Recommend a craft but ...

[ItsMeHiImTheProblem]

I love crafting, but I'm on a low budget and I don't have a dining table or desk to sit at, so it's either use the coffee table or kitchen work surface. I also have cats who like to get involved!

I've tried diamond painting, but didn't enjoy it. Can't do jigsaws as the cats knock the pieces on the floor and I'd have to pack it away every day. I'm not artistic. I used to knit and tried to learn to crochet, but I hate making large things and don't like knitting small toys or things that need stuffing. I have a kit to make a mini house but there are so many pieces, none labelled, it's very complicated.

Just thought maybe someone had a craft hobby that I might enjoy?

Patchwork - hexagons over paper (or card) piecing. Very relaxing.

If you want to do cross stitch buy the hoops and fabric then look on Etsy for a design which you print out. Bags of silks are cheap too.

You could knit for hats for donate to good causes, chemo hats, for the homeless or for preemies. Same for crochet.

I've bought fun/funky cross stitch and embroidery kits from Cotton Clara before.

Another vote for needle felting. Though your cats might want to be involved. You could always use their (shed) fur to needle felt with!

Some good suggestions - I second the idea of sock knitting, it's easy, a small size project and you can buy some gorgeous self patterning yarns.
If you enjoy jigsaws, you could buy a board so you can still use your table between sessions, I have one that holds a 1000 piece puzzles and it slides nearly under my sofa when not in use. I use it on the floor, rather than a table - not sure if that's any easier with the cat!?
You can get some lovely crochet blanket kits online, I love the ones by attic24 (try wool warehouse website, they also have sock yarn), they are acrylic yarn, so not massively expensive and come with very clear, easy to follow patterns (also available on her website).

My dd has recently got into peg doll crafting. A box of 50 peg dolls is under £10 from amazon.

Then you can paint them, make little costumes for them, knit tiny hats, or crochet a cape, embroider a dress, hot glue stuff, whatever. Make a little peg doll nativity scene, or decorate them to look like everyone in your family, or just google for endless ideas (be warned though, a lot of the results will be steiner woo about why all dolls shouldn't have faces, but ignore that unless you want to sell to steiner parents via a very expensive etsy shop)

Latch hook- you could start with a small kit to make, say a cushion, and then buy more bits separately if you wanted to make a small mat for the floor

Pomander- an orange studded with cloves in a pattern then use ribbon to tie around and hang on the tree, around the house, hang from windows or on the Christmas table

I know you aren't keen on cross stitch, but I still have some I made as a teen which are Christmas decorations

Collect pinecones, paint on glue and sprinkle (ideally bio) glitter. Use ribbons to hang around the house, or add a round base, stick a candle in the middle and use the pinecones and ribbons around the base

Terrariums- buy large vases/glass jars/bottles from charity shops, buy succulents from car boots or ask on nextdoor.com or friends for any off cuts of their plants. Succulents grow very well from even a tiny bit or a leaf! Lots of youtube videos and they make nice gifts (if people like minimal care plants)

Also as I teen I made Christmas decorations using pipecleaners and various beads. Some of the beads interlinked, whereas others were regular beads and you just thread them onto the pipe cleaner. You can then either close the wire to make a circle, or a tree shape, square etc and use as decorations.

Punch needle

Zentangle. It is a type of mindful doodling. All you need is pens and paper.

You dont need kits to do cross stitch. You can buy the canvas, hoops and threads in multipacks online for not much money. I draw my pattern / image in pencil on the reverse of the canvas and then just go for it. If you don't like it you can just unpick and start again.

You can also find loads of free or very low price patterns on Pinterest that are not twee.

If you don't like buying colours sight unseen you can send off to DMC or similar for a shade card or just go to hobbycraft etc. the threads should be less than £1 a go.

I started cross stitch in lockdown and now I've got hoops all the way up my staircase. I finish them, put a nail in the wall and hang them straight up. Makes me happy to see them grow.

Iris folding.you just need paper, can be scraps, newspaper, wrapping paper, books, some card blanks and a few templates.

I find it satisfying

Does it need to be textiles based?

I make all my own cards and, when I have time, Christmas decorations.

Pottery or clay sculpture?

Quilling? I saw Kirstie doing it today on'telly and I remembered how much I loved it as a child.

And she said you can run paper through a shredder to get right-sized bits, which seems genius!

I'd also put posts on freecycle, olio and nextdoor.com asking for any free craft items/kits/ribbon etc or kits. I got a huge bag of lovely, free wool once which I'm still using.

If you'd like more modern embroidery, here are a couple you might enjoy:

paraffle.com/collections/embroidery-kits

jiggery-pokery.biz/products/scandinavian-trees-embroidery-pattern

Paper cutting! It was this craft that triggered my love of crafting. It’s quite cheap (you just need a printer/card/ scalpel and a cutting mat. I found it really therapeutic, and helped me get through my PND.

temari.com/making-temari/

I do make terrariums, but I've got quite a few around my home and have gifted lots too, running out of jars and where to put them or who to give them to.

I prefer a kit, I'm more likely to attempt it then (I feel I'm probably adhd due to inability to finish anything or even start it after buying the stuff).

I'll look at all the links, thank you.

Slow stitch. Cheap, engrossing, doesn't need an end product.

I've been doing this for a few years. Join in. It's fun

pintangle.com/tast-faq/#:~:text=TAST%20or%20Take%20a%20Stitch,go%20on%20to%20enjoy%20stitching.

I like knitting baby clothes. Particularly in chunky wool, as they knit up so fast. My nana also used to knit preemie hats etc., for the nicu.

I also bullet journal, which in theory is a diary....but for me is a diary turned art project. I tend to sit on the sofa with all my pens and washi tapes with the book propped on my lap with cushions....I could get a lap tray tbh...

Just as easily could do card making or scrapbooking.

Or just drawing or sketching.

Kit wise, perhaps things like soap making or candle making - where'd you'd be on your feet in the kitchen melting stuff.

Try Etsy - a search for skull cross stitch (for example) gives me these

www.etsy.com/search?q=skull+cross+stitch+kit&explicit=1&locationQuery=2635167&ship_to=GB

I have a jigsaw app on my tablet. No taking up loads of space, it's great.

Damn you @pippinsleftleg

I've clicked on the link now!

Will send it to DH as it's my birthday soon😊

Needle felting or small sewing projects with felt ( fabric). It’s really easy to make a small project in an evening