Katherine Martinko ponders this question in a blog on Treehugger (great site generally, btw). So why would you?
Martinko points out four main reasons why we might want to do this. These reasons just keep coming up in all the work we are doing with crafters – they are common to all the people we speak to. They are:
Creating a product of high quality.
A way to reclaim independence.
Can help a local industry.
It feels really good to make something by hand.
You can read more about each one in the article here. Plus – there are some really interesting things to read in the comments section, including people who say that in some places, women were not allowed to knit – knitting was a man’s job and women were only allowed to crochet! When I write more about Bethan Corkhill’s talk at Beyond the Toolkit I will be thinking of this!
Co-Creating CARE 
Reblogged this on one stitch at a time.