If you're among the many wailing over the loss of Domino, which was folded by Conde Nast Publications as of the March issue, take heart. Even though the shelter magazine that spoke to unabashedly girlish 20-something women is unlikely to be replaced anytime soon, there are still options for homebodies beyond House Beautiful and Architectural Digest.

In Handmade Nation (Princeton Architectural Press 2008) Faythe Levine and Cortney Heimerl celebrate movers and shakers on the DIY (Do It Yourself) side of the craft movement. The book will be launched at DUMBOs powerHouse Arena this Wednesday, with a panel discussion and Q&A with the authors and contributors, including Andrew Wagner, Editor in Chief of American Craft magazine and Sabrina Gschwandtner, founder of the arts journal KnitKnit!.

Left: JW and Melissa Buchanan of The Little Friends of Printmaking. Right: Art by Jenny Hart of Sublime Stitching. Photos courtesy Princeton Architectural Press.

The book's subtitle, The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design takes a step in the direction of dispelling confusion about the multifaceted subject, which is further explained by Andrew Wagner in the Introduction. The subjects of Handmade Nation are crafters who, on the whole, left the fine arts behind while seeking meaningful engagement by making useful things for sale.

Among Handmade Nation's interviewees is Kathie Sever of Austin, Texas, who took up embroidery while on a sabbatical in Montana, away from the art-school environment that caused her to wonder about her future. She sought a creative enterprise that would "become integrated into somenone's life on a daily level." Sever started her company, Ramonster, creating children's clothing; today she produces one-of-a-kind items for men, women and children.

JW and Melissa Buchanan, owners of The Little Friends of Printmaking in Milwakuee, Wisconsin, arrived at the craft scene almost by accident. Makers of hand-pulled silkscreened posters, they were commissioned by the organizers of Art vs. Craft, Milwaukee's indie handmade market. Being there inspired them to create prints for sale at this event and online; the rest, as they say, is history.

Today's indie crafters operate outside the mainstream. And for the most part, they are making items that have a strong design appeal. Using internet tools, they have organized major sales outlets such as the Renegade Craft Fair, which debuted in Chicago in 2003. This year, the fair, which has grown beyond the organizers' wildest dreams, will also be held in Brooklyn, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The success of Renegade, which also has a brick-and-morter site, had much to do with the rise of the self-made marketing site Etsy.com, and the social network Ravelry.com, which operates in the seamless world of Internet 2.0.

So forget about "artsy-craftsy," the perjorative holdover term from yesterday's hippie era. When you get your feet wet in today's DIY pool, you might find just the kind of relief you need from mass-produced and made elsewhere.

The Handmade Nation panel discussion at powerHouse Arena on Wednesday, February 11, 7-9 pm, is free and open to the public, but please rsvp@powerhousearena.com. For information and directions, visit the website or call 718-666-3049. The upcoming movie of the same title will be premiered at New York's Museum of Arts and Design on Thursday, February 12^th at 6:30 pm. Please check the website for tickets and information.

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