From challenging the big box retailers, to the simple satisfaction of purchasing truly unique gifts, these are just some of the reasons behind a movement in the craft world - a pledge to buy handmade this holiday season. At Buyhandmade.org, there is a growing list, some 29000 strong, making the pledge to buy handmade. It's really pretty impressive. So why handmade? Some of the ideas listed on the resource page range from sustainability, to the practicality of avoiding crowded mall parking lots and and long store checkout lines. The resource page on Buyhandmade.org has tons of great information on the hows and whys of buying handmade including this cool video by Etsy:

Check out the Buyhandmade Flickr pool too!

At Sew, Mama, Sew!, their "Handmade Holidays: 30 Days of Gifts to Sew!" is well underway. One holiday gift project per day for the entire month of November. kewl!

A great place to look for handmade gifts is of course Etsy, but there is also a small but growing selection here on Crafty Nation! So are you taking the handmade pledge this holiday season?