Handicrafts offer more than just tangible creations. They tell stories of personal and communal transformation. These crafts, often rooted in cultural heritage, can empower individuals, revitalise communities and even bridge social divides. Through the process of making, artisans develop skills, build confidence and find economic independence, while communities can preserve traditions and foster a sense of identity.
Focusing on women
In Europe, women have historically found transformation and empowerment through handicrafts, using their skills to overcome adversity, preserve cultural heritage and build businesses. Stories highlight how vocational training, community support and access to resources have enabled women to transform their passion for crafts into sustainable livelihoods. These narratives often showcase women preserving traditional techniques while also innovating with contemporary designs, fostering economic independence and community development. In this article, we will refer to real stories of women who deal with handicrafts in different parts of the world.
- Latvia: transforming handicrafts from hobby to source of income
Latgale, the easternmost region of Latvia, is known for its rich cultural heritage and the vibrancy of the crafts tradition. Trades such as pottery, woodworking, stone-cutting, knitting, and weaving continue to flourish here alongside the new forms of craftsmanship, like glass decor, porcelain, production of cosmetic products, demonstrating the evolution of traditions in response to contemporary influences and market demands. The region, sharing borders with Russia and Belarus, has developed these trades through generations, making it an integral part of its cultural identity. Crafts in Latgale are not only a way of preserving traditional customs but also a means of fostering community engagement and socio-economic activity, contributing significantly to local development.
“Artists need a catalyst for growth to truly flourish professionally, and they must see clear pathways and opportunities for business development,” says Iveta Maļina-Tabūne, Head of Administration of Latgale Planning Region.
- Serbia
A story of women’s empowerment through design is the story of Sladjana Milojevic, the founder of Nonna Handmade, which is a family-owned fashion enterprise specialising in handmade weaving and embroidery.
Nonna Handmade works with communities of women artisans from Western Serbia, offering them not only a source of income but also the pride of reviving an ancient craft and preserving the intangible cultural heritage of the country through a collection of garments and accessories.
This is the story behind Nonna Handmade, narrated by Sladjana Milojevic:
“In our beautiful ambience of our family house surrounded by the hills and in the untouched nature of the western part of Serbia, my sister and I decided to put preserved weaving needles, tailoring rulers, books and sewing machines with pound ground in our house, which belonged to our grandmother and grandfather and to put back into the operation 7 years ago.
In memory of the hard-working hands of our Nonna, we call her Nana, and our grandpa, we innovated a collection of Nonna handmade. And we created through the combination of traditional but as well contemporary ideas and production processes. Within a handed craft techniques such as embroidery, crochet and weaving, our family story of creative creation of Nonna Handmade may continue to our third generation but hope so forward as well through my daughter.
Our vision of Nonna Handmade is to preserve a part of a cultural heritage through the combination of traditional and contemporary, in the ideas and production process to make our Nonna products desirable and available to everyone who wants to own unique products inspired by tradition.
Nonna Handmade is our family business, a family women entrepreneur company, that in addition to the family consists of a team of experts as well: designers, professors, constructors, modelling, academic painters and of course masters of old crafts such as embroidery. And all of them are working together around our Nonna in two studios, one is in the western part of Serbia, where our family house and the other one is in Belgrade.
Together, we create Nonna products with that artistic style, together with a touch of that traditional and very, very Serbian heritage culture. So, Nonna products are not only beautiful, but they are also exclusive in some way. And at this moment, we really can say that we are the only ones in Serbia doing a collection in this way.”
- Sweden
KRAFT is a sustainable handicraft business in Sweden and is made up of three women—Maya Månhav, Anna Sjösvärd, and Susanne Sadri—who met at the University of Gothenburg while studying a BA course in craft as an intangible cultural heritage.
KRAFT was founded in 2020, at the close of their three-year degree programme. This coincided, with the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis, which meant that their way of working had to change just a few months after they got started. They initially offered lectures and workshops related to craft and sustainability, linked to the 2030 agenda for sustainable development, but the onset of the pandemic meant that they had to alter their plans. Instead of in-person lectures and workshops, they moved online. They launched KRAFT slöjdpåsar (‘KRAFT craft kits’) in Autumn 2020. These kits are aimed at kids and make it possible for libraries and other culture centers who purchase them to offer kids creative workshops for free, even during the pandemic when face-to-face workshops are off the table. The kits are paper bags filled with the material needed to make a certain type of craft.
What do the 3 founders of KRAFT say about running their own small business?
“Running your own small business is often a gamble: it requires hard work, and it often takes time for it to provide a liveable wage. But the pros include being able to work with something you are passionate about, and the luxury of choosing both who you work with and the hours you want to work.”
- Peruvian Amazon, Egypt and Turkey:
Throughout history, women’s labour has often gone unnoticed. But handicrafts have turned into a powerful space that not only makes this labour visible but also empowers women. Today, crafts like weaving, amigurumi and embroidery are more than just traditional pastimes—they’re tools for women to participate more actively in society, gain economic independence, and contribute to gender equality.
in the Peruvian Amazon, women use their handmade creations to support their families and voice their demands to local authorities (UNESCO, 2024). These spaces offer more than income—they give women a platform to express themselves.
A women’s cooperative in the city of Aswan in Egypt began as a small group of unemployed women and quickly grew into a large production network. There, women learn not just how to crochet but also how to collaborate and support one another (UN Women, 2023).
Emine Kılıç from Turkey started out making scarves at home and, with the support of KOSGEB, turned her business into an export brand that now ships to 15 countries and employs over 200 women (KOSGEB, 2023).
Concluding, women have historically played a significant role in the realm of handicrafts, both as creators and as a driving force in the crafts market, not only in Europe, but also worldwide. While often working within the domestic sphere and within family businesses, women’s contributions have been vital to the development and preservation of various craft traditions. The Craft2Success project aims to help transform traditional crafting skills into sustainable business opportunities through specialised training and resources.
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Resources:
Latvia: transforming handicrafts from hobby to source of income (30th of April 2024), accessed on 8/8/2025
Women, Handicrafts, and Gender Equality: A Global Story of Empowerment (21st of March 2025) accessed on 8/8/2025
Nonna Handmade accessed on 8/8/2025
Working with craft and sustainability in a female dominated field (13th of December 2021) accessed on 8/8/2025
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