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Rubrica di Sinead Turnham

I love to knit and crochet!

Weekly Topic: What is your main hobby?

Mar 29, 2023

This weeks topic asks what my main hobby is.
It's knitting, crochet and embroidery...and I don't think I'm alone!  
Resurgences of traditional crafts have happened regularly throughout history.  So, What’s behind today’s new wave of handmade?

Craft, by its very nature, is the antithesis of mass-production. In the wake of the Industrial Revolution, our crafting foremothers and forefathers philosophy was that the removal of craft skills from the manufacturing process had diminished society. They felt they had a physical and spiritual need to make.

And now? Similar conditions exist in the world today: technological advancement, unstable economies, environmental disasters and political unrest – all of these may give context to the current resurgence of craft. But are there other reasons why we just can’t help ourselves reaching out for our needles and yarn? Does the resurgence have its roots in a generation detached from the handmade process, who see the presence of handmade, rather than machine made, as new and exciting? Or could it be the individuality afforded to crafters in an otherwise mass-produced society?

Whatever the catalyst, today’s handmade movement builds on a long tradition of personal and political rebellion. 

 

This column was published by the author in their personal capacity.
The opinions expressed in this column are the author's own and do not reflect the view of Cafetalk.

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