Craft-making skills

Explore craft-making skills that combine creativity with practical knowledge. This section offers learning materials to help you develop hands-on abilities, from traditional craftsmanship to modern creative practices. It is ideal for those who want to learn by doing and express ideas through tangible, creative work.

01 PodCraft. Stories and skills from the world of craft-making

A podcast designed to offer accessible, engaging, and modular learning experiences. The podcast is structured around two main series: Craft Tools – Exploring digital tools, new materials, and sustainable innovations with professionals and scholars; and Craft Talks – Featuring business models, success stories, and entrepreneurial insights from craft-makers. The podcast covers different learning areas, ranging from technical skills and innovation, business and management, communication and digital tools, sustainability and circular economy, and peer mentorship. PodCraft is a podcast series developed within the HEPHAESTUS project to explore the world of craft-making through interviews and conversations with artisans, researchers, artists, and craft-supporting organizations. It combines storytelling, training-oriented reflection, and practical insight, addressing topics such as craft skills, innovation, sustainability, communication, intellectual property, and generational transition. The episodes are designed both for established practitioners and for people interested in entering or better understanding the craft world.

What you learn by completing this resource?

By engaging with PodCraft, listeners can learn from first-hand craft experiences, expert reflections, and thematic conversations about contemporary craft practice. The series offers insight into technical processes, sustainability, intellectual property, innovation, communication, and the relationship between tradition and experimentation. It is especially valuable as an audio-based learning resource that translates real craft experience into accessible training content, inspiration, and professional reflection for both practitioners and newcomers. Mainly peer-to-peer knowledge on craft making in different craft ecosystems, projects, addressing multiple skills, areas of craft practice, business models, geographical specificities.

03 Craeft – YouTube Playlists

A structured collection of video playlists documenting craft practices, material processes, and gesture-based work, combined with digital methods for recording, modelling, simulating, and analysing craft activities. The playlists cover ceramics, glass, textiles, wood, metalwork, and thread making, alongside advanced technical approaches such as motion tracking, macro-scanning, physically based rendering (PBR), and finite element modelling (FEM). Content is organised by process, material, viewpoint (frontal/egocentric/exocentric), and technical setup.

What you learn by completing this resource?

How specific craft processes are performed and sequenced (e.g. plaster throwing, slip casting, joining handles, fettling, wood carving, tapestry weaving, silversmithing, glassblowing, thread making), and how these processes can be observed, segmented, recorded, compared, and modelled using different visual perspectives and digital tools. The resource supports understanding of craft both as embodied practice and as a process that can be analysed and translated into digital representations.

04 Artificial Aesthetics: Generative AI, Art and Visual Media

Explores how generative AI is transforming our understanding of aesthetics, creativity, design, and art appreciation. It uses approaches from six fields. Emanuele brings perspectives from aesthetics, philosophy of art, and psychology of art. Lev contributes perspectives from media theory, digital culture studies, and computer science, as well as his four decades of experience as an artist creating digital media, including recent work with generative AI. This is the first time all these different perspectives have been combined to analyze cultural AI.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Compare different perspectives on AI and Creativity.

05 Generative AI and Creative Work: Narratives, Values, and Impacts

The article Generative AI and Creative Work: Narratives, Values, and Impacts examines how media and technology discourses shape perceptions of AI in creative industries. It analyses online narratives and identifies key themes such as automation, efficiency, and the prioritisation of ideas over craft, arguing that these narratives influence cultural values and artistic labour.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Compare your own view with different narratives.

06 Ai + the artis: debates in AI

The Debates in AI (RISD) resource documents a 2024 symposium hosted by the Rhode Island School of Design, bringing together artists, scholars, and technologists to assess the impact of AI on creative disciplines. It presents recorded talks, panels, and discussions that explore ethical, cultural, and artistic questions surrounding AI, particularly its influence on authorship, labour, and creativity.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Compare different perspectives on AI and Creativity.

