to think that locally made "craft" shops are dire?

[HotGrapefruit]

I really REALLY try to support local businesses, but we have a few of these local 'craft' shops that have popped up, with home-made nonsense from local people, and they are without exception all terrible.

Honestly, it's the sort of thing that if my children brought it home from school I would put in the bin in a very short period of time.

I feel awful for thinking it, because I try to be very positive about these things, but everything is terrible. And all mixed in with weird 3D printed dragons that are just EVERYWHERE these days.

What do people buy from these shops? Or are they all terrible, without exception?

I’m on a FB ‘handmade’ page for my country and up until recently, there was one woman who posted her ‘handmade’ AI slop relentlessly. I’m talking those tacky tumblers from TEMU with AI images of highland cows on, coasters, mugs, christmas sacks ALL made with AI. And the worst part? All her captions advertising her stuff were written with AI too! Literally 0 creativity going through this womans veins. It was only stopped recently when the mods finally banned anything made using AI. But you see it everywhere. Local craft fairs now just plagued with AI made items, it’s so depressing.

As a ‘crafter’ I only do bespoke commissions for the types of things I make so I like to think, as people are specifically asking, my items are not ‘overpriced shite’ 😂. I also have an amazing lady who works for me in my full time business (which isn’t crafting) that makes earrings and sells on Etsy and is very talented at it and I wouldn’t call her items shite (even though not something I would wear personally I see the beauty and quality in them). However, that being said, I agree with many others, there are many other crafters who believe they are better than they are and many a time my husband will utter ‘you could make that and better quality’ but, like everything, there will always be different standards, quality, tastes and budgets.

Just because some invested time and materials doesn’t make the outcome of their craft good or worthy of its price. It can still be objectively awful and not having any market value or artistic or aesthetic value. It also needs skill and taste of the artisan

I agree, however, we are discussing "I could make this myself" and the "expensive" comment in this particular instance. When I see something which doesn't have any artistic value I tend to say "I don't like this" and move on not "it's expensive and I can make it myself".

I do feel sad when walking past stalls like this. Especially when I inadvertently get the stallholder's hopes up by being the only person around who has glanced in their direction.

It's particularly sad when they've put a lot of love and care into their crafts. But less so if they've cynically created some AI tat or bought a load of cheap rubbish from Temu to sell at a massive mark-up.

Yes one opened in our small town filled to the brim with tat. So much so that they had to put a post in the town Facebook group explaining that they sold handmade craft and weren't a charity shop. This was sparked as seemingly several people try leaving them bags of donations.

Oh that made me chuckle!

😉☺️

This is a glorious description 🤣

I live in a popular retirement location. Everyone seems to paint, make jewellery or some variation of this. Some people make lots of lovely things (which I wouldn’t manage to do). But omg, I got so bored of it all 20+ years ago. It’s so lovely for people to have a passion and focus for retirement. But it’s their own thing and not something I want to spend my money on 🤷🏼‍♀️

But the thing is, most people don’t bother spending £90 on materials and taking the trouble to make crafty tat themselves because they don’t like or want crafty tat, and can’t see why anyone would spend that money to make it, let alone buy it!

There’s an annual, large craft and gift fair near me that is terrific - busy for 3 days, charges admission to enter and I know the stalls are very expensive to rent. It is successful because of the strict participation rules : nothing bought in, of a high artistic and execution level, made by the stall holders. They have to submit samples for appraisal if it is their first time. It’s not for casual hobbyists and an AI cow wouldn’t get near the place. Most sellers aren’t touting their wares around other outlets - many teach art/ craft classes and workshops as another income stream. I look at certain things and think ‘ I know how you do that, I know the techniques and materials and could achieve something in the same line but also it would not have that special something, that creative eye and beautiful execution. And I don’t want to make 10 - I want to make 1 and enjoy the process and not worry about needing to sell to recoup costs let alone make a profit.

I went in to an amazing local craft shop when on holiday and bought a print from a local artist. Almost everything in there was lovely and not over priced either. But a lot of homemade stuff is like shop bought very subjective taste wise. I wouldn’t call anything printed in plastic homemade.

I love good craft stalls but more and more I walk round and see things you can buy for 50p on Temu marketed as homemade selling for 5 x the price. Fake Lego figures or Croc charms that I know they paid less than £1 each for from Ali Express at a huge mark up and the shit AI art. It’s disheartening.

We also have a shop near us in a country park which is called “makers” and the standard is very high. Prospective sellers have to be vetted and submit samples. They would never let tat through the door. But quality means it’s not cheap.

