I think it is interesting that much of what we do gets converted into a competition. It must be human nature. Sports are obvious, but it happens in many or most areas of life. In the arid west, there is a big competition for water. In science, we compete for more and more scarce research funds. All of life competes for resources and for the chance to reproduce. Banks compete for your checking accounts and credit card business, and your immune system is constantly competing against a variety of infectious microbes who want to grow in your body. Perhaps competition is inherent in every living thing.
Even though my craft definitely involves direct contact, I generally tend to remove it from the category of “competition”. There is enough of that elsewhere to worry about it in my leatherwork. Well, I recently violated my own informal rule on competition, and I threw my hat into the ring of the Martha Stewart American Made competition. It is pretty interesting to look through all of the talented people in America who are making things. People obviously take a lot of pride in this, and I’m happy that Martha Stewart promotes this, because it helps raise awareness of arts and crafts. Here is my entry:
http://www.marthastewart.com/americanmade/nominee/92552/style/edison-leatherworks
Please visit and you can see a short summary of my leatherwork life (and avoid reading the previous 80 blog posts!). If you feel so moved, share it with your Facebook or Twitter friends. Also, check out the competition. There is some really nice stuff out there!
Art's Musings, etc. 