Crafting a Movement by Hand

Wednesday, April 22, 2009 | Meera Pal

The do-it-yourself arts and craft movement is coming out of living rooms and coffee shops across the country and creating a lucrative place for itself on the Internet.

Arts and Crafts Supplies

From Web sites such as Etsy, which provides a one-stop shopping mall for buying and selling handmade items, to blogs and e-zines, the D.I.Y movement has taken off thanks to the growth of online social networking tools.

At BuyHandmade.org, more than 40,000 D.I.Y.-ers have taken a pledge "to buy handmade for myself and my loved ones, and request that others do the same."

BuyHandmade.org is a collaboration between Etsy, Crafster, indiepublic, Craft Magazine, Interweave, Burdastyle, The Austin Craft Mafia, Design*Sponge and The American Craft Council.

The group, called The Handmade Consortium, encourages people to buy specialty, one-of-a-kind items made by individuals rather than factories.

More and more people are turning their back and wallets on store-bought, mass-produced items.

For March, Etsy sold $12 million in goods, which was 18 percent higher than sales in February. They also recorded more than 500 milion page views in March.

The Craft and Hobby Association reported earlier this year that the $31 billion crafting industry is booming.

People are visiting crafts fairs across the country, buying products directly from artists who practice their art using varius mediums, including sewing, printing, glass, metal, wood and paper.

Recently in Virginia, at the Richmond Craft Mafia's Spring Bada-Bing crafts show, more than 60 independent artists and designers from around the country gathered to sell their handmade goods.

Jason Snyder, co-owner of Brainstorm Print and Design, said the D.I.Y. movement revolves around a community of artists who are creating and doing things for themselves, then selling those items to others.

"We are getting stronger especially because the economy is so weak," Snyder said.

To see scenes from the Richmond Craft Mafia Spring Bada-Bing, along with interviews with more artists, click the video below.