All our products are handmade, so obviously we are biased. But there are some really good reasons why we should prefer handcrafted products over factory-made ones. 

In this blog, let's keep it simple and concentrate on the five most important reasons.

1. Handcrafted products are made thoughtfully by humans

Have you seen how textiles are made in the factories? The fabrics go into a machine, and it prints using some chemical dyes. There is no soul in it. There is no story behind it.

But when something is handcrafted, there is a human behind making those products. The human has patience, empathy and responsibility. He expresses his skills and he is desperate to bring art to life through the products he is creating. That human has an abundance of stories and life lessons behind the art he is practising. Those stories, experiences and emotions are printed along with the art on the textiles, bringing soul & life to the product he or she is creating. 

2. Handcrafted products are good for the community

It takes a lot of people to produce handmade products. For example, it takes 6 artisans about a week to make one of our quilts. Our embroidered cushion covers are made by a family of eight. Altogether, there are more than fifty people easily involved in making our quilts & cushion covers. 

Handcrafted products require a lot of people thus benefiting a big community of people. Every dollar you spend, goes to those artisans and their families directly, which in turn will help them lead a better life and provide better education for their children. 

3. Handcrafted products keep art & crafts alive

If you take our business as an example, we make hand block printed quilts & embroidered cushion covers. Both of these arts are ancient crafts that have been surviving in India for centuries. 

But nowadays, due to the introduction of mass-produced textiles, these arts are slowly dying. As a result, the artisanal communities that are involved in making this art are also affected. 

When you purchase handcrafted products, you are not only helping the artisans but you are also helping the art to survive. 

4. Handmade is ethical & sustainable

There are always exceptions but generally speaking, businesses who are involved in making & selling handcrafted products usually follow ethical and sustainable processes. 

For example at Agasti, there are so many different types of artists involved like designers, block makers, printers, tailors, embroiderers, and hand quilters. Every artisan is either a freelancer or a contractor, so they decide their terms and conditions with total freedom including their pay rate and payment terms. 

We also do not use plastics in our packaging's. Even our poly mailers are biodegradable! 

Ethical & sustainable ways of doing business are good for the community, good for our conscious and good for the planet. 

5. Handmade is high quality

Handcrafted products are made to last. When we make our quilts & cushion covers, we know about every single raw material that goes into making the products. Whether it is the cotton that is used to fill the quilts, the threads we use, the toxic-free dyes, beads & glistening sequins that are used in the cushion covers. 

We are involved in choosing everything. When we make the products, if we find something that is not of our high-quality standards, then we won't use it. We would rather not make something at all rather than make them using low-quality products. 

Conclusion:

Handcrafted products express love, care and emotions. They are unique and each one has a unique story behind them. Some of them go back for centuries. 

Make yourself proud by choosing handcrafted products.