I recently re-watched the Iris documentary (affiliate) on Netflix and I really love it. If you haven’t heard about this, it’s about Iris Apfel the fashion icon. Iris was born in 1921 and has developed a strong and unique design sense that I find really inspiring.
Iris and her husband started a textile firm in 1950 called Old World Weavers where she traveled the world finding unique textiles for the home and also found unique pieces for herself to wear. This time when I watched the documentary there is a part where Iris mentioned that the skilled workers who hand make textiles, like elaborate embroidered textiles or woven textiles, are being replaced by machines. Which means the skill and knowledge of the handmade crafters will potentially be lost.
I do appreciate that the use of machines helps make items more affordable for everyone and I think they are important, but Iris also brings up a good point about loosing these skills.
Traditionally handmade skills were passed down by masters to apprentices, which still happens now. But this skill set is lessening with advances in technology.
That’s why it’s so inspiring for all of us to be keeping these skills alive. As someone who makes stuff by hand, you know there is a real magic to the process. There is a deep respect and appreciation to everything that goes into handmade items. And it’s also good that there are a lot of books that share knowledge along with some who offer classes on how to make things.
I’m far from a master, but I love sharing what I have learned so that this art form can stay alive and be enjoyed for generations.
Personally, I feel that there is still value to handmade items. For me, I value them because I can tell when something is handmade, there seems to be a human quality to it, even if the maker has high quality of work. Handmade items just seem to be alive more. Do you notice this too? How do you feel about handmade things? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic too.
Happy Weaving!
Kate
For more fun, follow me here ->
Jenny
August 9, 2017 at 2:18 pmI studied weaving at Falmouth University and have just graduated (so am trying to keep weave alive haha). The documentary sounds really inspiring, I’ll have to check it out. Your blog is really inspiring 🙂 Freya’s Chapter
Kate
September 20, 2017 at 1:55 pmThat is so awesome! Congratulations on graduating. Do you share your woven work online, I’d love to see some of it. I check out your website and it’s very nice!
Jessica
August 9, 2017 at 3:01 pmI love this. This is one of my favorite things about weaving, I love that it is a generations old craft that is seeing a resurgence today. The thought of losing all this knowledge is heart breaking. I’m so happy to be a (small) part in the movement to keep it alive. I definitely appreciate handmade items so much more now than I did before and I value small businesses more than I did before. Making these connections and seeing the love and care that goes into a creative business is incredible.