07 Podcast: Crafty Ass Female

Crafty Ass Female is a podcast hosted by Kristin Tweedale that focuses on creativity, craft practices, and personal storytelling, particularly aimed at women. Through informal discussions and guest interviews, it explores topics such as creative routines, mental health, and overcoming creative blocks, encouraging listeners to embrace their own creative potential.

What you learn by completing this resource?

You learn to see creativity not as a “talent,” but as a daily practice. The podcast encourages you to create consistently, even imperfectly.

08 Tools & Resources bookshelf

The European Crafts Alliance Resource Library is an online collection of curated materials, including reports, toolkits, and policy documents related to the European craft sector. It brings together resources on topics such as sustainability, digital innovation, and business development, aiming to support craft practitioners, organisations, and stakeholders in understanding industry trends and improving professional practice.

What you learn by completing this resource?

You learn about current challenges and opportunities in the craft sector, including sustainability practices, digital tools, and business strategies, as well as gaining insight into policy and industry development.

09 Crafts Council Youtube Playlists

The Crafts Council YouTube Channel is a digital platform featuring a wide range of videos on contemporary craft, including artist interviews, studio visits, exhibition highlights, and process demonstrations. It showcases the work of makers and provides insight into creative practices, materials, and the cultural context of craft within the UK and beyond.

What you learn by completing this resource?

You learn about different craft practices, techniques, and artistic processes, as well as gaining insight into professional craft careers and the cultural value of making.

10 Cursa Craft courses

The Cursa Crafts Courses platform offers a selection of free online craft courses, including crochet, jewellery making, and sculpture. Delivered through video-based lessons and accessible via web and mobile app, the platform aims to support self-paced learning and provides free digital certificates upon completion.

What you learn by completing this resource?

You learn basic craft techniques and creative skills, such as crochet, jewellery making, and sculpting, while developing the ability to create handmade products and explore creative expression.

Sculpture Course

Jewellery Making Courses

12 Reskilling Crafts

Reskilling Crafts is a European Erasmus+ initiative that aims to revitalise the craft sector by combining traditional craftsmanship with digital and sustainable skills. Through training programmes, reskilling labs, and collaborative networks, the project supports adult learners and professionals in adapting to changing industry demands and accessing new career opportunities in crafts. (it is still developing)

What you learn by completing this resource?

You learn how to combine traditional craft skills with digital and sustainable practices, develop new professional competencies, and adapt to evolving job markets within the craft sector.

13 ICAN network

Being an ICAN member means being part of a community of like-minded artists—artists who love to make, discover, watch, listen, read about, and share all things ceramics. It is a network (you need to register through membership) where members share videos, courses, informations, technical recipes/knowledge on ceramics. ICAN Membership is an online membership-based resource hub for ceramic artists. It offers access to a community of practitioners and to a broad ecosystem of ceramic-related resources, including tips and techniques, journals, video tutorials, recipes, artist portfolios, contests, exhibitions, cultural tours, events, and links to additional learning materials hosted within the Ceramic Arts Network environment. The resource combines learning opportunities, peer visibility, inspiration, and professional community engagement.

What you learn by completing this resource?

By engaging with ICAN, users can expand their knowledge of ceramic techniques, studio practices, surface treatment, glazing, firing, and broader artistic development. The membership also supports learning through exposure to peer portfolios, events, and demonstrations, helping users strengthen their creative identity, connect with other makers, and stay updated on opportunities and trends in the ceramics field.

14 Maker Tribes

Our goal is to create a community of local Makers, Suppliers and educators across Europe who support each other in developing new business opportunities, learning new skills, designing new tools and techniques and creating hand made products in a sustainable and repairable manner.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Peer-to-peer suggestions on wood, leather, glass, and start a small business

15 LA VOCE DEL MAESTRO

The Voice of the Master recounts the successes, failures, challenges, and achievements of great artisans—figures who have always shaped matter through ingenuity, craftsmanship, innovation, and creativity. Through their stories, we will discover what lies behind the object, the work, and its aesthetics, gaining insight into the master’s vision.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Peer-to-peer knowledge on craft making.

