DIY Movement: Fleeting Fad? by Emily Hoosier

Handmade pride is making a comeback. I can’t remember the last time when sporting handmade items were hip, but I’m convinced it was quite a while ago. Today, college students are gathering for craft nights, knitting clubs are trendy and crafting is a moneymaking business! Handmade shopping bags and Mason Jars® are replacing designer handbags and crystal wedding glasses of yesterday.

Cultural shifts are nothing new. Trends and ideas have a way of circulating through eras and generations, but I don’t believe that DIY is a passing trend. The craving to create is naturally embedded in so many people whom aren’t necessarily professional artists living in studio apartments. 

Craft and art magazines, websites and TV shows are thriving because they recognized a need that was ignored.  Websites such as Craftcawker® and Pinterist® not only inspire cute and functional creativity but also lead us directly to the blog with step-by-step instructions. How convenient! Etsy ® is more than an online craft market. It’s now a multi million-dollar company connecting people to crafters and artists all over the world for the past 7 years.

A screen shot of the infamous CraftGawker.

DIY network and HGTV (home and garden television) are successful cable channels fully devoted to airing programming that helps its viewers do stuff and make stuff on their own.

Okay, maybe declaring DIY a movement is a bit strong. But DIY culture is taking a dip into the mainstream; and the water is fine.