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ORGANIC LIVING
By
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Robert Rodcde
THE MYSTIQUE OF MAKING THINGS BY HAND
Bit) Muller almost chokes when he says the word
“plastic" because he works in wooden toys.
“Plastic toys don't last; wooden toys do," he says.
“The wooden toys that I make last. The parents are
willing to spend extra money fpr them knowing that
they will last and are worth it.”
Muller’s shop in Bucks County, Pa., has a special
play area where new toys are put down on the floor for
use by children brought in by their parents who want
to buy. He watches their reactions to a toy and how
they play with it to learn just how it will be accepted. If
it is good, he makes more of them for sale. If it is poor,
he shelves the idea.
“My aim js to create something -- to build something
that can be appreciated by young and old alike,”
Muller says. “When I see children playing with my the maker an opportunity for artistic expression
toys, it brings me a great deal of pleasure.” NATURAL MATERIALS. Because most crafts have
Muller is a former trucking executive from strong roots in the past, they are likely to utilize more
Baltimore who was burned out in 1968. But he says natural materials. Wood is used Instead of plastic,
he’d “never go back to that rat race again. I like what natural wool instead of synthetic fabrics, etc.
I’m doing because I know what I'm doing is good, both For the person serious about working with his or
for me, my family and children.” her hands, there are almost as many handcrafts as
Thousands of other Americans are also discovering there are personality types. Candlemaking, wood
the joys of making or owning handmade articles. They working, pottery, macrame, home tanning and leather
are turning back to the old-fashioned “country crafts" making are just a few possibilities,
for the following reasons:- ~ Spinning and dyeing woolen yarn have become
QUALITY. Handmade things, whether they be toys exceptionally popular! Many enthusiasts even go a
or tools, are built to last. True craftsmen aren’t in- step further and naturally dye all their wool. They
terested in the kind of technological shortcuts and scour nearby woods and fields for seasonal coloring
skimping on materials that plague the reliability of agents like mustard flowers and marigolds (yellow),
many manufactured goods. onion skins (orange) and indigo (blue).
UNIQUENESS. No two handmade items are exactly Weaving is another of yesterday’s arts that is
alike. They aren’t stamped out by the thousands on an suddenly quite popular. Looms are selling briskly, and
assembly Ime. novices are flocking to introductory weaving classes
PERSONAL. To the extent that the handcrafter at community centers and colleges,
enjoys and cares about what he is making, he imparts People who take up basketmakingare finding eager
a little of his own personality into the article. Items customers. “I have never seen a basket I did not long
like quilts, wall hangings, stained glass, etc., really give for,'’ says environmental writer Ruth Adams, an avid
basket collector. “I cannot pass a roadside stand
where as few as five baskets are for sale without
stopping. I buy little and big baskets, practical and
frivolous ones, I .think they ars all beautiful, practical,
useful, meaningful and ecologically sound.” -
For those with the ambition and skill, even building"
their own home is not too great a challenge. “Eight
years ago, working on weekends only, I started to
build myself a home," writes Art Boericke in his book
“Handmade Houses" (Scrimshaw Press) “.. . a'Rome
that was-suited to the way I actually lived ... a solid
little shed that had some of the spirit and the per
sonality of the builder busting through.” Many others
are doing the same, for as Boericke says, such' a place
“could very well be duplicated by almost any
greenhorn or apprentice who showed any aptitude at
all."
urday.Juhe
** j:
A wooden toy automobile takes shape in the Bucks
County. Pa., workshop of Bill Muller. In an age of mass
produced plastic playthings, the former trucking
executive has found new satisfaction building hand
made, qualify toys for delighted customers.
Handcrafts on a smaller scale are helping obese
Dutch School
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people overcome their' (eatihg 1 , i proeieTns^lWolSl^lT^'
to some pawepts^to
seep themftoP busytf(£ sna^between^mi^M^is;. '■
blocks the "hoof and mouth” reflex, says Dr. L:
siting, a Teaneck, N.J. specialist whohassuccessfully
treated many obese patients. s - /',
The best part of many handcrafts, according to Dr. s
Elting, is the "grime time" When patients get their
hands dirty. "Few individuals, no matter Jipw un
bounded their appetites; will care to handle foop with,
grimy hands," he says. Or. Elting .should know that
he’s talking about. He solved his own overfreight
problem by taking up metalworking / 1 k '
XXX . , 'J _ ,
It’s not too early to start thinkingabout making your
own hand-fashioned gifts for the holiday season,.
‘Have a Natural Christmas” is an illustrated 42-page
booklet that shows you how to create herbal sachets,
potpourris, dried flower arrangements, greeting cards
and other personatized gifts and decorations. |t’s
available for 50 cents from Robert Rodale, Organic
Living, in care of t|is newspaper. Ask for the booklet
by name, and please allow four weeks for delivery.
(c) 1974 by Chicago Tribune-N.Y. News Synd., Inc.
World Rights Reserved.
HELP 'EM
PERFORM...
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OMOLENE will give your horses exceptional
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Ph: 354-0301
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Ph: 464-3431
West Willow
Ira B. Landis
Ph: 665-3248
80x276, Manheim RD3
Ph: 354-9251
R.D.3, Ephrata
V