16 Training opportunities list

List of international training opportunies for craft-makers.

What you learn by completing this resource?

List of training opportunities in the craft-making international sector.

17 Job offer list

List of job offering in the craft-making world.

What you learn by completing this resource?

List of job offerings.

19 BRICKS

A project aimed at preserving traditional skills: the role of non-formal education. Strengthening non-formal education as a complementary pathway to formal learning, revitalizing traditional crafts, preserving local identity, and fostering innovation for future generations.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Gain knowledge on formal and informal craft education

20 ELLIE – Enhancing Living cultural heritage through innovative digital tools and Experiences

ELLIE is an EU-funded digital heritage project that uses advanced technologies to preserve and enhance cultural heritage. Technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Generative AI, the Internet of Senses, and Digital Twins are described to be at the core of the ELLIE project. By integrating them into an immersive virtual environment, the project seeks to develop an innovative platform that will pave the way for new services in the Cultural and Creative Industries sector. Its website presents the project’s mission, partners, pilots, news, and media outputs. For craft-makers, its most relevant strand is the effort to digitally enhance traditional craftsmanship through digital twins, trained AI, cultural workshops, and a cloud platform for artisans, combining preservation aims with technological experimentation and educational activities.

What you learn by completing this resource?

The project aims to develop an innovative platform that will pave the way for new services in the Cultural and Creative Industries sector. This platform will pursue several objectives: facilitating the creation of new user experiences; simplifying the development of creative products and services; gaining a better understanding of audience needs; and accelerating the production of new solutions through more automated processes. By engaging with ELLIE-related resources, users will be able to learn how digital technologies such as AI, digital twins, cloud tools, AR/VR, and motion capture can support the preservation, reinterpretation, and transmission of traditional cultural and craft practices. The resource also helps users reflect on how heritage-based making can be connected with innovation, public engagement, and new forms of access to techniques, artifacts, and embodied cultural knowledge.

22 Accelerator4Crafts

A new digital platform designed to strengthen the transmission of craft knowledge, foster collaboration, and stimulate innovation across Europe’s diverse crafts sector.
Conceived as a meeting place and platform for craftspeople, the Accelerator enables craftspeople, educators, researchers, designers, and cultural practitioners to learn, exchange, and connect through digital tools and community-driven methodologies. What you’ll find on the platform: A self-diagnosis tool guiding users to tailored learning resources, Curated reports, thematic cards, tutorials, and video content, Community spaces for collaboration and peer learning, A growing ecosystem connecting European craft practices.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Strengthen the transmission of craft knowledge, foster collaboration, and stimulate innovation across Europe’s diverse crafts sectors.

23 Materie di Studio

A set of three lessons held by craftmakers for management students to reflect thorugh interaction with the material on the materiality of companies’ production processes

What you learn by completing this resource?

Hopefully a more conscious stance toward economic activity.

24 HEPHAESTUS webinar plus individual mentoring sessions

Three webinars with local craft experts on craft business models, sustainability practices for craft, digital/new technologies, followed by individual mentoring sessions.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Get a sense of possible avenues in terms of a more solid business model, digital technologies and green economy principle and a dedicated individual mentoring for the three topics

25 Craftsmanship and the politics of craft preservation

Craft preservation today unfolds within a dynamic and evolving landscape, where artisanal practices are increasingly framed as contributors to innovation, sustainability and territorial development. In parallel, craft governance has become more complex, involving public institutions, professional organisations and private actors such as luxury brands. This paper reviews contemporary preservation policies, identifying four main intervention clusters: certifications and standards, heritage recognition, skills and knowledge transmission, and entrepreneurship and innovation. While these often overlap in practice, they clarify the layered rationales shaping contemporary craft governance. Building on this review, we explore how the preservation of craft is operationalised through hybrid policy designs that address shifting boundaries and broadened expectations surrounding artisanal practice. The paper shows how hybrid configurations are enacted through a case study of Regional Law No. 34/2018 of the Veneto Region without explicit integration. The figure of the Maestro emerges as a carrier of institutional logics and a performative boundary object, stabilising fragmented policy expectations. The findings contribute to debates in organisation studies on institutional pluralism, role work and governance in creative economies.

