The Secrets of Mastery

Why is entomologist Doug Tallamy on a national crusade to get private landowners to tear their lawns? As a wildlife ecology professor at the University of Delaware, Dr. Tallamy sees the world from a bug’s point of view. He’s also co-founder of Homegrown National Park, which works to convince Americans to grow native plants that…

When most of us think of bamboo construction, we might picture a palm-thatched hut on a tropical beach somewhere—not a modern, urban environment of multi-story buildings. But Jonas Hauptman, a craftsperson and designer/inventor who co-leads the Bio Design Research Group at Virginia Tech, thinks differently. A winner of the prestigious University of Michigan Oberdick Fellowship…

Andy Graham—musician, instrument maker, inventor, and patentholder—takes us on a brief but fascinating “tour of sound.” Graham’s enchantment with a centuries-old Aboriginal wind instrument, the didgeridoo, has yielded several new instrumental creations. His passion for experimentation shines through as he discusses the process behind his work; the joys of tinkering; and some of the highlights…

Rebecca van Bergen, founder and executive director of Nest, talks about her passion for supporting craft-based businesses, what it takes for artisans to succeed—and why their success matters on a global scale. Nest is a not-for-profit organization that provides training, resources, and sales opportunities to artisans around the world, while helping to preserve their unique cultural…

Blake RIley, the creative director of San Francisco’s beloved Arion Press, discusses some of the long history and persistent myths of letterpress printing; what keeps a centuries-old, labor-intensive industry going in a high-tech world; what ‘mastery’ means to him (it may surprise you!)—and why he never gets bored.

Annie Morhauser, founder of Annieglass, started her business 40 years ago with little more than debt and determination. Today, her glassware can be found on fine dining tables across the country—as well as in The Smithsonian. On her journey from struggling artist to owner of a successful, large-scale glassware company, Morhauser says: “I don’t care how…

Take an audio tour of the famed Ruth Bancroft Garden and Nursery in Walnut Creek, California, with expert garden designer Cricket Riley, gleaning inspiration (and a few tips) for planting a climate-resilient garden of your own. Riley, a former design services director at the garden, gives us a tour of its 3-acre oasis of succulents, cacti,…

For three generations, the Soban family in Valenza, Northern Italy, has been handcrafting and refining their gelato recipes and serving them up to happy customers at Gelateria Soban. Master gelatiere Andrea Soban continues to expand his family’s legacy, winning prizes for his world-class gelato and publishing a book, “Making Italian Gelato.” In this episode of…

Shoni Maulding works at the custom hitching jig that her husband, Ron, designed and built for her. “That is the beauty of being married to Ron,” Shoni jokes. photo by Jeremy Lurgio Nobody’s quite sure where or when the tradition of horsehair hitching began. Perhaps it came from the Moors who conquered Spain, or military…

Master woodworker and furniture maker Gary Rogowski discusses the value of handmade work in this episode of “The Secrets of Mastery.” The founder of the Northwest Woodworking Studio, Rogowski is also the author of many books about woodworking and creativity in the digital age.  

Craftsmanship‘s editor-in-chief, Todd Oppenheimer, sits down with Paul and Elizabeth Kaiser, a husband-and-wife farming team who have been at the forefront of the regenerative agriculture movement. Hear how regenerative techniques help fight the effects of climate disruption; some of the mind-boggling results they found in testing their soil and produce; and how they harness Mother…

Have you ever opened a brand-new package of clothing and been hit with a strong whiff of petroleum? Journalist Alden Wicker took a deep dive into the chemicals commonly used by the fashion industry in her recent book, “To Dye For: How Toxic Fashion is Making Us Sick—and How We Can Fight Back.”   Craftsmanship Magazine…

Go-go music is a rhythm-heavy blend of funk, soul, and blues that is at the very heart of Washington, D.C.’s Black community. And while the style has been influencing Top 40 hits for decades, it’s little known outside the District. Two key artists in the go-go scene, Shorty Corleone and Roy Battle, discuss go-go’s distinctive…

RoseMary Diaz (Santa Clara Pueblo), the guest editor for our special issue on Native American Craft: The Southwest, talks with Craftsmanship‘s managing editor, Laurie Weed, about her experiences growing up “half-Indian” in Northern New Mexico. Their conversation covers the cultural controversy around “art vs. craft,” and the story behind the stories of the magazine’s first…

This husband-and-wife journalism team spent 4 years crisscrossing the United States in a small plane, visiting dozens of small towns. The stories they found were surprising—and entirely contrary to the narrative we’ve all read about in the news. They saw  communities engaged in a vigorous process of economic renewal—a stunning portrait, in sum, of an…

Rebecca Burgess is the executive director of Fibershed, an internationally recognized nonprofit focused on transforming the clothing and textile system. She is also the author of two books, and a vocationally trained weaver and natural dyer. She sat down with Craftsmanship Magazine to talk about price and privilege when it comes to “slow fashion,” why…

Alden Wicker, award-winning journalist, sustainable fashion expert, and founder of EcoCult, talks about her disillusionment with the idea of “voting with your dollars;” why the cotton industry is in disarray; and some concerning new research around toxicity and chemicals in fashion.

When Mae Gaines moved from Los Angeles, CA, to Idaho, she expected her life would be different. What she didn’t anticipate was the response when she opened Boise’s first—and only—vegan soul food restaurant. *Trigger warning: This episode contains an offensive racial slur, repeated by the interviewee as she describes a real-life incident of verbal assault.