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What is Handmade?
What is Handmade?
A recent blog post on the ethics of handmade brought into question the definition of handmade and suggested a legal definition.
“23.3 Misuse of the terms “hand-made,” ‘hand-polished,”etc.
(a) It is unfair or deceptive to represent, directly or by implication, that any industry product is hand-made or hand-wrought unless the entire shaping and forming of such product from raw materials and its finishing and decoration were accomplished by hand labor and manually-controlled methods which permit the maker to control and vary the construction, shape, design, and finish of each part of each individual product.”
Though the blog was not written to accuse anyone, suddenly, I wondered whether I was mis-representing my creations by calling them handmade. As I consider myself a very ethical person, this was troubling. My first thought was to consult a dictionary. The definitions I found were more ambiguous.
“Handmade, adjective – Made by hand, not by machine, especially with care or craftsmanship.”
That was a start so I looked up craftsmanship.
“Noun Craftsmanship is the skill that someone uses when they make beautiful things with their hands.”“Noun Craftsmanship is the quality that something has when it is beautiful and has been very carefully made.”
That still left me a bit confused. I know that I make my things with great care and I believe I bring skill and a personal design aesthetic to each piece. But, I do not make the components, those are vintage or antique or used and discarded. I hand sew each button on my button bracelets, For my Steampunk jewelry, I take apart each watch, I often alter the pieces and I assemble them in a new configuration. I do not use machines and I re-imagine the parts and carefully assemble them by hand. To me, that has meant handmade. But it does not comply with the legal definition. I decided to look at the definition in a venue for handmade goods, Etsy.
“On Etsy, the term ‘handmade’ can additionally be interpreted as ‘hand-assembled’ or ‘hand-altered.’” We recognize that artists and artisans are imaginative and resourceful with varying skills, expertise and aesthetics. We don’t want Etsy to be in the business of regulating or defining the limits of creativity. There is room in our community for a broad range of creative expression and techniques.”
That is closer to my perspective, but too broad. I think that in the context of a craft site, each object should have been “handmade”, “hand-assembled”, or “hand-altered” by the artist or artisan him or herself. It should not be made by an assembly line of people following an original design. It should not be mass produced either by hand or machine. I embrace the British concept of designer/maker.
“Designer–Maker This term is generally used to describe those who both design and make their own products, including furniture makers, jewellery designers”
It is up to the venue where one sells to adopt a definition of handmade and for the individual artists and artisans to adhere to that definition. My exploration has led me to conclude that my jewelry is handmade, but in the future, I think I will call my things designer made. I believe that they do belong in a craft venue and that I am being ethical in submitting them.
Tags: hand crafted, Handmade, handmade art, Handmade Artists, handmade ethics, what is handmade
Posted in Handmade, Information
7 Responses to “What is Handmade?”
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Interesting, and informative. I think artisans and artists constantly change the definition themselves, I use a saw with a motor, a machine to cut my jump rings, but I hand assemble them, linking each one by hand, I can also cut the rings with wire cutters, eliminating the machine altogether. Which one is handmade? They both are, I must spin the wire to make the coil, and use my hands to hold the saw (motorized) to cut the rings. Tools are required and shouldn’t be thought to take the hands out of handmade.
I think the main problem with finding a definition for handmade, is if you try to be specific (like our government rules and regulations) the customers will have trouble finding your shop on-line. Most shoppers will not use such terms as hand designed or hand altered, but will look for handmade products. So I for one will continue to use the term handmade in my tags and meta-tags, and then give further explaination in my profile and item descriptions. And I believe I am still being ethical doing it this way.
Debbi
–yankeeburrowcreations
This article sure gives a person a lot to think about as far as how they wish to define their particular craft and skills. I believe I like the term designer-maker, but I will always consider myself as a handmade artist. I tend to wander over those defined lines quite often. Thank you for such an informative article.
Thanks for sharing Lisa! You know handmade is close to my heart. Defining it has always been a struggle. We just do the best we can do to keep this place true to the word.
The discussion is fantastic. This is the cruxt of some of the problems we have in defining out genres. I feel that the FTC definition is way too restrictive, considering the advances in digital devices that have been developed in the recent years. I started the original ethics post and we always need to be that, and do what is right. I agree with your working definition of “handmade.” What is important is that we artists disclose exactly what we have and how it was made.
Lo if I had to make the glass & ornaments that I paint on, I’d be in big trouble! I often use other terms along with handmade in my tags, artisan made, artisan designed, designer made, etc. I think you could easily use designer made in your tags along with hand made, Lisa.
Great article, does give us something to think about!
If I buy some beads and sequins from Michael’s and a plain white mug from Walmart, then I glue the beads and sequins on the mug with a design that I myself imagined—say, a butterfly,for example—does that constitute a handmade product?