What you learn by completing this resource?

The state of the art in terms of policies for craft knowledge transmission and preservation.

26 Elements of gemmological analysis and identification of precious stones; Level I jewellery making techniques

Agenzia Formativa ‘E.G.Ghirardi’ is a vocational school for goldsmiths and an institution accredited by the Piedmont region for career guidance and employment services for young people and adults.These are highly practical courses focused on specific areas of craftsmanship.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Through knowledge and in-depth study of materials, metalworking techniques, knowledge of the main materials to be used and their assembly and finishing, users will be able to choose materials, transfer project dimensions, trace, use fretwork techniques, work on shapes, assembly, welding and mounting of the parts that make up the jewellery, finishing the product and the surface polishing process. At the end of the course, the user will have created a ring and a brooch and will be familiar with all the characteristics of the materials and processing techniques; This course provides students with general technical training in performing comprehensive qualitative analyses on coloured gemstones and in the use of gemmological instruments. Topics covered will include: an introduction to mineralogy and geology, gemmology sites: extraction; knowledge and use of instruments for gemmological analysis and identification, the ‘4Cs’, factors influencing the market; natural stones, synthetics, imitations. Classification of coloured stones and diamonds; laboratory organisation; UNI and international standards and certifications.

TECNICHE DI OREFICERIA I° LIVELLO

ELEMENTI DI ANALISI GEMMOLOGICA E IDENTIFICAZIONE DELLE PIETRE PREZIOSE

27 Emagister - Craft Section

This resource offers access to a broad range of in presence and online craft courses delivered by different training providers. The courses cover several artisanal fields, including jewellery, ceramics, leather, clay, terracotta, porcelain, and artistic crafts. Together, they provide opportunities for learners with different goals, from introductory training to more advanced specialization, combining technical practice, material knowledge, and professionally oriented craft education.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Depending on the selected course, learners can develop practical craft techniques, improve their understanding of materials and tools, and strengthen their ability to produce artisanal objects in specific domains. Some courses are more introductory, while others support specialization or professional development. Overall, the resource offers learning opportunities that can help users build hands-on making skills, sector-specific knowledge, and, in some cases, a stronger basis for entering or consolidating craft practice.

28 EuroFormation

The Juribit – Euro Formation School is a training institution whose specific mission is to make training courses immediately accessible and usable, with basic professional content, the acquisition of technical skills and the development of expertise derived from experience, with particular regard to new technologies, the transition to digital and sustainable ecological and environmental development. Euro Formation is aimed at individuals, both students and workers who need to acquire new knowledge, or professionals who need to maintain or expand their skills. This resource offers a set of online craft-related courses gathered under the search term artigianato. The results include 36 courses and cover areas such as digital textile craft, investment in craftsmanship, territorial traditions, digital blacksmithing and industrial making, metal craft and industrial design, digital jewellery and 3D printing, laser wood carving, robotic maintenance for craft machinery, sustainable ceramic decoration, and glass engraving.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Depending on the selected course, learners can develop practical competences in both traditional and digitally supported craft processes. The catalogue suggests learning opportunities in textile making, metalworking, jewellery production, wood engraving, ceramic decoration, and glasswork, while also introducing more technology-oriented areas such as 3D printing, robotics, and laser-based fabrication. Overall, the resource appears to support hybrid craft profiles that combine manual expertise with design and digital production tools.

29 Domestika

Inspired by its dynamic community of professionals, Domestika decided to aim even higher, starting to produce online courses for anyone who wants to explore their creative potential, learn new skills, and connect with like-minded creatives from around the world. Domestika carefully selects its teachers and produces all courses in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience. Currently, the online community is home to millions of people united by the same passion: learning new skills and developing their creativity.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Different for each course.

