Handmade Nation: The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design by Faythe Levine

Handmade Nation: The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design Reviews

• 
  Marianne

  This is hardly a study on the rise of DIY, art or craft. This book is primarily profiles of indie crafters who make money selling their quirky goods. The essays the book contains on indie craft, and DIY, are the most thoughtful portion but still nothing close to a complete picture of why people make things. The book only profiles a few crafters who are skilled enough to be making for money and really says nothing about the millions (ok, thousands?) of us who make for function, expression, creativity, and/or entertainment. They briefly touch on the politics of making, but nothing more profound than "[making things:] is a polite way to give The Man the middle finger" and "because sweatshops suck."
  
  
• 
  Penelope

  I haven't seen the film that goes with this book, so if there is some sort of necessary link between the two, I'm obviously missing out on it.
  
  Overall, I got a warm fuzzy "I can do it!" feeling from this book--which is great! It's very inspirational, and makes you consider how plausible it is to actually make a living off your craft. However, I found the individual profiles became redundant and only a few really stand out in my mind. The "essays" aren't particularly memorable, except for the one about the Church of Craft which is an interesting concept.
  
  And one minor complaint: while the photos for many of the artist profiles look great, some of them seemed arbitrary and even after looking at 5 photos I only have a vague sense of what this person makes (I guess I'm supposed to feel inclined to look at their website?) I enjoy getting a peek into the studio as much as the next person, but when images of the studio outnumber images of the actual crafts...I'm a little confused.
  
  I was hoping for a bit more of what's discussed in the introduction--how craft/DIY is political, how it relates to feminism, etc. So many interesting, critical links to be made, and this book just floats on the surface.
• 
  Amanda Evans

  I love how all the artists within this book are categorized by the region they are from in the US. it was really well put together and I'll definitely be watching the documentary that the author has a long side with this book!
• 
  Emily

  This is basically a transcript of the film in book form. Which is great if the film doesn't reach a wide distribution, but I was really looking forward to getting some more info after seeing the premier of the movie last week, and other than three or four short essays on topics not explicitly covered in the film, it didn't go much further. It's a pretty book, but I wanted to like it much more than I actually did.
• 
  Regan

  Hm. I really wanted to read this book and, don't get me wrong, it's a neat book and I'd really like to see the documentary that inspired it, but it just further reminds me that whatever "it" is, I'm not an it girl.
  
  And there IS an "it" when it comes to being this kind of crafter. I'm afraid I'm not going to be able to explain this very well...but there's something about the crafter movement that requires one to be hip, at least semi-urban, and a particular kind of aesthetic.
  
  I'm happy that this movement exists and that it's political, educated, quirky, and fun. I just...don't fit in, I guess. And this book makes it clear.
  
  I will say that I have a total and utter love affair with Knitta (
  www.knittaplease.com). They do these yarn "installations" or tags or...I don't know...SOMETHINGS that just make me squee with joy. They knit stuff and wrap it around things. Trees. Parking meters. Whatever. And it's just joyful and happy-making. Also inspiring.
  
  So. I don't know. I can't say it left me more than just "meh" when it came right down to it. I think creative folks want to see something of themselves in a book like this. I was disappointed on that front.
• 
  Ellie Winthrop

  This book falls a little flat -- both of expectations and what it claims to do. Everything about Handmade Nation gave the impression that it was going to talk about the subversive nature of crafting, but it didn't quite do that. Instead, it simply stated it as fact and moved on. It seemed like it was going to talk about various craftspeople and how they've been impacted by the emerging craft scene, but it didn't quite do that either. It provided more of a brief snapshot of their shops. This book isn't sure which it's meant for -- coffee table or commentary -- so it ends up being neither. It's just a book that exists without seeming to serve any purpose but for people who are featured in the book to have a cool thing to show their friends when they come over to visit.
• 
  Claire

  Inspiring!
• 
  Emma

  This a beautifully designed accompaniment to Faythe Levine’s documentary of the same name, with a simple clean layout, colourful photos and titles, maps and an amazing timeline of the indie craft emergence in a more playful, hand drawn style.
  
  Handmade Nation features profiles of various artists, crafters and “makers”, as many of them refer to themselves, from around the US and are divided into chapters by the regions in which they and their crafty endeavours are based. I’m not sure why this geographical division is really necessary however I assume it’s to reflect the title, showing that this movement is taking place all across the United States. Each maker gives an insight either into their views on the recent re-emergence of craft and things handmade, or tells how they became interested and involved in their own work. While each of these profiles is perhaps a bit brief and they don’t really go into as much depth as I would have hoped in some cases they are accompanied by some great photos of the crafters, their studios and creative spaces, and inspiring full-page images of their work.
  
  In this respect the layout and concept of Handmade Nation is rather similar to that of
  The Crafter's Companion: Tips Tales and Patterns from a Community of Creative Minds however there aren’t any projects in this book for readers to make. Instead the profiles are interspersed with a series of short essays on the topics of the concept of craft, the internet’s role in the modern craft community, politics in craft and the new wave of craft fairs being held around America.
  
