![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
First of all, I want to thank everyone who read my last entry (Charlotte's essay about her day in Hiroshima)...I let Char read everyone's comments and she was really touched and grateful. She's so insecure about her writing, so it meant a lot to her and myself as well...thank you thank you. ^_^
Today I got pretty things in the mail. New pendant from this artisan on Etsy. I love it!
I used this picture of me wearing it to show you how HUGE it is...but I really love that because it makes a statement.
It's a hand-sculpted polymer clay bead...each side is different.
One side is more white than anything else with a clear "flower" design on it.
The other side has more golds & copper, & some broken flower designs. I think I like this side best. The half-flowers look like fossils of ancient sea shells to me. It reminds me of a piece of leopard jasper.
It's lightweight and since the polymer clay has a vague soft matte feel to it, it's warm to the touch and simply awesome. I love it 'cause it's so bold & fun to study. The browns are actually metallic coppers & golds, so it is really interesting to look at.
I also bought this baby for my Mom...
It's teeny & handmade (not a cast) of polymer clay by this artisan, also on Etsy. The whole thing was a little more than 2 inches long and simply adorable. Mom loves baby dolls so I knew she'd be crazy about it.
I love ordering things from Etsy...it gives me such a happy feeling. Nothing is mass-produced or made from a mold (usually) or made in a factory. It's all lovingly done by people who really care about their craftsmanship. Everything I order comes with a personal note of thanks. It's usually wrapped nicely and it usually gets here SO quickly. Everything is unique and most of all, I know I'm helping to support someone's home cottage industry. Usually in North America. Not corporate America but the best part of America; the self-made America. No one's prices are ridiculous and you know that the price you pay goes 100% towards the artist; not into packaging or advertising or any of that. It's pure and simple.
I used to balk at being called a "crafter" & I still do...it diminishes my art. However, I've recently come to terms with the label "artisan" and I really like it...it feels right to me. More than an artist, it sounds to me like who I am; a person who makes things with her hands. I think all of us on Etsy are artisans. It's funny that we all make our living in such an anachronistic way, & yet modern technology has allowed us to blossom & prosper in a way none of us could before. We sit in our homes in our little studios & make pretty things with our hands for the world to love...it's quite beautiful if you think about it. Such an honest living in these dishonest times! Go visit Etsy and support an artisan! ^_^
Today I got pretty things in the mail. New pendant from this artisan on Etsy. I love it!
I used this picture of me wearing it to show you how HUGE it is...but I really love that because it makes a statement.
It's a hand-sculpted polymer clay bead...each side is different.
One side is more white than anything else with a clear "flower" design on it.
The other side has more golds & copper, & some broken flower designs. I think I like this side best. The half-flowers look like fossils of ancient sea shells to me. It reminds me of a piece of leopard jasper.
It's lightweight and since the polymer clay has a vague soft matte feel to it, it's warm to the touch and simply awesome. I love it 'cause it's so bold & fun to study. The browns are actually metallic coppers & golds, so it is really interesting to look at.
I also bought this baby for my Mom...
It's teeny & handmade (not a cast) of polymer clay by this artisan, also on Etsy. The whole thing was a little more than 2 inches long and simply adorable. Mom loves baby dolls so I knew she'd be crazy about it.
I love ordering things from Etsy...it gives me such a happy feeling. Nothing is mass-produced or made from a mold (usually) or made in a factory. It's all lovingly done by people who really care about their craftsmanship. Everything I order comes with a personal note of thanks. It's usually wrapped nicely and it usually gets here SO quickly. Everything is unique and most of all, I know I'm helping to support someone's home cottage industry. Usually in North America. Not corporate America but the best part of America; the self-made America. No one's prices are ridiculous and you know that the price you pay goes 100% towards the artist; not into packaging or advertising or any of that. It's pure and simple.
I used to balk at being called a "crafter" & I still do...it diminishes my art. However, I've recently come to terms with the label "artisan" and I really like it...it feels right to me. More than an artist, it sounds to me like who I am; a person who makes things with her hands. I think all of us on Etsy are artisans. It's funny that we all make our living in such an anachronistic way, & yet modern technology has allowed us to blossom & prosper in a way none of us could before. We sit in our homes in our little studios & make pretty things with our hands for the world to love...it's quite beautiful if you think about it. Such an honest living in these dishonest times! Go visit Etsy and support an artisan! ^_^
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
From:
no subject
I know her teacher entered it in some kind of regional writing competition too, so perhaps something will come of that. Really, she didn't write it for recognition or even for the grade...she wrote from the heart (which is why it's so good).
Buying from cottage industy really feels good, doesn't it? I mean, I am in the trenches too & it's really hard to make a go of it, but that's why I do all my gift shopping on Etsy now...because I know how wonderful it feels to sell something you made with your own two hands & I like to spread the joy. :-)