30 Distributed Design Learning Hub

The Learning Hub aims to provide resources and practical learning materials to support in exploring new topics, navigating intersectional practices, and expanding knowledge.

What you learn by completing this resource?

General competencies and information on innovation, business, technology.

31 Fabricademy

Fabricademy is an interdisciplinary course that focuses on new technologies applied to the textile field, from the fashion industry all the way to the upcoming wearable market. A 6 months program to be attended in a participating laboratory or online.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Skill, tools, processes.

32 Toolkit cards: tachnology for carft processes

This resource is a set of toolkit cards designed to showcase possible applications of digital fabrication processes in craft. Through a graphic and accessible format, it introduces makers to different ways in which digital tools and technologies can support craft processes, product development, and experimentation. The cards work as a quick guide to help users understand possible uses, opportunities, and directions for integrating digital fabrication into artisanal practice.

What you learn by completing this resource?

By engaging with this resource, users can gain an introductory understanding of how digital fabrication technologies may be applied within craft processes. Rather than teaching one specific technique in depth, the toolkit helps readers recognize possible connections between digital tools and artisanal making, offering ideas for experimentation and innovation. It is especially useful for inspiring reflection on how technology can support or expand contemporary craft practice.

33 Fab Academy

Fab Academy is an intensive ﬁve-month program that teaches students to envision, design and prototype projects using digital fabrication tools and machines. It is a multi-disciplinary and hands-on learning experience that empowers students to learn-by-doing and inspires them to make stuff locally to become active participants in sustainable cities and communities.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Skill, tools, processes.

35 Maestro Bottega and Artigiano Scuola (MABS)

The aim of the project is to build a training system based on the figure of the Master Artisan.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Craft-making skills.

36 Una Scuola, un Lavoro

Each year, Una Scuola, un Lavoro offers free excellence pathways to 25 young craftspeople across Italy. The program includes a four-week “Mini Master,” organized by prestigious Milanese universities, and a six-month internship in a workshop, laboratory, or artisan enterprise, where participants work side by side with a master craftsperson.

Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte promotes this initiative with the aim of:

Supporting both the theoretical and practical training of new artisans
Facilitating their career choices through direct exposure to the world of work
Preventing the disappearance of traditional and locally rooted crafts and know-how, preserving their socio-economic and cultural value
Nurturing the masters of tomorrow by offering skilled artisans the opportunity to train apprentices who can learn the secrets of the craft and work alongside them

This resource offers free excellence pathways for young craftspeople in Italy through a combined training model. Each year, selected participants receive a four-week “Mini Master” with 120 hours of classroom training and a six-month paid internship in an artisan workshop, laboratory, or craft enterprise alongside a master craftsperson. The project is designed to support both theoretical and practical development and to facilitate entry into the world of high artistic craftsmanship.

What you learn by completing this resource?

A classroom-based training pathway offered free of charge to all selected participants. The tailored “Mini Master” includes 120 hours of targeted training, structured as follows:

History of Applied Arts, delivered by Corsi Arte
Design and Personal Branding, delivered by Politecnico di Milano
Micro-enterprise Management, delivered by SDA Bocconi through the initiative SDA Bocconi for Growth
Digital Communication, delivered by Università IULM

The programme is further enriched by classes in self-entrepreneurship delivered by Formaper, visits to selected artisan workshops in Milan, and a course on health and safety in the workplace delivered by IndirizzoAmbiente, followed by a six-month paid internship in an artisan workshop.

By completing this pathway, learners develop both practical and professional competences needed for contemporary craft careers. The Mini Master builds knowledge in applied arts, design, personal branding, micro-enterprise management, digital communication, self-entrepreneurship, and workplace safety. The six-month internship then allows participants to deepen their technical skills through daily practice with a master artisan, strengthening their understanding of real workshop processes, professional identity, and transition into work.

