To make a long story short, I am forty-two, and for most of my life, I have been interested in the so-called blind trades, both for pleasure and as genuine crafts. These include chair caning, mat making, basketry, broom making, rug weaving, yarn weaving, bookbinding, soap making, pottery, etc. I didn't include brush making because that requires a real workshop and can be dangerous from what I've heard. Likewise, piano tuning takes many years to learn, though i believe there is a school for that. I wrote to many blind schools asking for assistance, guidance, or even some general advice, but none wrote back to me. I contacted a mainstream basket weaver, but although she was nice, she couldn't help me. I found a very good series on broom-making on Youtube, though I must check to see if it's still there. The problem with many videos is that they explain things in a visual way i.e. "look at the diagram", "follow what you see me doing here", or the hosts talk while they're doing an important step that they're not describing, etc. Regardless, I started learning chair caning, but the place was far from my home, and I kept having issues with paratransit, so I had to stop. I have, however, made soap using the melt and pour method several times, and I've worked on both a lap loom (made of cardboard many times), an inkle loom once, and used a potholder kit at least once. I've also taken several pottery classes, but to go beyond air-dry clay or the type that can be baked in a home oven, it's necessary to have a kiln, which is prohibitively expensive.
Having said all of that, has anyone here ever been involved with any of these, or perhaps something I didn't mention? If so, was/is it as a hobby or to sell crafts? Where were you taught and how i.e. all hands-on, or with books, manuals, etc? If you sold/sell them, how did/do you do so i.e. through a workshop or factory, at a traditional flee market or craft fair, online via Etsy or Ebay, or do you have your own site? Would you be able to give me any general tips or advice regarding your craft?
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