Barbara was too excited to be nervous. Sure, trying new things was scary — but she’d already met one of Helium’s artists in the hospital waiting room. And her love of making things beat a bunch of nerves any day.
Textile art is Barbara’s favourite. Even before she met Helium, she was always crocheting. Sometimes she uses other people’s patterns, but as her skills grow, she’s starting to create some of her own, making fantasy creatures, Easter bunnies and even a sugarplum fairy.
You can imagine her joy when Helium gave her the chance to try needle felting! But even when it wasn’t textile work, Barbara loved Helium’s workshops.
“It’s really fun,” she explains. “You get to go to art exhibitions, see other artists’ work, and learn about different crafts and techniques.”
Barbara often used her experience at Helium as inspiration for her own pieces — like the time they created imaginary creatures.
“I made mine pink, and gave it double ears and lots of jewellery,” she recalls. “I took it to school, and drew her from different angles, and with lots of different outfits.”
It was a soothing process.
When she was 11, Barbara was diagnosed with a rare disorder that caused chronic inflammation in her bones. More recently, she was diagnosed with autism. It’s a lot for anyone to handle, and creativity is a way for her to process things.
“It’s something I really like doing. It makes me feel calmer and happier,” she explains.
Barbara also liked that Helium gave her the chance to meet new people. There are her fellow workshop artists of course. But let’s not forget the pen pal project they did one Christmas.
“We sent packages to other Helium groups, and they sent packages to us. It would include gifts, smaller pieces to, like, keep. But we also sent them things to make stuff from.”
With each connection came an important understanding.
“Not everybody is going through the same things as me,” Barbara explains. “But they’re all going through something.”
At 16, Barbara is starting to think more about her future. She knows she won’t stop creating. She’s always making gifts for friends and family, and hopes one day to sell more of her work professionally.