  The other difference between this book and The Crafter’s Companion is that all the featured crafters are based in the US. Perhaps it’s just my bias in being from a different nation, but it would be great to see a similar project that could show this movement is not just confined to a single nation, but is happening in countries all over the world with the internet enabling crafters from different nations to create an international community which shares not only a value and appreciation of creating, but also their skills and support with each other.
  
  This is of course not a just criticism given that intention of this book, obvious from the title and logo, is clearly to focus on the indie craft movement across just this one nation. This I think it does well, showing in a very nicely presented format how many Americans, both creators and consumers, are rejecting mass-produced and rediscovering the joys in producing and purchasing something made by hand.
  
• 
  Princeton Architectural

  Today's crafters are no longer interested in simply cross-stitching samplers or painting floral scrolls on china. Instead, the contemporary craft movement embraces emerging artists, crafters, and designers working in traditional and nontraditional media. Jenny Hart's Sublime Stitching has revolutionized the embroidery industry. Each year Nikki McClure sells thousands of her cut-paper wall calendars. Emily Kircher recycles vintage materials into purses. Stephanie Syjuco manufactures clothing under the tag line "Because Sweatshops Suck." These are just some of the fascinating makers united in the new wave of craft capturing the attention of the nation, the Handmade Nation.
  
  Faythe Levine traveled 19,000 miles to document what has emerged as a marriage between historical technique, punk culture, and the D.I.Y. ethos. For Handmade Nation (along with the documentary film of the same name, coming in 2009) she and Cortney Heimerl have selected 24 makers and 5 essayists who work within different media and have different methodologies to provide a microcosm of the crafting community. Participants in this community share ideas and encouragement through websites, blogs, boutiques, galleries, and craft fairs. Together they have forged a new economy and lifestyle based on creativity, determination, and networking. Twenty-four artists from Olympia, Washington, to Providence, Rhode Island, and everywhere in between show their work and discuss their lives. Texts by Andrew Wagner of American Craft Magazine, Garth Johnson of Extremecraft.com, Callie Janoff of the Church of Craft, Betsy Greer of Craftivism.com, and Susan Beal, author of Super Crafty, supply a critical view of the tight-knit community where ethics can overlap with creativity and art with community. Handmade Nation features photographs of the makers, their work environment, their process, their work, and discussions of how they got their start and what motivates them. Handmade Nation is a fascinating book for those who are a part of the emerging movement or just interested in sampling its wares.
• 
  Apryl Anderson

  This was a charming sample of American craftsmanship striving to gain respect. It was nice to see how some people were doing it, what and where they sold it. It's a little window into an aspect of homegrown early 21-st century capitalism in action.
• 
  Angie

  Mini-profiles of different well-known craftsters from throughout the country, broken up by region. This is insterspersed with essays about the current craft movement and its significance in a society known for its bloated consumerism. Some of these people come from fine art backgrounds, some do not. Some politicise their actions, some do not. While I believe that this was meant to show diversity within this movement I can't help but wonder whether we are really all so white. I know: this is a perennial criticism for anyone with a liberal arts degree, but it remains so for a reason.
  
  Overall I thought the book was uplifting, if not quite meaty enough. I also thought the West was sadly under-represented and I take issue with the way the book is broken up by region. Can Austen, TX really represent a whole multistate region almost completely on its own?
  
  The last curious thing I noticed was how often those profiled refer to themselves as "makers" rather than crafters, craftspeople, artisans or artists. While I can't really fault anyone for being unhappy with the term "crafter" when it so often seems to be applied to people making a different kind of craft (ie those who are, shall we say, aesthetically challenged), labeling oneself a maker rather than a crafter does seem... well, hoity-toity and just the tiniest bit twee. But if that's what this movement is doing, well, who am I to argue?
• 
  Victoria Klein

  There is certainly something to be said for being a trailblazer, and all of the crafters in this book represent a second coming-of-age for not only the handmade community, but also an entire generation. “I was going to all these fairs and I remember thinking: Something big is happening. This has to be documented,” said Faythe Levine, the book’s co-author in her September 2008 New York Times interview.
  
  Faythe is also the director of an accompanying Handmade Nation documentary, which is currently being screened at festivals worldwide. Unfortunately, I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing it yet, but each and every review I’ve read has raved about its honest and inspirational tone. All upcoming viewings are listed on both the documentary’s official website and the Handmade Nation blog (I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a Boston screening).
  
  Bottom line: this book is a must-have for any crafter, professional or purely personal. Whenever you feel down on your work or are losing direction, just grab your copy of Handmade Nation and you will be revitalized by others who have stuck to their guns and helped to change the entire marketplace.
• 
  Rachel Smalter Hall

  Loved this even more than I thought I would. Apropos for a book about crafts and crafters, the format is very visual without dense text, which worked fabulously.
  
