Craft Fair interlopers

I recently read a blog on craft fairs, about organizers letting in non handmade items. Having witnessed this first hand at a local event, I emailed the organizer about the unrest felt by crafters as the Chinese imported scarves sold lots, and the hard work put into making handmade goods was slated by customers as being too expensive.

You cannot compare the two. One is made abroad in a factory as a mass produced product with cheap, often mistreated workers. The other is made with skill over several hours or even days, to produce a quality item which is unique and made to support the crafters livelihood.

I had a lovely reply back saying they would take more care in future, checking how items were made and that the stallholder actually took part in the production of the items.

We have lost so many of our large manufacturing industries, is it time now to support the smaller ones?