Handmade Products Lend Style and Panache
Handmade products have really made a comeback in recent years. They were a big hit in the sixties and seventies and kind of died off as people started buying the mass produced cheap garbage that huge corporations were flooding the market with. However, there’s always been a die-hard core of folks who just wouldn’t let handmade products die. Thanks to the Internet, they’ve enjoyed a resurgence and now companies are finally jumping on the handmade products band wagon.
But I’m not just talking about knit sweaters, hand-dipped candles, and homemade paper. There’s a whole universe of stuff out there ranging from recycled paper products, to hemp products, and even products made from exotic animal byproducts like llama wool. For instance, let’s just take a look at hemp products.
Years ago, the only hemp products you would find around were hand-knits things, macramé, or the stuff hanging in head shops. Now hemp is huge. Why? Because it’s good for the environment and cheap to produce. Hemp doesn’t destroy the ground it’s grown in, like many other natural fibers in the textile industry, and it’s versatile. You can find anything from clothing to accessories and even children’s toys.
But say you’re tastes are a little wild, a little exotic, and you don’t want some run-of-the-mill thing. You want a unique gift or product. You can get exciting and unique fair trade products from all over the world that were crafted by skilled artisans in their home-based “factories.” That’s right, the Internet and expedited global shipping have opened the world to tons of fair trade products from far-flung lands.
One area that’s experienced a major economic boost because of those fair trade products is India—especially northern India where many people still live in relatively small villages. There artisan crafts are a major source of income for families. Often generations work in groups passing skills down through time. It’s the same way things worked back when those artisan crafts were everyday necessities! The only difference is that you can now get those products delivered to your door.
Handmade artisan crafts like blouses, handbags, jewelry, children’s toys, and even “artsy” stuff like paper products and glassware regularly make the long trip around the world. It’s good for consumers on this side because they can get great quality unique items at good prices and great for those on the other side because they’re able to make more money than they ever would have otherwise.
Processing your request, Please wait....
