Hand Made versus Hand Crafted

[Denise]

My mother makes all sorts of beautiful clothes using a knitting machine. To do a straight, plain section, she hand moves the carriage back and forth and the machine knits a row each time. But to make a pattern or to cast on or off, she uses special tools to move individual stitches from one hook to another. (She designs her own patterns for construction as well as color and stitch variations.) So the row takes less than 5 seconds to knit, but the switching between rows takes a while. It takes about 2 hours to knit a newborn sized baby sweater with a pattern on it. Then the parts all have to be hand sewn together. So I wouldn’t call her sweaters “hand knitted”, because the machine does the knitting, but I would call them hand made or hand crafted because they were individually done with care. It takes some effort to move the carriage across. She is getting older now and if there were such a thing (I don’t know if there is) as a powered knitting machine where she pushed a button to make the carriage move, it would be easier on her shoulders, but I wouldn’t change how I thought of the result. It would still be hand made in my mind.

Interesting discussion. It has made me think, which is always a good thing.

Points gleaned:

1.) Hand anything is not necessarily synonymous with quality. (The reverse - totally machine produced is not necessarily synonymous with poor quality - is also true.)

2.) There is no consistent definition for either term.

3.) Quality shows regardless of what you call it.

4.) As far as marketing goes, showing goes further than telling.

Thanks everyone!

[jbird]

I think this is very good topic and I must say that the terms are over used under rated and disfigured in every way when you here hand made you think ok it's junk and why is that because the people that use that tag are not doing very good work IMHO

So I say professionally hand crafted to perfection

Josh

[hidepounder]

When it comes to what most of us do here, I don't see why this issue is such big deal. What difference does it make whether you prefer to use the term "hand made" or "hand crafted"? I doubt customers will be swayed one way or the other if they are interested in the product. For most of us it's obvious that we have created the piece ourselves and the quality is self evident. When an individual cannot distinguish between a hand made product or a commercial manufactued product, the simple term "hand made" or "hand crafted" is not enough information to educate them. I think you should use the term you like the best and not worry about it. Personally, I like to use the term "custom made" and that's what I put on my makers stamp. At that point I'm glad to answer questions (and hope to make a sale!!!!).

[MarkB]

Webster's Dictionary

Hand crafted is to fashion by handicraft and handicraft is a manual skill or an occupation requiring skill with the hands.

Hand made is made by hand or a hand process.

Hope this makes everything clear as mud.

Good luck in find a answer everyone agrees with

Mark

[JohnBarton]

I'd like to know how to distinguish two excellent items where one was made in a factory setting and the other was made by a single person?

This topic came up recently on the billiards forum with the original poster contending that in his opinion that which is made by one person, using only their hands, is inherently better than something made in a shop which is outfitted like a production environment.

I disagree with this statement for the obvious reason that my shop consists of five people besides me who produce goods using the not only our hands but also using whatever tools I can buy or make that makes our life easier from case to case.

I have seen production leather goods that were as well built as a thing could possibly be. Strong and stout and not a stitch out of place with no flaws.

How can something that one single person builds be any better than that? Perfect is perfect right?

On top of that in the cue case factory most of the processes involve hand work. I can certainly understand the idea that many cooks can spoil the broth when it comes to the production of things. All it takes is one worker to get off kilter and that screws up umpteen products.

I am just of the impression that if it's done right then it's right whether it's done by one person from start to finish or it's done by ten.

Formerly I started a company called Instroke Cue Cases. The first cases were all unique cases done in vinyl and leather. A few years later we changed into a production case company. The cases were made in the Czech Republic by a company with more than 100 years experience in fine leather goods. Our company was based in Germany. Try as I might I could not get people to stop calling the Instroke cases "German Made". They would talk about the quality of the case and praise "German Engineering" and nothing I did could stop it.

I used to say it's not "where it's made", but instead "who made it" that is important. I think that is the gist of most people's concept here.

A fine leather product is a fine product no matter how many people and machines were involved in the process. There is a company here called SKAP that produces some of the finest leather items I have ever seen. I go to their store often. The designs are almost always top notch and the workmanship is world class. The stuff is also VERY EXPENSIVE with briefcases costing around $400-$800, shoes at $200-$400, little men's purses around $2-300, etc....

I had never heard of SKAP before coming to China. They "say" that it's a French brand but I think that's just a story. One thing is certain, they have put it all together with design and production. You could take their stuff to any arts festival and some of the bags would win awards for sure.

As old uncle Morty might have said, "hand made schmand made, vas it a bargain at tvice da price, dan ist gut, don't kvetch about it?" or something like that :-)

Maybe we need a new descriptor, how about brain-made?

[Johanna]

We always stuck to "custom leather"- eliminating the hand (which can signify "not enough money for a machine to do it right") part of the phrase. People were delighted when they booked us for shows that we didn't require any electrical outlets (well, lights helped!) because a mallet was our main tool- no external power required.