This thread reminds me of the most recent series of Not going out where Lucy tries to sell her atrocious dream catchers 😆 😅 😂

”I can make it myself” is relevant for the level of skill displayed. I’d expect a craft sold at a market to require skill above of that an average person without any training can produce. Especially if it’s expensive. I don’t care how much materials cost if the level of sewing/knitting/painting skill is dire.

The only exception is kids crafts fairs

plus I’ve done all of that myself so I can genuinely see when something is basic shit skill

We have a craft collective hub around us. It's a group of independent crafters who have all come together in one building, each crafter has a small section (anything from a shelf, a rail or a corner). It is generally lovely to have a mooch around but is a bit of an eclectic mix. Everything seems to be high quality actually homemade and it seems to have avoided the 3d printed and drop shopping tat. There is everything from soy candles, hand knitted items, sewn items, leather work, jewelry, pottery, soaps, blown glass, needle felted items, cards, woodwork, glass and tile work, wicker work. An awful lot of crafts are represented and I think it is carefully curated so there isn't repeated stalls. There are only 2 soap sellers and 2 candle/ wax melt sellers and they do them very differently. Same with the knitted items, one lady does exclusively baby knit whilst the other does more knitted plush toys/ knitted trinkets.

There are some lovely things but also things that I really struggle to see a market for or that could realistically find a home in most people's houses. It is however a really lovely place for gifts if you know someone who would really like those things. It also has quite a high price point and I would only be willing to splash out on something from there that I know the receiver of a gift would genuinely want.

The woman who curates it and runs it does have a reputation for being a little Hitler. Although that is mainly from the slating she has got from a few of the maker's market "crafters" who stand on the council run makers market selling 3d prints, cricut items, those personalised cups and wine glasses and other peddlers of drop shipped items and tat.

The thing is, people don't want to hear they've got no talent, when they invariably have no talent.

Because we are polite as a nation, when our neighbour presents us with their needlefelt badger that looks like roadkill, we don't have the heart to say "Jane, that's an abomination" and we tell Jane how lovely her creation is. Jane already rates herself, or has only had polite feedback, and self declares she is professional standard. Even worse is when Jane uses these things as her Christmas presents. "Thanks Jane, it's gorgeous" we smile, at our disfigured squirrel. "Oooh, I'll put you down for a hedgehog next year!" she beams. You just don't have the heart to tell her.

See also everyone who's suddenly a "professional" cupcake maker because they've cottoned on to how easy it is to swirl piping atop a bun, and their mum tags them in every "can someone recommend a good cake maker for a child's birthday?" post on Facebook, with "definitely Debbie's Bakes 💯 💯 👌amaaaaazing"

I love them. It’s my favourite thing on holiday or visiting a new area/town to find such shops and buy something. I e got some great stuff over the years. I genuinely love this toadstool thing and who doesn’t want a rainbow thread highland cow picture 😁

We have a lovely gift shop selling lots of locally made items but we do get a good few tourists April until about now, but not enough to encourage ultra touristy places. The Christmas and summer markets have decent things too, the most organising committee is pretty strict on what can be sold and do check stalls, no alibaba or temu stuff masquerading as homemade (bigger Christmas markets are really bad for this) and quite frankly you don’t buy things you don’t want! I’ve sold cards to the local shop who can vouch is discerning, they rejected 3/4 of the ones I offered, and all did sell, have got a request for more

I live on an island and we have a local pottery that’s been trading and in the same family since the sixties. It’s really very basic, I think they’ve sold the same items since the sixties! It’s overpriced and definitely ‘artisan’. But I get excited when it opens again for the season 😂 I buy presents there for friends. They don’t sell anywhere but in the shop that has never changed - and it’s frankly weird AF 😂. The current owner is also the GP…just to add to the oddness.

I’ve made knitted 🎄tree decorations for the Gdcs’ school 🎄fair - mini elves and snowmen, etc. They took ages to make but expecting anyone to pay more than £1.50 each was a joke. I didn’t care, since the money was going to the school, but did feel for people trying - and mostly failing - to sell their beautifully made items for £3.50+. Evidently people don’t generally want to pay for craft makers’ time, however nice the things are.

We have two amazing local makers stores in my town and I actively seek them out wherever I am. Largely I've found them to be brilliant.

Markets are a mixed bag. As a textile artist I've been in markets where there's all the 3D printed crap and people who are perhaps on a steep learning curve about their craft.

It's devastating to be at these markets and no one shows up. The cost of living is hitting artists and makers incredibly hard.

Please keep popping in, all of you. You might only find one maker you like, but that might be someone you buy from again and again.

You are spot on OP. Especially some of the cards (how much tat can we glue in before we lose the structural integrity of the paper?)…

I put most amateur dramatics shows in the same category (other opinions are available).