Skip to content
1981
Volume 12, Issue 1
  • ISSN: 2040-4689
  • E-ISSN: 2040-4697

Abstract

In recent years we have witnessed an emergence of various do-it-yourself (DIY) activities in urban spaces. This article aims to shed light on these DIY activities in Helsinki, particularly within the textile and garment sector. Six DIY groups were selected, their organizers interviewed, and their respective activities were examined. The aims of this investigation are to understand these activities, the motivations behind them and the implications of making for well-being. The research interest focuses on the collectives and communities Doing It Together (DIT) and Doing It With Others (DIWO) more than individual activities. The main findings indicate that these activities aim to influence well-being at individual, community and societal levels by activating and integrating individuals into the community and society. DIY activities in the current study are based on sustainability-oriented values; they indicate how consumers enter into slower fashion consumption and how designers exercise more meaningful and fluid expertise in design practice. We argue that DIY activities, while niche, are strongly embedded locally, can drive change towards enhanced sustainability and well-being in urban contexts and can even contribute to the aspect of more connected societies.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journals/10.1386/crre_00038_1
2021-03-01
2024-12-10
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

References

  1. Adams-Price, C. E., and Steinman, B. A.. ( 2007;), ‘ Crafts and generative expression: A qualitative study of the meaning of creativity in women who make jewelry in midlife. ’, International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 65:4, pp. 31533.
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Atkinson, P.. ( 2006;), ‘ Introduction: Do it yourself: Democracy and design. ’, Journal of Design History, 19:1, pp. 110.
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Audunson, R.. ( 2005;), ‘ The public library as a meeting-place in a multicultural and digital context: The necessity of low-intensive meeting-places. ’, Journal of Documentation, 61:3, pp. 42941.
    [Google Scholar]
  4. Braun, V., and Clarke, V.. ( 2006;), ‘ Using thematic analysis in psychology. ’, Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3:2, pp. 77101.
    [Google Scholar]
  5. Bujdosó, A.. (ed.) ( 2019), Social Design Cookbook: Recipes for Social Cooperation, Budapest:: Attila Bujdosó;.
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Campbell, C.. ( 2005;), ‘ The craft consumer culture, craft and consumption in a postmodern society. ’, Journal of Consumer Culture, 5:1, pp. 2342.
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Clark, H.. ( 2008;), ‘ SLOW+ FASHION – An oxymoron – or a promise for the future…?. ’, Fashion Theory, 12:4, pp. 42746.
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Collier, A. F.. ( 2011;), ‘ The well-being of women who create with textiles: Implications for art therapy. ’, Art Therapy, 28:3, pp. 10412.
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Collier, A. F., and Wayment, H. A.. ( 2017;), ‘ Psychological benefits of the “maker” or do-it-yourself movement in young adults: A pathway towards subjective well-being. ’, Journal of Happiness Studies, 19:4, pp. 123.
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Creighton, M. R.. ( 1995;), ‘ Japanese craft tourism: Liberating the crane wife. ’, Annals of Tourism Research, 22:2, pp. 46378.
    [Google Scholar]
  11. DeLong, M.,, Goncu-Berk, B.,, Bye, E., and Wu, J.. ( 2013;), ‘ Apparel sustainability from a local perspective. ’, Research Journal of Textile and Apparel, 17:1, pp. 5969.
    [Google Scholar]
  12. Fletcher, K.. ( 2012;), ‘ Durability, fashion, sustainability: The processes and practices of use. ’, Fashion Practice, 4:2, pp. 22138.
    [Google Scholar]
  13. Fletcher, K.. ( 2013), Sustainable Fashion and Textiles: Design Journeys, Abingdon:: Routledge;.
    [Google Scholar]
  14. Garrett, M.. ( 2006;), ‘ D.I.W.O. ’, Furtherfield, http://www.furtherfield.org/lexicon/diwo. Accessed 1 January 2019.
    [Google Scholar]
  15. Gauntlett, D.. ( 2011), Making Is Connecting, Cambridge:: Polity Press;.
    [Google Scholar]
  16. Greer, B.. ( 2008), Knitting for Good! A Guide to Creating Personal, Social, and Political Change Stitch by Stitch, Boulder, CO:: Shambhala Publications;.
    [Google Scholar]
  17. Haas, I.. ( 2017), in-person interview with M. Durrani, Helsinki Upcycling Center, 7 March .
