Made by hand

searching for meaning in a throwaway world

241 pages

English language

Published April 5, 2010 by Portfolio.

ISBN:
978-1-59184-332-0
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OCLC Number:
457151299

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4 stars (3 reviews)

From the Publisher: From his unique vantage point as editor-in-chief of MAKE magazine, the hub of the newly invigorated do-it-yourself movement, Mark Frauenfelder takes readers on an inspiring and surprising tour of the vibrant world of DIY. The Internet has brought together large communities of people who share ideas, tips, and blueprints for making everything from unmanned aerial vehicles to pedal-powered iPhone chargers to an automatic cat feeder jury-rigged from a VCR. DIY is a direct reflection of our basic human desire to invent and improve, long suppressed by the availability of cheap, mass-produced products that have drowned us in bland convenience and cultivated our most wasteful habits. Frauenfelder spent a year trying a variety of offbeat projects such as keeping chickens and bees, tricking out his espresso machine, whittling wooden spoons, making guitars out of cigar boxes, and doing citizen science with his daughters in the garage. His whole …

1 edition

Review of 'Made by hand' on 'Storygraph'

4 stars

I really enjoyed this book. While this book is essentially several extended blog posts strung together, Frauenfelder is a capable writer. He knows how to take his various DIY projects and spin them into an entertaining story.

He's also remarkably humble and honest. One of the central themes of the book is that the best way to learn is to make mistakes. And Frauenfelder has made some doozies, from moving his entire family a tropical island to inadvertently killing his much-beloved chickens.

I suspect if you've spent any amount of time working with your hands, Frauenfelder will come off as what he is and admits to being: a bumbling amateur. This book probably isn't for you.

But if you—like me—have spent much of your adult life working at a computer and would like to try a few things you don't have the first clue how to do, this book is …

Subjects

  • Self-reliant living
  • Sustainable living
  • Handicraft