Abstract :
My interest in craft-based activity in the home
was aroused by research I carried out for the
Crafts Council in the mid 1990s, which found that
craft education in secondary schools was in serious
decline. Paradoxically interest in amateur
crafts was increasing and many teenagers
claimed to be ‘making things’ at home. At the
present time, culture and life-long learning are
priorities on the British government’s agenda
and craft-based projects are being used in
community, family and health education
schemes targeted, for example, at quality of life
enhancement, improving participation in schools
and neighbourhood regeneration. However the
majority of such schemes operate with a narrow
conception of the nature and scope of craft and
ignore how it is learned and practised in everyday
life. This article reports the findings of a review of
literature about social and emotional benefits of
participation in home-based crafts and argues
this is a neglected area of art and design education
theory and practice meriting increased
attention and research.
