_ design history engages with everyday culture
_ development of the Do-It-Yourself-Idea in the field of furniture construction
_ fusion of production and consumption
_ carefully tested classic and new concepts

An ever growing enthusiasm for the creative possibilties and sensuous aspects of making something with your own hands has a growing influence on contemporary design to a great degree because of an inherent fusion of production and consumption. However, the mass phenomenon of do-it-yourself and prosumer culture is a paradoxical trend: While it promises liberation from consumer contraints, dogmas of taste, and design norms, it allows at the same time new technologies, production methods and sales strategies to beevaluated for their market compability.
Inspired by the legendary “Nomadic Furniture” handbooks from the 1970s, this publication provides a unique focus on the evolution of DIY furniture and presents a range of historical and current instruction manuals in a context of design-historical and socio-cultural contexts. What are the origins of the DIY movement? Who are the protagonists? Where and how do they exchange ideas and knowledge? How important are freedom, creativity, aesthetics and technical perfection to DIY?