Making stuff by hand taps into the great tradition of American individualism

In my caller book, "The Year of Living Constitutionally," I speech astir lessons from the Founding Fathers — and successful this portion I privation to speech astir the value of getting your hands dirty. (See the video astatine the apical of this article.) 

While penning and researching my book, I got my hands dirty. 

Literally. 

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For starters, since I wrote the publication with a quill pen, I got achromatic ink each implicit my fingers. 

I was a literal ink-stained wretch, arsenic I mentioned successful a erstwhile portion successful this Constitution series. 

Bestselling writer A.J. Jacobs says, "I got my hands soiled due to the fact that I was trying to unrecorded arsenic folks did successful the Founding era, and that meant a batch of do-it-yourself enactment with my hands."  (A.J. Jacobs; iStock)

But I besides got my hands soiled due to the fact that I was trying to unrecorded arsenic folks did successful the Founding era, and that meant a batch of do-it-yourself enactment with my hands. 

I carved my quill pens with a consecutive razor blade.

I whittled my ain walking instrumentality from a ample branch. 

Crafting your ain objects connects you with those objects successful a factual way. 

I mixed my ain ink from pulverization made of abandoned wasp nests. 

I sewed immoderate of my ain clothes.

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I baked my ain breadstuff from scratch. 

This acquisition drove location that making worldly by manus is a large American value. 

Crafting your ain objects connects you with those objects successful a factual way. 

In his twelvemonth of "living constitutionally," Jacobs, astatine near with household members, dressed the portion — and worked with his hands.  (A.J. Jacobs)

It makes you admit and treasure those objects successful a mode that you don’t if you bargain them from a large container store oregon get them dropped onto your structure oregon beforehand step by an online retailer. 

In societal psychology, there’s a improvement known arsenic The Ikea Effect. Studies person shown that radical worth objects much erstwhile they person built those objects themselves. 

The improvement is named aft the Swedish furnishings store due to the fact that customers often person to enactment unneurotic the tables themselves. 

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The professor-turned-motorcycle-mechanic Matthew B. Crawford talks astir this contented successful his publication "Shop Class arsenic Soulcraft: An Inquiry into the Value of Work." 

There’s been a "shift successful our narration with stuff" … we’ve go "more passive and much dependent." 

He argues there’s been a "shift successful our narration with stuff" and that we’ve go "more passive and much dependent." 

And this, helium says, is troubling. 

Just see the thought of repairing. It’s becoming a mislaid art. 

We often flip retired objects alternatively of trying to repair them. 

To propulsion backmost against this trend, there’s a burgeoning "right to repair" question that says manufacturers request to marque devices we tin really hole with our hands. 

I’m partial to this movement. 

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Making worldly by manus besides taps into the large contented of American individualism. 

When you bargain a product, you are buying the aforesaid merchandise arsenic millions of others are buying. 

Jacobs is writer of the caller book, "The Year of Living Constitutionally." (A.J. Jacobs)

Much of modern advertizing boils down to the hilariously paradoxical message, "Express your individuality! Buy our mass-produced product!" 

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But for existent individuality, effort doing it yourself. You volition nutrient thing dissimilar immoderate different object, if lone due to the fact that it’s imperfect. 

The pridefulness you get from making your ain worldly much than makes up for getting your hands dirty.

Handmade gloves volition ne'er beryllium arsenic symmetrical arsenic store-bought ones. 

But that’s a bully thing. 

In Japanese culture, there’s a conception of "Wabi-Sabi," which celebrates the tiny flaws successful handmade objects, similar the lumpy aboveground of a handmade bowl.  

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While researching and penning my book, I rediscovered the joyousness of craftsmanship (even though I’m acold from people handy).

I recovered the pridefulness you get from making your ain worldly much than makes up for getting your hands dirty. 

"The Year of Living Constitutionally: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Constitution's Original Meaning" by A.J. Jacobs (2024) is published by Crown.