Handmade Nation

So, a few days ago I watched a great documentary that Mallory let me borrow. It's called Handmade Nation: The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design. Basically it's about people making a living by selling items that they've made themselves, and about the increasing demand for such items. But there's more to it than that. You have these artists (mostly women, but we'll get to that) who are abandoning the fancy-pants art world to create things like clothes, jewelry, bags, paper goods, etc. And not only are they making a living doing it, they're finding themselves much happier and more fulfilled. This was the part that most interested me.

When I was about halfway through the art program at Auburn, I came to the conclusion that it was all hogwash, hocus pocus...bullshit. I wanted out asap and decided to finish early with a BA instead of a BFA. About a year later, Doug and I were talking marriage. So a friend from art school told me I was making a big mistake by not getting a BFA, that I wasn't living up to my potential as an artist (gag me) and that I was destined to "lose myself" by getting married at such a young age. Then, my sister in her infinite oldest sibling wisdom sent me a copy of What Our Mothers Didn't Tell Us: Why Happiness Eludes the Modern Woman. It talks about how the feminist movement of the 1960s has affected women today and notes that we've trapped ourselves into choosing either family or career. And, whichever we choose, we are constantly wondering whether we chose correctly and are looked down upon by those woman who chose the other way. Women who have big time careers and send their children to daycare at 4 weeks are scorned by stay-at-home moms and vice versa. It's like we've realized that we do actually long for that family life, motherhood, whatever, just as much as we long to find our own personal fulfillment apart from such things. And we've been conditioned to think that we must choose between the two....which is like asking a parent to choose between their two children. It's impossible and ridiculous. Anywho, many women of my sister's and my generation seem to have finally found a balance. They're sewing, cooking, and gardening, working from home. And they've discovered that unmistakable feeling of accomplishment that comes from making something with your own hands that is not only beautiful, but functional. And, the best part is, people are seeking out their stuff. People want to know that someone just like them crafted their item by hand....someone they could call up on the phone and talk to if they wanted. And skills that may have been lost otherwise can now be passed on to the next generation. We learning to grow and cook our own food, make our own bowls and furniture, sew our own clothes. Could it be that we're on our way to self-sufficiency once again? Could it be that there are enough of us out there to create a beautiful revolution that could tear down the corporate monster that's eating our culture? Perhaps.


By the way...even though I did get sidetracked from the grocery project, you will be pleased to know that Doug and I ate off that $35 grocery trip for a full week. And you may also be excited to know that we discovered a local farm (more than one, actually) that raises grass-fed beef and free-range (actual free-range) chickens. We'll be investigating that more soon. Find one in your town here.