Extreme DIY Handmade Shoes

John Plant is a crafter-maker-hobbyist-adventurer in Australia. He’s also a historical reenactor and primitive technology enthusiast with a camera and a video editing program. We get to follow him on his escapades in the woods of northern Australia as he makes things using only what’s available in his immediate environment, which some are calling Stone Age technology.

John shares his hobby with over 9.1 million youtube subscribers, and his videos get an average of over 507,000 daily views. He’s definitely hit a nerve when it comes to what a lot of us are craving.

For one thing, there’s no narrative storyline that’s read over the video. It features one man in a forest, using only what’s available at hand. He theoretically starts with nothing and gradually builds a hut, a stove, woven goods, some pottery, and a pair of sandals.

You get to hear the sounds of the forest: the crunching of plants on the ground as he walks through the woods, the sound of stripping leaves and bark off plants, crickets stridulating, and birds chirping and singing.

You can see that he’s there alone – he sets up many angles for his shots, none which pan his action, which would show us that he’s got a cameraman or woman there with him.

A good part of his crafting-making is sharing his adventure with his viewers - editing his footage back home, and uploading it to fans around the world. (Fans can support him directly by donating to his Patreon page.)

"When I'm not in the wild I spend most of my time on the internet researching primitive technology" among other subjects, Plant said. "I don't live in the wild. This is just an interest, though I camp out in the huts some times." John Plant, CNBC interview 

Here's what John does in North Australia, which 9.1 million of us love to watch: