Handmade usually describes a product made through a person's practical skill and hands-on work. For a UK seller, the important question is whether that description gives customers an accurate picture of how the particular item was made.
Using a sewing machine does not automatically settle the question either way. Explain the work you do, distinguish it from bought-in manufacturing and check the rules of any marketplace or craft fair where you sell.
This guide is for makers of clothing, accessories and general craft goods. It explains the consumer-law principles, machine use, current Etsy rules and wording you can consider for your product descriptions and labels.
What does handmade mean?
The Cambridge Dictionary describes handmade in terms of making by hand rather than by machine. That is a language definition, not a legal approval test for every production process.
In practice, describe the meaningful work behind your product: who cuts, shapes, sews, assembles, decorates or finishes it? Explain what is bought ready-made and what another business does for you. A customer should not have to guess which part of the product you made.
Handmade, hand-finished, personalised, small-batch and designed by you describe different things. None automatically proves the others. A handmade item can follow a repeatable design, while a personalised item may start as a factory-made blank.
What does UK law require when you say handmade?
The official guidance focuses on truthful information and the overall impression given to a customer. A dictionary entry or marketplace category does not remove those responsibilities.
- Labels must be accurate: GOV.UK product-labelling guidance says information must not mislead about matters including the material and how, where or when an item was made.
- Marketing must not mislead: the CMA's unfair commercial practices guidance explains the rules under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. They apply to commercial practices from 6 April 2025 and cover misleading information and presentation.
- Goods must match their description: section 11 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 requires goods supplied by description to match it.
- Advertising claims need support: the CAP Code on misleading advertising requires evidence for objective claims. Qualifications should clarify a claim, rather than contradict it.
Do not treat a percentage of handwork as automatic legal permission. Consider the particular product, its production and what a buyer would reasonably understand. If your process is difficult to describe or your product has specialist requirements, ask Trading Standards or a suitable adviser.
Claims also need to fit each product in your range. In a 2024 ASA ruling about Moncrief bags, a site-wide handmade-in-Italy claim was misleading because the evidence did not substantiate it across both product lines. A claim that fits one collection should not appear to cover everything you sell.
Can you call something handmade if you use a sewing machine?
A person cutting fabric, guiding seams through a sewing machine and finishing a garment is doing different work from buying a finished garment and adding a brand label. Your description should make that distinction clear.
For example, Etsy's current policy expressly includes hand-guided tools such as sewing machines within its handcrafted category. That is an example of a marketplace's approach, rather than a UK legal ruling about every machine-assisted item.
If the method matters to your claim, explain it directly: “Cut and sewn in my workshop using a sewing machine” tells a customer more than an unexplained handmade badge. Use wording like this only when it accurately describes your own process.
How do Etsy's handmade rules work?
Etsy now uses Creativity Standards that distinguish items Made by a seller from items Designed by a seller, alongside other permitted categories.
Its made-by category covers specified kinds of handcrafting, skilled alteration, assembly and production with personal computer-controlled tools. There are conditions and exclusions; simply adding a superficial decoration to a bought-in item is not enough.
A seller's original design made by a production partner can fall under the designed-by category. Etsy requires disclosure of that partner and accurate dispatch-location information. Check the current standards and Seller Policy for your actual arrangement.
These are Etsy's platform rules. They do not establish a single industry standard or decide whether a particular description complies with UK law. Other marketplaces and event organisers can apply different entry requirements.
Describe what you make: practical examples
The examples below are wording ideas to adapt only when true. They are not automatic approval for a claim or marketplace listing.
| Your production process | A more specific description |
|---|---|
| You cut fabric and sew the complete item. | “Cut and sewn by me in my Derby workshop using a sewing machine.” |
| You embroider a design by hand onto a ready-made bag. | “Hand-embroidered decoration on a ready-made cotton bag.” |
| A partner prints your original artwork onto bought-in clothing. | “My original illustration, printed onto a ready-made T-shirt by our production partner.” |
| You complete a particular finishing step on a bought-in item. | Name that step, such as “Edges finished by hand”, rather than implying you made the whole item. |
| You buy a finished product for resale. | Describe it as a selected or stocked product, without implying you designed or made it. |
Keep origin separate from technique. Adding decoration, packaging or a label in the UK does not by itself establish that the whole product was made here. State the location of a particular step when that gives the clearest account.
Keep evidence of your making process
A short production record helps you write consistent listings and respond to questions. Keep:
- A description of the steps you carry out, including tools and machinery.
- Photographs or video showing the actual work and finished product.
- Supplier details for blanks, components and materials, plus records of outsourced work.
- Examples of your label wording, listings and relevant marketplace requirements.
Behind-the-scenes photographs can help customers appreciate the skill involved. Show your real process and obtain permission before featuring someone else's workshop or work. Ask each craft fair what evidence it needs rather than assuming every organiser requires the same paperwork.
Labels for handmade clothing and accessories
A brand label can identify your work and provide a consistent finish. Choose wording that reflects your production, whether that is handmade by you, a specific finishing process or your own design produced with help.
Explore custom woven labels for woven branding, or printed cotton labels and printed satin labels for other material and artwork options. A label's texture or a natural-looking package is not evidence of how the product was made.
For clothing, a handmade claim does not replace other required information. Check GOV.UK's textile-labelling guidance for Great Britain, including fibre-composition requirements, and the rules for the markets where you sell. Our care-label planning guide helps you organise composition, care and layout checks.
Common handmade questions
Is handmade one word or two?
Handmade is the standard dictionary headword; hand-made is also recorded as a variant. Writing hand made as two words does not change whether the claim accurately describes a product.
Does hand-finished mean the whole item is handmade?
No. Hand-finishing describes a finishing operation. Explain that operation and avoid giving the impression that you made the whole item if you did not.
Can I use a handmade label on every item in my shop?
Check each product and production arrangement first. If some items are made by you and others are bought in or produced by a partner, use descriptions that distinguish them. A generic label should not create an inaccurate impression across the range.
Choose a label that fits your work
Compare materials with our clothing label sample packs, then send GB Labels your artwork and label requirements. We can help with label material, size and fold once you have confirmed the wording that accurately describes your products.
Thanks for reading!
Pete
