Our Story

Since its founding in 1993, HandMade in America has been a leader and innovator in �creative placemaking, a term that describes �revitalization by creative initiatives that animate places and spark economic development.� Long before the term came into use, HandMade in America was designing programs to drive tourism, revitalize small towns, broaden markets, and create job opportunities for craft artists by emphasizing Western North Carolina�s unique cultural assets and distinction as the cradle of craft. Today, HandMade is a national and international model for cities, towns, and organizations that want to use their distinctive assets for community-building and economic renewal.

In 2003, Worth magazine named us to its Top 100 Nonprofits in the United States list. In 2011, the National Endowment for the Arts described HandMade�s pioneering asset-based approach to economic development in these words:  �In an era of mass-manufactured products and outside corporate development, the Western North Carolina region, located in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, has taken economic direction from a refreshingly unlikely source: its local craft artists,�making the craft-arts industry a major economic player in the 25-county region, with a place at the table beside�other major industries.�

Simply put, HandMade in America is a nonprofit economic development organization that grows craft economies. Our award-winning programs have leveraged public, private, nonprofit, and community resources to help grow the annual economic impact of the region�s professional craft industry from $122 million in 1995 to $206.6 million in 2008. We have two linked lenses through which we view our work 1) making measurable contributions to the economic vitality of Western North Carolina; and 2) building on the region�s rich heritage of craft to inspire individuals and strengthen communities. Our core programs focus on entrepreneurship, market development, economic revitalization, and advocacy. They encompass the more than 4,000 crafts artists living and working in Western North Carolina, and a far-reaching network of craft-based businesses.

The Impact

This fundraiser will allow HandMade in America to continue to provide services for craft artists through classes, online promotion, information and advocacy. It will allow HandMade in America to continue to build markets and opportunities to grow the craft economy in Western North Carolina and provide a model for areas in the nation that want to grow the impact of craft on their economies.

What We Need & What You Get

The fundraising goal of $34,213 will clear the year-end deficit for HandMade in America so we can start 2012 in the "black".  If we don't reach our goal, the fundraiser will still provide a great start-up for the new year!  Help HandMade continue its innovative work in growing craft economies.

For your donation, you'll receive all kinds of great perks! For a donation of $25 or more, we'll send you a 3x3" I buy Handmade for the Holidays sticker. For a donation of $50 or more, you'll get a hand screened poster and we'll add your name to our web site, www.handmadeinamerica.org! And at $100 you also will get our Farms, Gardens, and Countryside Trails book.

For $250 you will get a secret bag of Western North Carolina goodies such as craft items, books on craft, and our famous Craft and Heritage Trails book.  There is just one Magic Number giving level at $713.  This will round out our deficit number and get you an amazing canister set, sticker, poster, and more fun secret items!

At the $1,000 giving level and up you get to go to our website and choose a fabulous one of a kind craft item in the giving level of your choice, so you might want to go there first before you decide how much to give. www.handmadeinamerica.org/fundraising.  All of these gifts are valued at $100 - $4,200.

Shipping of items: If you are in WNC, please call to have your items delivered or picked up.  All sticker, posters, and gift bags are shipped gratis.  If your chosen item is smaller than a shoebox we will ship it to you gratis.  If it is a larger item like the table or lamp, we will contact you for shipping costs, which we will gladly split with you 50/50.

Other Ways You Can Help

How else can you help?  Buy handmade items for the holidays.  If everyone bought one of a kind handmade items instead of items from mass manufacturers and big box stores, millions of dollars would go into the local and creative economy.  You can also promote this campaign by liking us on FB or Twitter.  Please pass this along and help spread the word!