Maldivians are renowned for their skillfulness and creativity in a wide range of crafts. One such craft is making handicraft items. With skills passed on from generation to generation, these craftsmen produce a variety of hand-carved items using locally available materials. With the beginning of the tourism industry, the much valued production of ornaments from tortoise shells and black coral boomed. However, this craft has by then ceased completely following the protection of marine turtles by the Maldivian government along with the growing awareness among the locals on the preservation of the e environment.

Though all these crafts require a high degree of deftness and precision, perhaps the most distinctive type of Maldivian handicraft is the production of wooden lacquer work, which is the process of shaping and hollowing out pieces of wood to form beautifully crafted boxes, containers and other ornamental objects. The objects are made from the abundantly growing Alexandrian Laurel or ‘Funa’ as locally known.

The hollowed out oval lidded dishes, vases and jewellery boxes come in an assortment of shapes and sizes and are beautifully lacquered in strands of red, black and yellow resin and delicately carved with unique flowery patterns. These valuable ornamental objects are almost exclusively produced in the island of Thulhaadhoo located in Baa Atoll

Mat-weaving is another traditional craft mostly undertaken by women. The women of Gadhdhoo in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll weaves the most beautiful red mats known as "Thundukunaa". The mats are hand-woven on a loom from reeds which are dried in the sun and stained with natural dyes ranging from fawn to black. The patterns and the inter-woven abstract designs vary according to the weavers imagination and skill.

In the past, Maldivians were skilled stone carvers. Though, sadly, this craft has now become obsolete, Historical monuments such as The Hukuru Miskiy, the old Friday mosque located in the capital Male’, display amazingly intricate stone carvings including an array of deftly carved tombstones which gives us an idea of the resourcefulness and the precision involved in producing such works of art. The mosques also display flowing calligraphy which bear evidence to the strong connection between the Maldivian tradition and Islam. Even today, both old and new mosques display beautifully inscribed verses from the Holy Quran.. The Islamic Center in Male’ exhibits some of the finest samples.

Boat-building is yet another craft which has been passed on from the ancestors. Dhonis are mainly used for fishing but some are modified to be used for transportation of passengers from one island to another.

In the ancient times, dhonis or the fishing vessels which provide livelihood to the majority of the country were built without a blueprint or a plan. The hull of the vessel was built with coconut wood and coir rope was used to hold the planks together. As the experienced boat builders work, the design and the symmetry of the boat emerges, to be completed by a square sail made up of coconut fronds. A half century later, little has changes of the basic design of these vessels. The boats are still built the same way, without a detailed plan. However, imported hardwood has replaced the coconut wood and though the palm frond sails gave way to a triangular lateen sail (still considered essential and is carried on board, to be used in emergencies or to ease the strain of the engines), almost all dhonis are now driven by diesel power.

The smaller dhonis, used mostly to travel across short distances or to traverse the shallow waters of the lagoon or to ferry across to nearby islands for firewood are barely 10ft(3 m) used. The average fishing dhoni used to be around 10 metres (33 feet), however the new generation fishing vessels can be twice the size or even larger.

The basic design of dhonis has proven to be seaworthy as it has been tested and tuned for centuries. Even the luxury cruise vessels that are built in the country uses the same basic hull design and can be as long as 30 meters (100 feet) or more.

Traditional Maldivian handicraft includes mat weaving, embroidery for traditional dresses, coir making and lacquer work. Each of these skills is usually confined to certain atolls or islands: The island Gadhdhoo in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll is renown for its fine hand-woven mats made of dried hau used for prayer mats and decoration. The finest lacquer work is said to be found on Thulaadhoo, in Baa Atoll. Wooden pots, boxes and vases of all shapes and sizes display beautiful abstract patterns in red, black and yellow. Ribudhoo in Dhaalu Atoll is famous for its goldsmiths while Hulhudeli in the same Atoll is well known for its silversmiths. The arrival of Tourism has increased the collection and sale of "sea jewellery", such as coral, mother-of-pearl, black coral, seashell and turtle-shell. Due to their endangered status and environmental considerations sea turtle and black coral products have been made illegal for export.