It is often assumed that the chief reason for making things — furniture, clothing, toys, a garden — is to save money. There are other factors that may be of equal or greater importance: making what we need for life is a way of expressing creativity and of gaining greater confidence. Emotional security comes from providing the necessities of life in personal, meaningful ways, by our own hands or those of friends and loved ones.
Another value in studying how things are made is to increase our appreciation for them as we better understand what makes them work. The knowledge that comes from shaping the things around us helps us build relationships with the world that are more intimate.
William Copperthwaite, A Handmade Life: In Search of Simplicity
Typed on a scrapbook paper cut-off with a Groma Kolibri typewriter.
P.S. If you look closely at the photo, I’m unintentionally giving away one of my secrets for photographing flat items like paper and books. The trick is to separate them with something like post-it notes. This provides dimensions and a bit of shadow, and helps otherwise flat items to “pop” a little bit. (Obviously you should disguise it better than I did here.)
