Cheap Thrills for Hard Times : Crafts: Hobbies such as wearable art and stained glass have become more than an inexpensive source of gifts. Many people are turning them into money-making jobs.

Some call it the “ladened look.” Drooping with beads, rhinestones, satin flowers, leather strips and a pint of acrylic paint, some hand-decorated T-shirts belong in the Museum of Contemporary Art’s Helter Skelter exhibit.

Such wearable art has “taken off like no other craft,” said Susan Brandt, director of communications for the New Jersey-based Hobby Industries of America, begun in 1940. “Women are looking for new surfaces--and they’re gluing them, jeweling them, beading them, painting and stenciling them. Most products turned out are tasteful. But some people can get carried away.”

Wearable art is one of scores of crafts that Americans are turning to during the recession. Armed with hot glue guns, plastic poppies, Styrofoam balls, glitter and grapevine wreaths, many have discovered that crafts are a good source for inexpensive gifts. Others have turned their hobbies into money-making jobs. The result runs the gamut from kitchen kitsch to gallery-quality arts.

The crafts industry posted $6.5 billion in sales in 1990 and $6.8 billion in 1991, Brandt said. “We did a survey in 1989 showing that 64% of all households had at least one person involved in some sort of craft. By 1991, the figure had jumped to 77%. We consider ourselves a recession-resistant industry.”

Kelly Bloomfield took a T-shirt decorating class in April at Bev’s Crafts & Lace in Reseda. After friends and relatives began ordering complete ensembles, including matching socks and shoes, Bloomfield applied for a business license.

She grossed $6,000 in sales during six months of work last year and anticipates sales of $20,000 this year.

“It’s nice, extra income during these rough times,” said Bloomfield, who works 10 hours each week and sells most of her creations for $25. “A lot of moms are doing this. I stand outside of my son’s school, and every mom is either wearing it or selling it.”

Beverly Blank, owner of Bev’s Crafts & Lace, said attendance at her 10 weekly classes has jumped about 30% since the summer. “A lot of people are out of work, and so they’re making things they would normally buy,” Blank said. “People are making their own centerpieces and favors for weddings and baby showers. Gift baskets are also really big.”

Store owners said decorated button covers are also popular. Fake gems and small, painted wood cutouts in the shapes of animals, the alphabet or fruit are often used.

Many craft stores have introduced classes that demonstrate ways to inexpensively redecorate homes. Most offer classes that show how to create marble, malachite, stone or wood finishes on walls, furniture and molding.

Supplies, however, are no longer the domain of craft specialty stores, which number about 20,000 in the United States. As more do-it-yourselfers clamor for supplies, non-traditional outlets have cleared shelf space for decoupage brushes and plaster molds.

“You tend to see craft supplies on shelves in your local drugstore now,” Brandt said. “The craft department in Wal-Mart has increased considerably. Craft products are also being packaged with more sophistication.”

The number of home craft boutiques in the San Fernando Valley has also risen, reports Lia Biscoe, president of Decorative Artists of San Fernando Valley, begun in 1982. “Boutiques are home showrooms for artists who want to sell their creations,” Biscoe said. “We noticed an increase in interest last September. People were strapped for cash and wanted to make things for Christmas.”

Craft classes at Everywoman’s Village, a Van Nuys adult education school, have “really picked up,” said Anita Mathews, program director. “Some of our most popular classes are hat making, faux finishes, decorating with beads, hand quilting and T-shirt painting.”

Glendale Community College has had a 25% increase in arts and crafts enrollment since the summer, said Kathy Seifert, the college’s community services analyst. “People are also interested in how to start their own businesses,” she said, adding that the classes “How to Become a Wedding Consultant” and “How to Make and Sell Gift Baskets for Profit” are usually packed.

Enrollment has also risen for the college’s ceramics department. Other ceramics studios, such as the Cahuenga Potters Studio in North Hollywood, have waiting lists for classes, said owner Harry Berman, who also manufactures kilns at his studio, begun in 1972.

Berman began noticing an increase about six months ago. “People don’t just want to earn extra money or make gifts during a recession; they also return to things that make them happier,” he said. “They want to express themselves.”

Most instructors reported a majority of women in their classes, with no average age among students. Interest among senior citizens has always been high, but is expected to rise even more, Brandt said.

“Working on a craft gives parents more time with their children,” she said. “It’s not like playing checkers where neither side can quite enjoy the game because of their unequal skills. Parents and kids can work on crafts together.

“Part of our goal is to make people realize that to be creative in a craft, they don’t have to be an art genius or have a great deal of talent. Everyone can get involved.”

For those searching for a side or full-time career, stained glass and ceramics appear to be among the most popular crafts.

Many of instructor Lori Fair’s students parlay their new skills into “businesses they run out of their garage,” said Fair, who has operated her North Hollywood shop, Lori K. Stained Glass Studio, for 11 years.

Tuition and materials for Fair’s six-week course can top $300, but she said custom stained-glass pieces sell from $30 to $6,000.

Larry Joers, owner of Dragonfly Stained Glass in Canoga Park, said: “You can save about 80% of the cost of a stained-glass window by making it yourself. That’s what many of my students who want custom windows in their homes are doing.

“You don’t have to be a great artist to make stained glass. You can draw your own designs or use stencils.”

Fair said some of her students sell their creations at fairs. The Crafts Fair Guide, published in Mill Valley, lists about 1,000 fairs held in California parks, schools, homes and businesses.

“There’s something very therapeutic about working on stained glass,” said Fair, dabbing bits of solder onto leading as she labored over a patchwork of green and blue squares. “You get lost in your work while you forget the day’s problems. You see your reward almost instantly.”

Sharon Evans visited Fair’s studio in October after she injured herself doing maintenance work as an apartment manager. “I’ve made a lot of gifts, and now I’m repairing a lamp for someone,” said Evans, who is Fair’s apprentice. “I figure if you’ve got to spend your days working, you may as well do something that you enjoy.

“It’s a simpler kind of life--very calming, very soothing. If you push a pencil all day, it’s not very gratifying. But after working on a window for two weeks, you can hold it up to the sunshine and see something really special.”