Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Wee Dragon on 9th mo. 28, 2011 at 3:04pm

I make most of my kids clothes from recyled grown up clothes, felted sweaters, etc...  I've started throwing pottery, and plan to use all my own dishes eventually.  It definitely is part of simplicity for me, but also something about aesthetic and Way for me.  I love to have my environment be completely filled with things that took time, are beautiful, well made, and hand made. 

Rebecca

Permalink Reply by Raye on 9th mo. 28, 2011 at 3:30pm

Handwork seems to me to be connected with simplicity though I don't think of it as a form of simplicty, quite.  It is something that people who deliberately mind the pace of their lives often do.  I began learning the drop spindle and crochet not so much as an expression of simplicity, but rather a way to avoid idleness.

 

 

 

 

Permalink Reply by Caroline Gulian on 9th mo. 28, 2011 at 6:26pm

I have not read Contemplative Crochet, although I do crochet quite a lot.  I crochet for myself, and I also make chemo-caps and donate them to hospitals.

Permalink Reply by Angela Kurkiewicz on 9th mo. 29, 2011 at 11:09am

I find handcrafts a form of simplicity, but it also ties into sustainability and self sufficiency for me.

I also have the far off goal of having most of my wardrobe, linens and cloth products of all sorts to be hand made by myself or other local folks if it something I cannot accomplish myself. God has given me all the tools I need to live a good and honest life, whether it be skills like crochet, sewing or knitting or having the will to seek out local sources for things. I also find crochet almost like prayer for me.

I haven't read the book, but I think I will go take a look for it. I am also moving towards spinning my own wool.

Permalink Reply by Jenna Caruthers on 9th mo. 29, 2011 at 12:50pm

Handwork can be NOT simple, to be sure. Step one foot in a Joann Fabric store or a Michaels and you get that. I think, though, the meaning about it for me relates to something author Natalie Goldberg was on to in her book Writing Down the Bones. She talks about how she worked at a muffin shop with friends while in college. She says when she cared about the muffins, the customers especially liked them. When she was in a mood or her thoughts were far away, the customers liked them not so much.

 

What has that got to do with handwork? Well, I think things made mostly be machines or by people who might be underpaid or who just don't care what they're doing because it's "just a paycheck"  bring to us, then, that "uncared for"-ness. The energy is just way different. That's why grandma's pies were the best on the planet; they were made and infused with love.  So I think handmade items communicate a feeling of love, either that of the person making it to the recipient or that of the maker of his/her craft. 

 

In this society of specialization, handmaking something from start to finish,instead of producing one piece of it, also brings me a sense of wholeness.

 

Handmaking things often saves money, too, so that's also part of stewardship of resources.

 

I have not read the book you mention but as an avid crocheter I will look it up.

 

Good wishes on the journey to your handcrafting goals.

--Jenna

Permalink Reply by Rudy Zalesak on 9th mo. 29, 2011 at 1:07pm

I think repairing things around the house, instead of replacing them, is a form of simplicity, one that gets harder and harder to practice. (The difficulty might just be my usual laziness, though, as I *know* how to saw buttons back on, at least in theory, but I can't make myself do it.) One of my neighbors replacing his own car brakes, something I don't have any idea how to do.

 

 

Permalink Reply by Paula McConnell on 11th mo. 17, 2011 at 2:48pm

Mackenzie,

Absolutely handmaking is part of plain! My journey to plain started with Ghandi. I was hearing this directive from God over and over again, "I want you to dress for peace." I had no idea what that meant. In my research I discovered that his idea was an instrumental part of Ghandi's non-violent protest strategy thru the Swadeshi revolution. By boycotting British goods and recreating the Indian local craft economy, Indians were able free themselves of colonial rule. Ghandi also believed that everyone should spend time everyday to make their own clothes. As I returned to Quakerism and discovered the Plain Dress testimony and John Woolman, the strange divine directive began to make more sense. I now make nearly everything I wear and take great care in avoiding items from the industry of war. I've also purchased the domain "dress for peace" and am planning a dress for peace project. I'm not exactly sure what it will look like yet, but I know it will be a continued exploration of traditional Quaker concerns. The work isn't done, yet. ;)

~paula

Permalink Reply by Margaret Banford on 1st mo. 2, 2012 at 4:18pm

I do a variety of handcrafts, with knitting and crocheting being first among them.

Making things to wear and use is a form of simplicity, I think - because of the sustainability involved, but also because making things takes time.  It forces us to slow down.

I found this thread really interesting, I must say!

In friendship,

Margaret.