Book review: The Little Book of Craftivism

A wee disclaimer first: I have been involved with a Craftivist project. I also supported the crowd funding of this book and the publisher kindly sent me a review copy of the book.

The Little Book of Craftivism (by Sarah Corbett of the Craftivist Collective) encourages people to use their crafting powers to raise awareness about injustices in the world.

It is not so much a 'cute' craft book (although it does have a few ideas and instructions for projects) as it is food for thought and action.

I think it is difficult to see this book as a separate thing because it is very much a part of the craftivism idea itself. And I also think that either you're the type of person who will be inspired by, and embrace, the idea of craftivism and this book, or you're not.

Some people will undoubtedly think you are naive if you think that by embroidering a mini protest banner you can change the world. Maybe it is naive. maybe you can't change the whole world. But you can change it a little bit. You can certainly start with yourself while you stitch the mini protest banner (or whatever project you're making.)

And perhaps by working on these projects in public, you can change a few more people. That is what this book encourages you to do.

It so often feels overwhelming seeing the injustices in this world. I think the book is a reminder that you're not alone in feeling like this - ans that together with others you can take a stand and make a difference without marching and shouting in the streets.

Being quiet, thoughtful and respectful about things that are important to you often has more impact than being loud and forcing people to see things your way.

If you want to take your stitching/crafting and give it a new layer of meaning, using it for good, but don't know where to start, I highly recommend The Little Book of Craftivism. It would also be an excellent stocking stuffer as it is a pocket size book and it's just £5-6. Not bad for a wee book that may just help change the world, one stitch at a time. :-)

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