In the US "craft" carries the connotation "not serious". A crafter is enjoying a hobby, not working at a profession. If I still had a business doing leather, I would call myself a "custom leatherworker", meaning I can fix your saddle or make you a belt. Whether I use machinery or electrical tools then becomes irrelevant.

Johanna

[Suze]

I think you are right Cuz - I am a crafter - I am fair to good at a lot of things. I do any project more for my own use, and enjoyment than to sell. (Yes you keep saying I am an artist - I don't see it but there you go)

What we sold at the dollhouse shows were mostly things that just about anybody could make. (Mom's work excluded) there were a lot of times my "glue a bead to a button" type projects carried the table. Fifty cents at a time.

But people bought them because they didn't want to buy ten packs of beads to get one out of each pack.

and then there is the whole "what ARE you selling"

if you are selling baked goods THEN you WANT to use HOME MADE

Most of the Leather Workers that I see at SCA events use Custom Leather as part of their names. and let you figure out if it should be

home made

hand made

hand crafted

artisan

person with a side of leather and a little skill

or the ever popular OH MYYYYY (which is reserved for the HOW in the world do you do that!?!? kind of projects)

[hidepounder]

I'd like to know how to distinguish two excellent items where one was made in a factory setting and the other was made by a single person?

This topic came up recently on the billiards forum with the original poster contending that in his opinion that which is made by one person, using only their hands, is inherently better than something made in a shop which is outfitted like a production environment.

I disagree with this statement for the obvious reason that my shop consists of five people besides me who produce goods using the not only our hands but also using whatever tools I can buy or make that makes our life easier from case to case.

I have seen production leather goods that were as well built as a thing could possibly be. Strong and stout and not a stitch out of place with no flaws.

How can something that one single person builds be any better than that? Perfect is perfect right?

On top of that in the cue case factory most of the processes involve hand work. I can certainly understand the idea that many cooks can spoil the broth when it comes to the production of things. All it takes is one worker to get off kilter and that screws up umpteen products.

I am just of the impression that if it's done right then it's right whether it's done by one person from start to finish or it's done by ten.

Formerly I started a company called Instroke Cue Cases. The first cases were all unique cases done in vinyl and leather. A few years later we changed into a production case company. The cases were made in the Czech Republic by a company with more than 100 years experience in fine leather goods. Our company was based in Germany. Try as I might I could not get people to stop calling the Instroke cases "German Made". They would talk about the quality of the case and praise "German Engineering" and nothing I did could stop it.

I used to say it's not "where it's made", but instead "who made it" that is important. I think that is the gist of most people's concept here.

A fine leather product is a fine product no matter how many people and machines were involved in the process. There is a company here called SKAP that produces some of the finest leather items I have ever seen. I go to their store often. The designs are almost always top notch and the workmanship is world class. The stuff is also VERY EXPENSIVE with briefcases costing around $400-$800, shoes at $200-$400, little men's purses around $2-300, etc....

I had never heard of SKAP before coming to China. They "say" that it's a French brand but I think that's just a story. One thing is certain, they have put it all together with design and production. You could take their stuff to any arts festival and some of the bags would win awards for sure.

As old uncle Morty might have said, "hand made schmand made, vas it a bargain at tvice da price, dan ist gut, don't kvetch about it?" or something like that :-)

Maybe we need a new descriptor, how about brain-made?

John,

The guy from the billiards forum is just an Eight Ball....destined to be knocked around, then sunk! I think everybody agrees with you...his statement was nonsense!

As for being able to distinguish between custom work, like in your shop, or factory production work....the differences should be obvious! Especially when tooling is involved. I agree that the quality of some factory products cannot be duplicated....but I'm not sure that applies to what we all do here...I'd have to think about that....

Anyway, I agree with what you are saying.....but you knocked me off my stool with your comment about SKAP. I'm not familiar with the company or it's products, of course, but if they are of a quality level as you stated, then their prices are incredibly cheap! A QUALITY hand made briefcase easily starts in the $2000-$3000 dollar range and can easily exceed $10,000 depending on the use of exotic leathers and other accoutriments and decorations....so I'm curious to know what those prices would equate to in our market. What does an $800 briefcase in China, cost here?

[CitizenKate]

In the US "craft" carries the connotation "not serious". A crafter is enjoying a hobby, not working at a profession. If I still had a business doing leather, I would call myself a "custom leatherworker", meaning I can fix your saddle or make you a belt. Whether I use machinery or electrical tools then becomes irrelevant.

I partly agree with you about the connotation of the the word "craft", but it does not always connotate "amateur". When I see the word crafts(wo)man, I think of someone who does a highly specialized and skilled kind of work, with an element of artistry.

But when referring to a "crafter", or someone who is "crafty", that's when I get the connotation of a hobbyist.

I personally like the word "artisan". People who carve architectural ornaments are called artisans. They aren't artists, exactly, but what they do requires very high skill and artistic ability.

Isn't it amazing we can communicate at all? I can't imagine being a marketing professional having to sort all this out!

Kate