I’m not only make and sell handmade items, but I also love handmade things made by others and I do buy it. We are often being asked or see conversations on forums on why handmade is so special, why each piece costs more than a similar item in the shops or why someone bothers making something at all?

Well, we live in a world where many things are mass produced. I’m not saying it’s all wrong with it. It’s great that some things are manufactured in a big quantities in order to fill a worldwide demand for them. But many people tend to compare handmade with the mass made and it’s a mistake – there is no comparison, really. We don’t sell it in the same way. We don’t buy it in the same way or even receive it in the same way.

Here are my thoughts on “Why Handmade is Better”:

1.Handmade Products Are Green.

Work done by hands takes less energy than a mass production assembly line, which makes it more environmentally sustainable. Mostly handmade items are made to order or in a very small quantities, so there is no overproduction.

Mass production means bulk buying and this forces the lowering of prices down the line. Lower production costs ensure that the big companies can make more profit while selling.

So when you look at that $1 mug from your local supermarket, it’s not a bargain. It costs the world much more, we simply don't see the price we pay.

2.Handmade is forever not for just now

Mass-produced items are perceived as ‘throw away’. Terrible culture of ‘if it’s broken, don’t fix it – just through it out’ is now so prevalent that we throw away things that are perfectly fine. We want an upgrade, the latest version, the next best thing… we want to be noticed. However, what we are failing to notice is our rubbish piles are growing higher and higher!

There is no need for an upgrade as it is perfect already. Yes, I’m talking about handmade item. Handmade object is unique. It’s the minute imperfections that make it so desirable.

3.Handmade Items are Crafted in an Environment of Joy, Honour and Respect

Have you ever seen the work place of a person who creates for a living? They always craft in a space of joy, honour, and respect. Those same values somehow find their way into the very fibre of a handmade item.

For example, consider that every inch of the Chunky Merino yarn that forms a Chunky Knit Merino Blanket once flowed through the fingers of the Maker who knit it with intention and purpose. Who wouldn’t take extra special care of such an items?

When you buy something someone else made, you are reflected in that purchase. Whether it’s the colour, the texture, the shape, or just the mood you happen to be in, an item that has been crafted as an expression of the creative spirit person who made it is treasured and valued far beyond an item that was made for worldly mass consumption.

4.Buying handmade supports local people

Buying handmade supports local craft industries and people, wherever you buy it. The price you pay for it is exactly what you see – there are no hidden costs. The revenue stays within the country and people are not out of work but working in their business either as individuals or groups. People who makes money off sales at independent businesses, owners and employees, are more likely to spend their salary at places in the same area where they work. Taxes are paid, money is generated and the overall impact on our economy is huge. Isn’t it great?

5.Buying handmade keeps craft skills alive

When we buy handmade we are helping to ensure traditional making skills are kept alive and creating a demand for education in these skills. Technology makes it possible to replace skilled workers with machines. The outcome of this is potentially lost skills, the demise of handcrafts and a real loss of our cultural identity.

It’s important to keep hand-making goods a financially feasible career choice.

Buying handmade is a celebration our living culture – not a mass-imposed, one-size-fits-all consumer culture where everything looks the same and is easily boxed up. Each handmade item is about people and not machines. It’s about the time and effort that goes into each piece of work. It’s about the skill of each maker, the technical ingenuity of the maker, the magic of an individual’s imagination, and it’s a real treasure, so let’s keep and embrace it!