Making do

I've lived in Islington for about 3 years now, over which time the high street has evolved. Predictably, the number of mini-supermarkets (a depressingly familiar oxymoron) has increased. But so has the number of craft shops. In a neat reflection on the 'make do and mend' attitude that follows any recession, savvy storeowners have spotted an opportunity for a new type of consumerism. Less buy, buy buy. More do, play, make.

To give a few examples: Drink, Shop, Do – www.drinkshopdo.com – where you can drink tea, play scrabble and learn how to re-create vintage reverse hair rolls Loop - www.loopknitting.com - where you can learn to knit and crochet as you choose your yarn The Make Lounge -  www.themakelounge.com – where you can hold parties and attend workshops for everything from embroidery to cupcake decoration Ray Stitch – www.raystitch.co.uk – a haberdashery with built in café for coffee while you ponder which sewing class to sign up to Is this just a recent, N1-specific phenomenon?  Luxury goods brands the world over realise the potency of the artisan back story. The recent Valentino documentary was brought to life by seeing his expert Italian couture seamstresses at work, and the likes of Hermes have been leveraging their harness-making heritage for years.  However, certain brands are enabling the craft boom across borders. Look at the success of Etsy – the online marketplace that connects consumers with crafters, across 150 countries. In their words, they have built a 10 million strong "community of artists, creators, collectors, thinkers and doers", offering members not only a chance to buy and sell, but to meet at 'labs' (e.g. bootcamp for fledgling artisan retailers, DIY brewing workshops etc.) and contribute to forums. This is taking artisanship to a new level of customer engagement. And I believe their mission is one that is relevant to consumer-goods brands worldwide: valuing authorship and provenance as much as price and convenience. In a world where we are willing to pay £7 for a fruit salad but balk at paying full price for a paperback on Amazon, isn't it about time that we re-calibrate the value we put on creating something original? And isn't it time that influential brands (publishers, manufacturers, retailers) helped us make that shift?  In my area at least, it's the small, independent retailers that are taking the lead in making us excited about making things. (Amy Lee)