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Can you get a grant for cross stitch?

Posted on by Kristen Gawronski

Hi Everyone

At the end of June this year, it came to my attention that if I were part of a community group, organisation or on my own (as long as it was not to make money), I could apply for a grant from my local government that could be used for improving the mental health of my community! This particular grant I have in mind, is specific to the current pandemic and wave of infections we’re all trying to avoid.

But it got me thinking…aside from the Mental Health and Wellbeing Innovation Grants Program, what other grants are available for the creative arts that can assist with our current environment, let alone the creative arts generally speaking?

Artwork Archive Complete Guide to 2020 Artist Grants & Opportunities

This site is amazing! The Artwork Archive have listed all of the grants and opportunities that they consider to the be the best for artists who are needing a helping hand in some shape or form. The opportunities are from around the world and some are specific to people who are living in a specific area, region or country and in some circumstances, the type of art that’s being done. The list is in order of deadline date and I think is worth checking out!

Advance-Africa – 1000+ Artist Grants and Opportunities

This site lists a looong list of creative grants and opportunities – over 1000 as the heading says – that are connected to Africa. They also have scholarships and volunteer options for different areas of Africa.

VicArts Grants – Creative Victoria

This site is a little closer to home for me because it’s Victoria, Australia. This grant, like many of the others in this post are for a variety creative arts. Ranging from theatre productions to concerts to art installations such as sculptures and paintings.

Just the tip of the iceberg

The grants mentioned in this post are just a sample of the huge variety grants out there. If you’re having trouble deciding on what grant to apply for, here are a few things to consider:

  • Why are you applying for the grant?
  • What are you going to use it for?
  • How is it going to help you?
  • What are the conditions with the grant?
  • Is it the right grant for you?
  • Is it possible for it to benefit others as well?
  • What work do you need to do to prepare for the grant?
  • How are you going to prove you’ve used the grant the way you said you would?

There are a lot of questions and potentially more that you may need to ask yourself and others who may be involved.

How do you apply for a grant?

This depends greatly upon what type of grant you’re applying for and why. Some grants may require you to submit a portfolio of your work to prove your abilities and how you may use the grant. Others may require you to provide the panel or board with a cover sheet or series of forms similar to a job application.

The awesome thing is that there are numerous websites and guides on how to apply for grants. The related links section provides you with some links to sites that can help you with this process. Additionally, the sites you go to, to apply for the grant of your choice will have supporting documents on what criteria you need to meet to be considered for the grant.

You have successfully received a grant! Now what?

If I were prepared for it, I would apply for the grant I mentioned at the start of this post. It would be used to try and bring my local community together to hang out and do cross stitch and learn how to do cross stitch. Some of the funds could go towards gift cards for people to use to purchase the supplies they need to start or complete a project. Whilst other funds could go towards gift vouchers for people to purchase food and drink from local cafes that they can eat and drink whilst stitching.

But that’s what I would do. Have you successfully received a grant? What did you do with it? How did it help you?

Until next time,

Happy stitching!

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Author:

I am an avid cross stitcher. I was first introduced to cross stitch when I was primary school age. Paused for while during my teens and then took it up again in my early/mid 20's and I haven't looked back. To mitigate the amount of time I'm sitting down stitching, I'm a regular member of the gym and I'm a runner. To keep me motivated, I participate in short to medium length fun runs. Which at times feel torturous, but I feel really good at the end of them! With these activities in mind, this blog is about the combination of my experiences with running and cross stitch and encouraging people to think differently about cross stitch - it's not just Grandma's who do this anymore!