  18. Hackney, F.. ( 2013;), ‘ Quiet activism and the new amateur: The power of home and hobby crafts. ’, Design and Culture, 5:2, pp. 16993.
    [Google Scholar]
  19. Hemphill, D., and Leskowitz, S.. ( 2013;), ‘ DIY activists: Communities of practice, cultural dialogism, and radical knowledge sharing. ’, Adult Education Quarterly, 63:1, pp. 5777.
    [Google Scholar]
  20. Hernberg, H.. ( 2012), Helsinki Beyond Dreams: Actions towards a Creative and Sustainable Hometown, Helsinki:: Urban Dream Management;.
    [Google Scholar]
  21. Hyysalo, S.,, Kohtala, C.,, Helminen, P.,, Mäkinen, S.,, Miettinen, V., and Muurinen, L.. ( 2014;), ‘ Collaborative futuring with and by makers. ’, CoDesign, 10:3&4, pp. 20928.
    [Google Scholar]
  22. Jochumsen, H.,, Rasmussen, H. C., and Skot-Hansen, D.. ( 2012;), ‘ The four spaces – A new model for the public library. ’, New Library World, 113:11&12, pp. 58697.
    [Google Scholar]
  23. Keyes, C. L. M.. ( 1998;), ‘ Social well-being. ’, Social Psychology Quarterly, 61:2, pp. 12140.
    [Google Scholar]
  24. Kuznetsov, S., and Paulos, E.. ( 2010;), ‘ Rise of the expert amateur: DIY projects, communities, and cultures. ’, in Proceedings of the 6th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction: Extending Boundaries, 16–20 October, New York:: ACM;, pp. 295304.
    [Google Scholar]
  25. Levine, F., and Heimerl, C.. ( 2008;), ‘ Preface. ’, in Handmade Nation: The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design, Boston:: Princeton Architectural Press;, pp. 910.
    [Google Scholar]
  26. Luvaas, B.. ( 2013;), ‘ Material interventions: Indonesian DIY fashion and the regime of the global brand. ’, Cultural Anthropology, 28:1, pp. 12743.
    [Google Scholar]
  27. Manzini, E., and M’Rithaa, M. K.. ( 2016;), ‘ Distributed systems and cosmopolitan localism: An emerging design scenario for resilient societies. ’, Sustainable Development, 24:5, pp. 27580.
    [Google Scholar]
  28. Martat (Martha Association), https://www.martat.fi/martat/. Accessed 1 January 2020.
  29. Nemec, S.. ( 2017), in-person interview with M. Durrani, Helsinki, 23 February .
  30. Niinimäki, K.. ( 2013;), ‘ Dialogue and participation in a good neighborhood. ’, in Niinimäki, K., and Kallio-Tavin, M.. (eds), Dialogues for Sustainable Design and Art Pedagogy: The AH-Design Project, Helsinki:: Aalto University;, pp. 2027.
    [Google Scholar]
  31. Orton-Johnson, K.. ( 2014;), ‘ Knit, purl and upload: New technologies, digital mediations and the experience of leisure. ’, Leisure Studies, 33:3, pp. 30521.
    [Google Scholar]
  32. Pöllänen, S.. ( 2015;), ‘ Elements of crafts that enhance well-being: Textile craft makers’ descriptions of their leisure activity. ’, Journal of Leisure Research, 47:1, pp. 5878.
    [Google Scholar]
  33. Pyy, O.. ( 2016), in-person interview with M. Durrani, REMAKE atelier, Helsinki, 4 November .
  34. Rantanen, T.. ( 2017), in-person interview with M. Durrani, Martha Association, 3 April .
  35. Ratto, M., and Boler, M.. (eds) ( 2014), DIY Citizenship: Critical Making and Social Media, Cambridge, MA:: MIT Press;.
    [Google Scholar]
  36. Sadler, C.. ( 2017), in-person interview with M. Durrani, Finnbrit, 3 February .
  37. Schlosberg, D., and Coles, R.. ( 2016;), ‘ The new environmentalism of everyday life: Sustainability, material flows and movements. ’, Contemporary Political Theory, 15:2, pp. 16081.
    [Google Scholar]
  38. Schulman, H., and Mäenpää, P.. ( 2015;), ‘ Helsinki hot spots. ’, in Berglund, E., and Kohtala, C.. (eds), Changing Helsinki? 11 Views on a City Unfolding, Helsinki:: Nemo;, pp. 94101.
    [Google Scholar]
  39. Tergujeff, K.,, Hämäläinen, H., and Kaarina Hämäläinen, A.. ( 2017), in-person interview with M. Durrani, Helsinki University;, Korjausarja:, 15 February.
    [Google Scholar]
  40. Williams, C. C.. ( 2008;), ‘ Re-thinking the motives of do-it-yourself (DIY) consumers. ’, International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research, 18:3, pp. 31123.
    [Google Scholar]
  41. Niinimäki, Kirsi,, Durrani, Marium, and Kohtala, Cindy. ( 2021;), ‘ Emerging DIY activities to enable well-being and connected societies. ’, Craft Research, 12:1, pp. 929, doi: https://doi.org/10.1386/crre_00038_1
    [Google Scholar]
/content/journals/10.1386/crre_00038_1
Loading
/content/journals/10.1386/crre_00038_1
Loading

Data & Media loading...

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a success
Invalid data
An error occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error