Emily and I are big fans of Etsy.
- I bought my wedding ring (see picture right) on Etsy
- Emily bought her wedding band on Etsy
- We commissioned a t-shirt quilt to be created using 40+ old t-shirts of ours that had sentimental value, but were not being worn
- Emily is having her dress converted into a wearable top and turning the rest into pillows.
The feature where you commission projects to be made is called Alchemy. The process is straightforward. You post a project and individual crafty type people bid on it.
Between Etsy and Instructables there is some exciting stuff happening in the world of DIY, craftsmanship and local creation.
Here’s another opportunity by way of annecdote:
My dad has a kayak. He asked me to buy him one of those contraptions with wheels that you put on the front of the boat to make it easy to take down to the lake. Campmor, the excellent outfitter sold me a nice model for exactly $166. Now this is two plastic wheels, some metal bars and a piece of foam – $4 in parts for $166. If I lived in the suburbs (which I don’t) I would have bought the pieces and made it myself.
So I guess I’m asking for some kind of Instructables/Etsy/Alchemy mashup where I can ask craftsmen with the tools, space and knowhow to build stuff for me. Sometimes they might be one of a kind constructions like the dining room table + bookcase hybrid I had the unfinished furniture store build for me years ago. I also need a custom pump built for my dishwasher (long story). And other times, frankly, it will be to knock off some piece of equipment that I would otherwise overpay for or am unhappy with for some reason. Throw in a demand that my projects be built using sustainable, eco-conscious methods and we’re really doing something great.