals (i.e. 30% off Stitchen’ Heaven Exclusive Quilt Kit)
- Deals for Meal Delivery Services
- Saving Codes and Coupons for craft stores like Michaels
- Grocery Delivery Services
- Extended Free Trials and Limited Savings for Streaming Services
- Traveling Deals
…and so much more! These perks go beyond just crafting and can give the whole family access to fun!
Things We Like
Let’s be clear….we are not affiliated with Craftsy and we aren’t a paid partner with them. We are simply avid crafters who have tried this community out and want to share our experiences of it with other crafters.
Some highlights that we really like about the Premium Membership (we have not tried the Gold) are:
- Family Sharing options – you PLUS three friends/family members can have your own login to the same account to enjoy all the same membership perks. This is a really great way of sharing resources as crafters!
- Online chat help – whether it’s for a specific pattern, for a housekeeping question, or looking for specific resources, their online chat is accessible most of the time and has prompt answering times!
- Unlimited class watches – although you can only save a limited number of classes into your personal library for on-demand watching, you can access an unlimited amount of classes and learn so many new skills!
Things We’d Love To See
There really isn’t much about Craftsy that we don’t like. But one thing that certainly feels like it’s missing is the social aspect of this community. Without forums, a news feed, or even much ability to respond within the comment sections, you really aren’t paying to be a part of a community, but rather just for a resource.
If you’re looking to connect with other crafters across the country or the world, Craftsy isn’t the best option for you. We suggest using other online forums for social connection. Ravelry is a go-to online community for fiber artists where you can join topic-specific communities, add friends, message, and connect with fiber artists from across the globe. Plus, it’s free!
In Conclusion
If you are looking for a good variety of resources pertaining to all things crafty, then Craftsy is definitely worth the investment. You can learn so many new things (it’s not just for your crochet projects!), perfect old skills, and expand your knowledge of your craft.
This online resource has so many great avenues for expanding your creativity and skill sets and is certainly inspirational!