The Distinction Of Handcrafted

Not always what you expect

It’s always exciting to get introduced to something that was hand crafted.

There’s an expectation that it was special, unique, and carefully created by an individual…

[ad#inline-body]

Like this

And here’s a fine example of custom handcrafted carpentry to fit a door:

The door happens to be for an Experimental House Made of Empty Steel Beer and Soft Drink Cans near Taos, New Mexico. (U.S. National Archives’ Local Identifier: 412-DA-14181, Photographer: Hiser, David, 1937-)

But sometimes like this

And these individuals are hand crafting things too:

And it’s not that the hand crafting is awful, it certainly looks professional – while labeled as a jade factory, it sure looks like some sort of pottery operation. (Photographer: Ian Koh, Jade Factory in Dali, Yunnan [China])

Definition

And I couldn’t argue with you – that both images show an individual crafting things by hand. No doubt about it.

They are definitely handcrafting.

Expectations

And that’s the troubling nature – I said at the top that we expect that items are “special, unique, and carefully created”.

And a room full of peasants carefully duplicating the same image twelve times a day to create “Hand Painted Oils” is not the same thing as an artist rendering a new painting.

Trust but verify

I can’t say that I thought Reagan was right about lots of things, but that happens to be one Reganism that I kind of like.

I’ll take you at your word – especially when you tell me that an item is special – handcrafted.

And I’d like to be able to step back and make sure that what you mean by handcrafted is the same as what I mean by handcrafted;-)