But the eighteenth-century readerly hobby angered critics, who saw it as a “monstrous practice.”

Flappers stole the headlines for their hemlines and wild ways. But were some of them stitching samplers in the meantime?

Why do people love IKEA furniture, cake mixes, and apple-picking? Psychology.

Procter & Gamble made its industrially produced soap the basis for a revival of an ancient craft, leading to a huge fad for soap carving.

Wax flowers were a major obsession of Victorian women, allowing them to combine art and industry.