Kendra Brea Cooper
Crafting and D.I.Y. are more important than ever. They offer us self sufficiency in a society of mass consumption. Crafting brings the culture creation down to the grass roots where everyone is welcome. It gives us opportunities to shape identity outside of the store window.
Cut Out and Keep has about 67,500 projects posted by people online. Who needs a shopping mall when you have the ability to make your own stuff? You can craft your own life with projects in needlework, home DIY, Jewelry, and so on. The best part about this site is the variety of projects because anyone can upload. You’ll have to do some searching but trust me; you’ll find what you’re looking for.
Hosts Corrine and Rob set up detailed tutorials of D.I.Y. projects that are way more interesting than just a knitted scarf. They have interviews with other crafters who share deep, dark, crafting secrets. These videos offer the viewer a chance to create something wonderful. They host holiday episodes so you can make a hat and gloves out of an old sweater and throw the best party. You can take back the meaning of “gift” by doing just that, giving it meaning.
Make leans towards the electronic and science group. It’s best for the person who tinkers in their garage or the kid interested in robotics. One of the coolest articles on this site is about the OpenKnit open source knitting machine. It is built so that the user can design clothes digitally and the machine does the rest of the work. It’s the marriage of technology and self reliance. The project exists with community in mind by taking away thoughtless consumption and turning it into communal creativity. It’s a beautiful thing. http://makezine.com/craft/openknit-an-open-source-knitting-machine/
Blogger Rinchen De sets her sights specifically on recreating fashion through D.I.Y. She offers photos for inspiration as well as step-by-step guides to help you make it your own. Her clippings from fashion magazines matched up with the homemade crafts show readers that you don’t have to break the bank to get what you want. You can take the fashion world by storm with the power of your own hands.
Craftster is a crafting community with almost 300,000 members. Here you can find a project, talk about a project, or read an article about (you guessed it) a project. This is a great place to share ideas and plans because that’s the spirit of crafting. It’s not a lonely activity like some people think. Crafting needs community in order to build upon and perfect techniques. It’s one of the best ways to get people together for teaching, talking, and learning.
Craft Gawker has supreme clickability. You can scroll through all the photos of finished projects and click for instructions. This site is threaded with free printables and instructions that make it plenty useful on a rainy afternoon. There’s something very hip about this site. It’s probably because creating is an essential part of humanity. It also comes in App form. So take those craft ideas on the bus and make those wheels go round and round. In your head of course.
Pop culture and all that ideology sitting in the blind spot. Also crafts.
