Big Damn Crafters is home to a small clan of such Browncoats, dedicating their talents and free time to re-creating artifacts from Joss Whedon's short-lived space western. The site features monthly "Big Damn Challenges" in which its members create new crafts based on a communal theme. Everyone's favorite mercenary was the focus of the October 2008 challenge, which yielded homegrown rain sticks, earrings inspired by Jayne's hat and a bottle of Ma Cobb's Joint Liniments. Previous challenges led to equally inspired creations. A challenge based on the episode "Shindig" saw fans create yarn based on the colors used in Kaylee's "fluffy dress," a bead necklace inspired by Inara's wardrobe and a postcard-sized watercolor of the episode's signature ball. The "ice planet" challenge from summer 2008 led to an inedible re-creation of the aforementioned treat-on-a-rope from the "Message" episode, as well as an edible version using coconut and apples. There's also an ice-planet mobile featuring papier-mâché orbs, wooden stars and silver bells.
In between challenges, the blog features other posts inspired by Firefly and its movie sequel Serenity, including everything from soap to dice bags. Each post includes photos of the item in question, as well as a brief summary explaining its inspiration and materials used. Fans who enjoy the bloggers' creations but lack their artistic skills will find many of the items available for sale on the crafting web site Etsy.