38 Mind Crafts

MINDCRAFTS is a project that employs non-formal learning to engage young people (aged 15-25) in traditional building crafts and built heritage. The project aims to raise awareness, foster dialogue, and spark interest in traditional craft-building professions, highlighting their cultural significance, relevance in today’s world, and potential as rewarding career paths.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Craft-making skills.

39 WMN&ART - Integrated e-training & e-guiding for inactive women for transferring their art hobby in to their future income

WMN&ART is an Erasmus+ project designed to support inactive women in turning artistic and ceramic hobbies into home-based micro-enterprises. It combines project information, mentoring profiles, and a multilingual e-learning platform. The training model includes separate pathways for art mentors and women mentees, with a particular focus on artistic ceramics, mentoring support, entrepreneurship, and the development of home-based handcrafting activities that can generate income.

What you learn by completing this resource?

By engaging with WMN&art, learners can develop knowledge and skills for producing ceramic handicrafts from home and turning those activities into small-scale income-generating work. Mentees receive training in handcraft production and business start-up support, while mentors learn how to guide women entrepreneurs through mentoring, business development, and growth strategies. The resource therefore combines craft learning, entrepreneurship, and peer support within a structured digital environment.

40 A&D Artigianato e Design

A&D was launched in 2019 during ViOff as an exhibition of manufacturing excellence displayed in the shop windows of the historic city centre. In 2020, the project expanded thanks to an ESF call for proposals, “Atelier aziendali. Il lavoro si racconta – Botteghe e Atelier aziendali. Itinerari di scoperta dei patrimoni d’impresa – 2020.” This marked the beginning of a collaboration with a number of artisan businesses, aimed at helping them enhance the value of their heritage and laying the foundations for a virtual diffuse museum of artisanal culture.

Today, the new project ARTIGIANATO E DESIGN – La cultura della manifattura e il patrimonio artistico del territorio is promoted by CNA Veneto Ovest and developed thanks to the support of the Vicenza Chamber of Commerce and EBAV, the Bilateral Body for Veneto Craftsmanship. Its partners include the municipalities of Vicenza, Bassano del Grappa, Thiene, and Recoaro Terme, together with Corart, Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte, Vicenza è, and the Museo del Gioiello di Vicenza.

This YouTube channel brings together video portraits, short documentaries, and thematic playlists devoted to Italian artistic craftsmanship, especially in the Vicenza area. Its content features artisans, workshops, materials, and production processes in fields such as ceramics, wood, screen printing, goldsmithing, pigments, and related creative sectors. Rather than offering formal step-by-step courses, the channel provides craft storytelling, visibility for makers, and insight into contemporary artisanal practices and local manufacturing culture.e.

What you learn by completing this resource?

By engaging with this channel, learners can gain a richer understanding of how contemporary artisans work, how workshops present their identity, and how materials, territory, and storytelling interact in craft practice. The videos can help viewers recognize different artisanal sectors, observe processes and finished outputs, and reflect on the cultural and professional value of making. The resource is therefore especially useful for inspiration, orientation, and exposure to real craft environments.

41 Artex Artigianato Artistico

It includes several webinars:

SUSTAINABILITY PILLS: Artex offers and presents four virtual meetings on Zoom plus one Innovation Webinar, aimed at guiding companies through the Sustainable Development Goals and helping them develop business strategies for a greener, higher-quality future. The program provides specific training on sustainability within enterprises, enabling participants to raise awareness among craft businesses about circular economy and sustainability issues. The project, “Sustainability Pills,” is supported by the World Crafts Council Europe through the Crafting the Future project funded by the European Union.

INNOVATION WEBINARS: A series of in-depth sessions aimed at all artistic and traditional craft enterprises, with the goal of increasing awareness of digital tools as an integral part of business strategy.

CRAFT DIALOGUES: Craft Dialogues is a series launched by Artex in 2021 with the aim of promoting knowledge of Tuscany’s artistic craft heritage through the testimonies of Master Artisans recognized by the Chamber of Commerce. Each dialogue features a conversation between a master artisan and an expert from the sector, a cultural figure, or a representative of the relevant field. The dialogues are streamed live on Artex’s Facebook and YouTube channels.

TOSCANA ARTIGIANA: A focus on Tuscan artisans.

GALLERIA DELL’ARTIGIANO: A series of interviews with artisans.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Business skills, sustainability competences, innovation skills.

42 Observatory on arts and crafts

It is an online platform for craft education, it has different sections: scientific hub (reports section, Journal section), training (It provides access to all MOSAIC Training Modules available to Teachers and Learners including: craft techniques and methodologies, digitalisation, entrepreneurship, social Inclusion and environmental sustainability.), business hub (Dedicated to entrepreneurs looking for support, tools, knowledge sharing and professional networking).

What you learn by completing this resource?

Craft-making skills, business skills.

43 Craeft Community

This community platform serves as a collaborative hub for all stakeholders connected to the crafts sector, including craft professionals and associations, researchers, policymakers, educators, economists, consumers, and young people. It provides an open space for dialogue, knowledge exchange, and shared reflection on the present and future of crafts. By gathering experiences, best practices, and policy recommendations, the platform contributes to a comprehensive understanding of the structural, economic, and social challenges facing the sector, while fostering constructive debate on pathways for renewal. It promotes an environment in which authenticity is valued, innovation is supported, and the cultural legacy of crafts is sustained.
The platform is grounded in the recognition that revitalizing the crafts sector requires a multifaceted approach. This includes acknowledging the cultural, social, and economic significance of crafts; safeguarding authentic artisanal techniques and regional heritage; strengthening transmission, training, and flexible certification systems; encouraging innovative and sustainable business models for small craft enterprises; and systematically documenting endangered knowledge and practices. By addressing these interconnected dimensions, the community seeks to support a resilient, forward-looking crafts ecosystem that preserves tradition while adapting to contemporary realities.
The CRAEFT Community Portal is a thematic online environment for crafts stakeholders, including craft professionals, associations, researchers, policymakers, educators, economists, consumers, and young people. It aims to support reflection and exchange around the revitalization of the crafts sector through themes such as valorisation, safeguarding authenticity, transmission and training, business models, and documentation. Within this framework, it also highlights educational content, pilots, and discussions related to craft learning and certification.

What you learn by completing this resource?

By engaging with this resource, users can deepen their understanding of how craft knowledge is transmitted, documented, safeguarded, and renewed through both traditional and digital methods. The platform exposes learners to examples, discussion topics, and pilot experiences involving glass, wood, clay, textiles, metalworking, immersive tools, and certification models. It is especially useful for understanding evolving approaches to craft education, heritage preservation, and innovation rather than for following a single linear training course.

44 Craeft Podcast

This resource is a podcast channel connected to the CRAEFT project and used to host episodes under the title The Voices of Crafts. The available episodes currently focus especially on glassmaking through the CERFAV context, featuring stories, motivations, and technical reflections from students and young practitioners. Rather than offering formal lessons, the podcast provides narrative, interview-based audio content that helps listeners engage with craft pathways, vocational motivations, and the lived experience of learning a craft.

What you learn by completing this resource?

By engaging with this podcast, listeners can better understand why people enter craft professions, how vocational identities develop, and how a material such as glass can become the centre of a professional calling. The episodes provide insight into student journeys, reskilling paths, fascination with materials, and the emotional and cultural dimensions of craft learning. The resource is therefore especially useful for inspiration, orientation, and sector awareness rather than for direct technical mastery.

45

Target audiences: Craft professionals and artisans, Researchers and students in cultural heritage, design, and related fields, Educators and trainers, Policymakers and cultural practitioners, Museums and heritage organizations, Cultural tourism actors, Consumers interested in handcrafted products, Young people exploring craft and cultural heritage
Type: Online learning tool

Artefact Gallery by Culturality

The Artefact Gallery on the Culturality Project website is a curated digital showcase of traditional and contemporary handcrafted objects that highlights the material culture of rural and remote areas across Europe. It features a diverse array of artefacts—such as textiles, tools, jewellery, and everyday objects—submitted or documented by project partners and collaborators, each accompanied by contextual information about its origin, materials, techniques, and cultural significance. Through this visual and descriptive presentation, the gallery illustrates how local craftsmanship reflects broader traditions, identities, and creative practices while contributing to the project’s research on cultural heritage and sustainable rural development.

