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Glite Dictionary
arty-crafty

arty-crafty

9.0
Something that looks artistic in a fake, too clever way to impress people
  • adjective
  • /ˈɑrtiˈkræfti/
  • Offensive
translation icon : artistoide
  • The gallery featured several arty-crafty pieces that felt overly staged and pretentious.

Examples

  • His arty-crafty style made it difficult to take his art seriously, as it seemed more about show than substance.

  • She decorated her living room with arty-crafty items, trying hard to impress her guests.

  • Somewhat less robust is 'Shirley Valentine' stream, which has dotted the Greek islands with middle-aged British women running arty-crafty shops, pensions, and kafenions.

    Blog text (34)

Synonyms

pretentious
vsarty-crafty
  • Offensive
74 7.3

Trying to seem more important or clever than you really are

is more specific to affected artistic charm rather than general showiness
fartsy
vsarty-crafty
  • Offensive
5 9.9

Trying to seem artistic in a showy, overdone way

is more cloying and affected rather than merely showy
showy
vsarty-crafty
1 4.4

Skillful actions done to impress other people

is more about affected, cloying artistic charm rather than general display
arty-farty
vsarty-crafty
  • Offensive
1 8.9

Trying to seem artistic in a way that feels false or silly

is more cloying and affected, focusing on false charm
too arty
vsarty-crafty
  • Informal
1 7.9

Very showy and trying to seem clever so many people do not like it

is more cloying and seeks false charm over mere excess
artsy-craftsy
vsarty-crafty
  • Informal
8.2

Trying to look artistic in a homemade arts and crafts style that looks a bit silly

is more pretentious and cloying rather than playful amateurishness
mannerist
vsarty-crafty
8.9

Having exaggerated gestures and an unnatural style

is more about false charm and sweetness than formal affectation
pompier
vsarty-crafty
  • Jargon
9.9

Showy art that follows old academic rules and lacks new ideas

is more cloying and intentionally charming than merely conventional pretension

Antonyms

genuine
156 3.2

Truly felt and not fake, for example a smile or apology

How Pretentious

arty-farty
  • Offensive
1 8.9
arty-crafty
  • Offensive
9.0
artsy
  • Informal
10 4.3

Surface Forms

arty-crafty positive

Morphology

arty-crafty = arty + crafty (semi-transparent) = arty + crafty

Formally a compound of the recognizable adjectives 'arty' and 'crafty', but the hyphenated idiom conveys a pejorative, affective meaning that is not a simple additive sum of the parts.

Etymology

Arty-crafty combines arty ('like art') and crafty ('clever' or 'sly'). It paints a picture of someone trying too hard to look artistic, so something called arty-crafty feels a bit fake or showy.