In the late 19th century a design reform and social movement “The Arts and Crafts movement” was coined. These activities are called crafts because originally many of them were professions under the guild system. The Industrial Revolution and the increasing mechanisation of production processes gradually reduced or eliminated many of the roles professional craftspeople played, and today ‘crafts’ are most commonly seen as a form of hobby or art. They look hard but they are actually an easy craft project to make.

Some crafts have been practised for centuries, while others are modern inventions, or popularisations of crafts which were originally practised in a very small geographic area. These activities are called crafts because originally many of them were professions under the guild system. Most crafts require a combination of skill, speed, and patience, but they can also be learnt on a more basic level by virtually anyone.

Anything that uses a needle for construction can be called needlework. Needlework is a term applied to two classes of handcraft involving fabrics. Embroidery was being done long before its name was derived, by way of medieval French from the Anglo-Saxon word for “edge. The first, embroidery, is the embellishment of a fabric by designs worked in thread with a needle. Some embroidery techniques produce a basically flat surface; others produce designs in relief.

Antique crochet has enormous character which is displayed in various forms and styles and so antique patterns are sought after by those looking to recreate classic items from a past era. Fortunately there were a lot of books, magazines and patterns published between 1850 and 1950 that have preserved the diversity of crochet creations that represent the peak period of this craft.

Tapestry art was even thought to have covered the walls of the Parthenon. Tapestry crochet is relatively easy and inexpensive; a perfect vehicle to the introduction of fiber art. Tapestry crochet is the art of crocheting with different colored strands of yarn while carrying the yarn, produces woven-like results. Fine Art Great works of art are sometimes reproduced as wall tapestries. These beautiful tapestries have a distinct and extraordinary quality.

Have you ever wondered what Tatting was? Tatting is a form of lace making made up of knots, which are done over a carrier thread. Tatting is a type of knotted lace. Tatting is made up of knotted rings and chains. Two shuttles are used in tatting when the little rings are not to be connected together at the bottom by a thread, when you want to hide the passage of the thread to another group of knots and when threads of several colours are used. Today antique tatting shuttles are highly collectible, as are old patterns and bits of lace.

Now the ceramic industry is a large industry with the ceramics being used in every conceivable form ranging form the flooring industry where ceramic tiles are popular to the high end aerospace industry.

Initially the ceramics were the refractory material which is still used in the flooring industry but for the high end uses there were hybrids developed like the silica carbide and the silica nitride. These ceramics have advantages over the traditional steel or other materials.

Ceramics are corrosion resistant as well as they are heat resistant and of course they much better at bearing heavier loads than steel. It is for this specific reason that the ceramics have been used by the industry even in the medicine world. Specific for bone implants and orthopedic restorations the ceramic material is used as it is very hard and tough to sustain pressures.

The other major use of ceramics is now being done in the semiconductors world. The integrated chip circuit’s that are used computers and other high techs gadgets have ceramic material. The ceramic material is also used in manufacturing of insulators and capacitors.

That said the future seems to be very bright for ceramics and a lot of research is being done to leverage the strength and the corrosion resistance of the ceramic materials.

In fact one of the major uses of ceramic has been in the cosmetic dentistry industry especially the porcelain veneers. Porcelain veneers are used by the cosmetic dentists makes new veneers for use on their patients. Porcelain veneers have a vitreous and glassy feel and that is why the look good on the tooth for a glassy white finish as dental crowns.

Ceramics as material is been continually evolved to make sure that in nowadays world it is environment friendly and can be easily disposed off also. These materials are hard and hence pose challenges when they are recycled as they cannot break down easily. So there is more research being done nowadays to look into this aspect of the ceramics.