This is a bit of a necropost I suppose, but I believe I have some useful stuff to add to this discussion! regarding homemade fireworks, naturally. In a nut shell, it may be better to point people towards a *relatively* safe start in the hobby as opposed to forbidding it and waiting for them to get their hands on some stupid crap like the "Anarchists cookbook".
Legality:
In most cases there are some legality issues with making homemade fireworks. People who do small scale experiments are generally not bothered, but it is a risk that you take if you want to pursue the hobby without proper licensing (which I will probably get once I am out of college). In certain cases in the US you could be committing a felony which is not something you want to have on your record! I don't know about other countries.
Safety:
The Pyrotechnic arts, and shell building in particular are something that I've been avidly involved with for years. It is nice to have the guidance of someone who has done these things before before you attempt them yourself. If nobody is available for such mentoring, there is online information, which you have to of course read with some skepticism, always seeking multiple reliable sources that agree, and also making safety the top priority. Safety precautions like static grounding belts, all cotton clothing, and safety glasses, not working in dry conditions, and plain common sense have kept me free of any accidents. I also understand all of the incompatibilities (like sulfur and chlorate which are a no-no).
Resources:
One of my favorite resources is the Amateur Pyrotechnics and Chemistry forums.
This is one of the few active forums that actually contains people that are into legitimate pyrotechnics (that is, trying to create beautiful displays, rather than "m80s" and "kewl bombz"). There are of course other good ones like the UK pyro and Rocketry forums.
There are also some books that many people swear by, like Tom Perigrin's Introductory Practical pyrotechnics.
Better than books or websites however would be learning legally from the pros or experienced amateurs. Most US states have pyrotechnics clubs that meet every so often, and of course there is the International Pyrotechnics Guild (PGI). The do require membership fees of course, but they are well worth it. The local club for me is MPAG (Michigan Pyrotechnic Arts Guild). I am not a member yet, but of course I intend to become one very soon.
Don't buy into any "Anarchist Cookbook" crap. It is based on juvenile destructiveness, and in addition to being outright useless it is harmful to the legitimate pyrotechnics community that are often erroneously grouped with such abysmal behavior.
Apparently I'm not allowed to post links in this topic, but if anyone wants to check out my stuff it is at youtube account "flyingfish555". There are many pyrotechnic artists out there that are worlds better than me, but I've found the non-pyros are generally impressed
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I'll have to copy this introductory "guide" for everyone else who expresses interest in pyrotechnics. At least, that is my justification for making such a long post! Guess I got carried away.