  Faythe Levine trekked across the country in the mid 2000s interviewing and documenting some of the nation's most brilliant creative people. Each subject gets about a page of text to tell their story and three pages of gorgeous full-color photographs. My jaw dropped several times. Interspersed are slightly longer, headier musings on the politics of DIY and making. Nothing too arcane or erudite, but super interesting nevertheless.
  
  I read this in tandem with my laptop so I could look up the websites of each of the featured crafters. I loved this book for cracking open the more weird, more wonderful world of the online DIY ethos.
• 
  Jen

  This is a great, inspiring read into how the handmade phenomenon grew and evolved into a massive movement for independent artists and designers to encourage creativity, resilience and networking/business. There are some truly fascinating and unique items that people create. The photography in this book is also excellent, with insight into artist's studios and work ethics.
  
  It would have been even better to find out more about what exactly motivates the creators to do what they do, or what materials or methods they use. Still, if you're feeling a little down in the dumps about how bland and banal the mass market is today, take a look at this book and feel refreshed at the amazing talent that's out there.
• 
  Dianne

  This is the book form to the documentary. However, I have not seen the documentary so I cannot make a proper comparison. This book is great to learn more about how young women are turning their passions into art and creating a business out of it. It's a great peak into the indie craft network in the States. The graphics are lovely and there are several essays on a bit of the history of what they call the indie craft movement. I wish it had more history and criticism but perhaps it wasn't really the right platform seeing as it was the companion book to the documentary. So, I hope they come out with another anthology with more interviews with artists/crafters, more history lessons and more criticism. Yes, please.
• 
  Anda

  there was so much potential for this book. the photos and names were nice because it's good to see what people are doing in the craft/art/DIY scene around the country. but the biographies were too short and fluffy. it would have been nice to read about how these crafters became successful and perhaps more about the inspiration behind their work etc. i don't know -- anything more than 200 words of practically nothingness on each artist. at least the photos and the physical book itself were nice. i hate being down on the indie craft/art scene and something it produced -- but man, this book lacked major substance.
• 
  Robin

  This is a book that I knew was coming because a local crafter is featured in the book! A few years back I hired a woman to present a program at my library about how to make books. Deb Dormody of If'n Books was so great! Since that program I've been to her studio for a program sponsored by the RI Center for the Book. Not only does she make journals and photo albums but she makes cool bookmarks. So not only is Deb featured as a crafter from the Northeast but there are loads more with lots of photos of their crafts and a bio on the person or people. This is a great book if you want to read about various crafters from around the country.
• 
  Sarah

  An interesting topic, but I was disappointed that the book itself consisted more of eye candy than actual content - the interviews are too brief to glean anything interesting from. It also seems to me that the "Design" portion was almost nonexistent, as there was only one design-based entry. My impression is that the authors wanted to draw attention to the so-called craft revolution, but it came across as fluff to me. Attractive fluff, but fluff nonetheless. Maybe the movie itself will be better?
• 
  Rebecca

  I expected more of this book than what it ended up being. While I enjoyed seeing pictures of the artists' workspaces, the tiny blurbs they were given to define why they began handcrafting were too brief. Moreover, only five or six artists were chosen from each "region" of America. I have no way of knowing how or why these specific artists were chosen out of the hundreds more... but I get the feeling the internet would have given more information - and that is not the sort of feeling that I like to get from a book.
• 
  Amanda

  Inspiring and I now have at least a dozen new places to go shopping online when I'm too lazy to finish my own craft projects. This book also confirmed my suspicion that craft people are
  control freaks.
• 
  Wendi WDM

  Not bad - interesting to see what people are creating across the US. Not a book I'd buy however...although I should since I'm a DIYer myself and I want to support my fellow DIYers...but it wasn't as good as I had hoped. More crafts, maybe some patterns. Maybe some more advice to get your stuff out there. But it was a neat book.
• 
  Diana

  a really good glimpse at some fun and funky crafters and how they got started. It's peppered with interesting essays about craft & religion, craft & politics and a really cool time line of craft organizations, publications, blogs and websites that have popped up over the years.
• 
  Missy

  I just received my copy and have torn through it. It just makes me antsy about the documentary coming out. A great source for the backgrounds of the artists involved with Handmade Nation - the documentary. Very colorful and informative read and very well done. Kudos!!!
• 
  Aline Allen

  pretty cool little book on the crafting world. It has a lot of little bios on various "makers" across the country and what they've ingested from the current DIY trend that is more about liberating your sense of self than going for the big bucks. Nice pictures and well put together.
• 
  Sarah

  Wanted more, but I'm not sure what. Maybe more inspiration? Maybe more about what inspires the artists? It was encouraging to hear how many of the featured artists had creative homes and parents growing up.
• 
  Leigh

  This book is an interesting overview of the handmade movement in the U.S.A. IThe description of the featured artisans needed to be given more depth. For instance, sometimes it was not clearly explained what type of craft the individual produced.