Super Size Me PhatGrrl - Or Super Handmade?

I love my floral range.  I mean, I reeeaalllly love them.  I know it takes a sassy woman to wear something like my Scarlett's, Jezebel or even or even my Super Size Me PhatGrrl - 90mm of pure woman, but wear them they do.  The thought that a Princess, Rock Chick or Delicious Diva  is walking around town with something I made makes me very proud.  I make what I love, I don't care how simple or complex it is, as long as the concept  can become a reality by me making it with my hands.

I stared thinking about this because of something I read about what is handmade.

I think it's really down to the original idea had and whether you use your hands to create that idea.   I know the first time I saw 'handmade' cards in John lewis in the late1980's and thought, whoa, those aren't handmade, you can't call something handmade just because you add each little watering can with glue and a few flowers...  But why can't you?  If it's touched by someone's hands in the making process surely it's handmade.

I was of course comparing those cards with the handmade cards I was making and there was no real comparison. Not because mine were 'more' handmade than the ones on the shelf (note: well that's a lie now isn't it?  Because they were), but because of techniques I had available to me as a designer maker and those available to (what I saw as) a large company that could produce high volumes of a 'handmade' items and sell in bulk to big stores.  I had at the time created my own little handmade factory myself, but I knew they were all handmade by ME on my sisters sitting room floor.

It's just at the time, I felt that my long process of creating a 3D effect onto individually hand cut shapes was the way to go(note: At that time there were no machine cutters - or certainly not what I could afford if they did indeed exist for small crafters and if they did, I doubt that they would have cut out what I wanted as shapes.  embossing manually wasn't in play either for small crafters to my knowledge, but I didn't have huge amounts of cash then to buy loads of expensive equipment) by using a process of medium on card to create a raised effect which then sat on plastic to dry over night and was then rubbed with gold leaf to create a lavish embellishment on a handmade greeting card, I felt those were real handmade.But was that me just being snooty?

Mine probably were made with more love and attention, certainly more hard work in the process from what I could see, but I didn't really know if it was some crafter who had got lucky and sold a large order to John Lewis, or some poor little kids in some back of beyond factory in Asia sticking down mini watering cans with flowers and a sign saying 'handmade' and getting paid a penny a week.

I took a rough guess, just like many do when they begin to weigh up what they think handmade is, over what they themselves create each day and whether or not that other version of handmade deserves a place on the same shelf as theirs.

Things back then were already changing in how 'handmade' was being created and by whom and how the big boys, like John Lewis and WHSmiths were starting to wake up to the joy (and profits) of having a small section for handmade cards in their stores. So it was obvious that they would be seeking ways to create these handmade cards at a cheaper cost than some one woman bedroom factory that was selling her cards for (what was it now?) £2.75.  The problem is, right or wrong, if someone makes these cards by physically touching it with their hands and sticking cut-outs onto card wherever they are living, whoever they work for, doesn't that still make it handmade?  Or is that how easy it is to get away with making bulk orders and feeling justified to labelling it handmade?

Do I agree with cheap labour?  No of course not.  I just keep wondering with all the discussion on what constitutes handmade, how people decide what they consider handmade to be?

hand·made (hand′mād′)

adjective

Made by hand, not by machine; made by a process requiring manual skills

So where does that leave exploited workers and their so called employers who pay their workers crap money for gluing small watering cans onto card? Is what they do any less handmade because they're exploited?  I'm sure the purists when discussions arise don't really think about that one. I'm not sure my point is coming across very well, because as I say... It's just a thought on some of the things I've read on-line by people who profess to know what constitutes handmade.

I always thought that if you were creating it by choice, making it by choice and using whatever you want in that process to deliver the final item into the realms of reality and it makes you smile every day then surely that's a good thing and its handmade?

I just don't know any more with this explosion of handmade, there will always be purists.  I can only say what I do, what I know and how I got to this point in my life.  Where I now know that all I want to do is create and make.  I don't feel more of a crafter because one day my hands are covered in glue and the next they're covered in  Gocco ink.  I'm no more or less a designer maker than someone who decides that they want to construct mass produced findings into jewellery pieces, 'cause I do that myself, I also do loads of other things too and some of them will be featured int his blog.

It scares me the thrill I get from my arts and craft equipment, the joy I have coming up with ideas.  I see the beauty in the most crazy messed up things that many would see as complete tosh and not worthy to use in jewellery making let alone art - it just sometimes takes me a while to get to the end thing.  I believe in the  idea, the concept as well as in what materials are to hand or needed to help create the end product to make it live, to make it real.I also know that the above can be seen as a mass of crap really. 

Now if you got your cat to sew the sequins on a recycled bit of fabric on the other hand, I'm not so sure that would count - that would be pawmade.  But then again, why would you even care - I'd sell the cat!

Sybil

P.S Don't get to bowled over by me ole spelling 'cause it's as heavenly some days as my gluing!  Tata for now.