The Artefact Gallery serves both as an educational resource and as a platform for increasing the visibility of rural craftsmanship at European and international levels. It not only celebrates the aesthetic and technical qualities of handcrafted objects, but also situates them within ongoing conversations about cultural sustainability, circularity, and community resilience. By presenting these artefacts in an accessible online format, the gallery supports Culturality’s objectives of promoting cultural tourism, fostering appreciation for intangible heritage, and engaging a wide audience in understanding the value of traditional craft practices today.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Knowledge transmission of: Cultural heritage

46 Knitting by the sea

Knitting by the Sea is a year-round craft association that culminates in an annual large knit-and-craft festival in Faaborg, Denmark, featuring workshops, talks, strikke-cafés, exhibitions, and stalls selling yarn and materials.

What you learn by completing this resource?

New knitting/craft techniques, design inspiration, creative community engagement; festival participation offers practical hands-on learning through workshops.

47 BioColour Online Exhibitions

A curated archive of online exhibitions and experimental projects presenting artistic and scientific explorations of biocolourants (natural dyes/pigments), their cultural, ecological and aesthetic dimensions, and prototypes demonstrating sustainable colour practices.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Insight into natural dye sources; sustainability of bio-based colours; intersections of science, design and art; cultural narratives around colour production; experimental practices combining research and creative expression

48 BioColour Online Podcasts

A series of recorded talks and interviews featuring BioColour researchers and guest experts discussing topics related to colourants, natural dyes, pigment science, toxicity, sustainability, and bio-based colour research, often linked to BioColours conferences or events.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Insights into natural and bio-based colourants, their chemical and ecological properties, sustainability considerations, scientific methods, and cultural/policy contexts of colour research.

49 BioColour Online Videos

A collection of recorded seminar sessions, panel discussions, webinars and event livestreams related to BioColour research, including talks on sustainable colours, scientific topics and public outreach events made available as video recordings.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Insights into natural and bio-based colourants, their chemical and ecological properties, sustainability considerations, scientific methods, and cultural/policy contexts of colour research.

50 Colour4CRAFTS Podcast

A podcast that uncovers the meanings and cultural significance of colour, explores textile production, traditional and contemporary craft practices, educational programmes, and connects research activities with society through interviews and discussions.

What you learn by completing this resource?

General information on textile production and contemporary craft practices.

51 Taito Craft Courses

A national searchable portal of craft courses and workshops organised by Taito’s regional craft associations across Finland. Courses cover a wide range of craft techniques and are designed to support learning, creativity, and community engagement.

What you learn by completing this resource?

Practical craft skills e.g., weaving, tufting, spinning, mats, jewellery, embroidery

53 Media Review: Speculative Methods in the Absence of Archives

This piece is a short media review in Organization Studies that discusses Firelei Báez’s exhibition Trust Memory Over History (Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Denmark; Oct 2023–May 2024). It uses the exhibition as an entry point to reflect on “speculative methods” as ways of working when archives are missing, absent, or insufficient—foregrounding memory, narrative, and imaginative reconstruction as methodological resources.

What you learn by completing this resource?

More-than-human orientations in design & art, speculative methodologies.

55 Nature’s Cornucopia: Ancient Sources, New Technologies – Digital Exhibition & Virtual Tour

The Nature’s Cornucopia digital exhibition is an online showcase of textile works and research exploring natural dyes, combining traditional craft techniques with advanced technologies. It allows users to virtually explore exhibition materials, images, and texts, highlighting the relationship between science, sustainability, and creative practice.

What you learn by completing this resource?

You learn about natural dyeing techniques, sustainable textile practices, and how traditional craft methods can be combined with new technologies in contemporary design.