Billed as your creative space, San Diego Craft Collective in Liberty Station is exactly that.

Catering to both professional-level woodworkers and aspiring people in the community alike, nonprofit SDCC at 2590 Truxton Road offers skilled craft education to those otherwise not able to purchase tools and machines, or have no access to such facilities and instruction. SDCC is committed to creating a safe, educational, and inspiring learning space for both children and adults using safe materials and practices.

“Our mission is to teach crafts and woodworking classes to the community offering active workshops, scholarships, and flowshops all centered on crafts and creating for individuals of all ages and backgrounds,” said Steffanie Dotson, SDCC founder/president and a woodworker by trade who went to SDSU where she studied furniture design.

Dotson got into teaching woodworking because “I noticed this disconnect between young people and retired people, some of whom didn’t even know how to read a tape measure. They’ve always wanted to do woodworking, but never had the chance so I thought, ‘We really need to bridge that gap.’ That’s how the craft collective was born.”

Dotson looked all over San Diego to find the perfect creative space for woodworking, and found it in Liberty Station, which she described as being “vibrant and family-friendly with lots of foot travel and an arts district.”

Located in the Dorothea Laub Music and Arts Center, SDCC offers a full woodworking shop, and a ceramics studio and has plenty of space to rent out to craft instructors, one example being fused- and stained glass. “We have a textiles program that includes fiber arts,” noted Dotson adding, “There really is a lot happening in our 2,300-square-foot space. We also have a garden program.”

The craft collective serves a broad range of clients, from children as young as age 2 to adults of all ages. “We get kids into spaces and show them how you work with your hands in an organized way,” said Dotson. “We also have a ton of camps and after-school programs for school-age kids and teens.”

Noting adult craft classes are mostly on the weekends, Dotson pointed out that gives working adults “a taste of woodworking through different classes. Another thing we do at the craft collective that is really unique is we scale education to people’s needs. For example, we have one person who comes in who has suffered a stroke, and he is taking private lessons on how to do woodworking with the good hand that he has. We also offer programs for children and adults with autism.”

Pointing out that woodworking and crafting are “absolutely therapeutic activities,” Dotson noted studies have shown that such classes “combat anxiety” while being “very meditative and calming.”

An upcoming Christmas craft being taught at SDCC is a workshop on organic gingerbread house making starting on Dec. 18. There are also craft classes geared specifically toward women.

“We have a woodworking class that really empowers women and non-gender conforming persons in the woodshop,” said Dotson adding she’s committed to teaching woodworking and crafting because “this is a passion of mine. I find that crafts and creating are nice outlets to help people slow down and create something beautiful with their hands. And, I’m always looking for ways to give back.”

SAN DIEGO CRAFT COLLECTIVE

Where: 2590 Truxton Road #106.

Contact: www.sandiegocraft.org, 619-273-3235.