Monday, May 11, 2009

In Bloom.

April showers are supposed to bring May flowers. Well, in my neck of the woods at least, they've just brought May showers! The flowers that have managed not to drown are a good bit worse for wear, battered as they are from all that drip-dropping. As is so often the case, I turn to the Vegan Etsy team for a little beauty. And unsurprisingly, they come through for me like the brilliant yellow blossoms of forsythia that burst forth from a bare branch.

Flowers can be beautifully incorporated into a wide range of items in all sorts of materials. Eat Your Greens proves it, with her rainbow of crocheted flower earrings! The care and love that go into each pair of these darling danglers is apparent. How cute would these be with any simple summer sun dress? So cute! In my youth I attempted to crochet potholders, but they always came out as distinctly trapezoidal; how she creates something this delicate and lovely I'll never know.

Like the idea of a crocheted flower? No problem - we've got you totally covered. Go full blown and decorate the whole crib with the floral stylings of AmiVegan. With her adorable crocheted flowers you can have a beautiful garden any old place you like, with or without southern exposure - this could be the perfect answer to my windowless office! This flower is actuallythe spitting image of my cyber-flower. Her name is Melbee, and I love her.

Starrlight Jewelry's Fuchsia Rose ring in Silver will add a nice pop to any outfit - it would be a great accent to an all-black ensemble! And of course you could mix it up with funky colors for a fun summer look as well. My grandmother grew "wild" roses in the backyard of the house that she and my grandfather shared, and they still bloom there every summer; there is something truly magical about roses. This piece is simultaneously classic and sassy. And anyway, didn't I hear somewhere that pink is the new black? Or was it that silver is the new black? Or maybe black is the new black. Aw, forget it all - I vote that vegan is the new black!

The ever interesting shop Art by Susmitha gives us even more blooming adornments, including this straightforward and classic pair called "La Bourgogne". Stunning! Now, tell the truth. Did you miss mom's (or sister's or best friend's or - heaven forbid! - girlfriend's) birthday? First of all, shame on you! Second, get these beauties (or any of the lovely bobbles in this shop) shipped out right this minute!

The same proprietor, if you can believe it, has a second shop called Veganosaurus which is one of my favorite shops on all of Etsy due to it's sheer amazingcutewonderfulness. Seriously, go peek around. You can't help but be a fan of these amazing and adorable miniature sculpture creations. Rosy Bee, you sweet thing, you break my heart! Of course, I'm probably biased here, as I do have a thing for bees. How could I not? My name is Melissa (two points if you get the reference!).

Flowers make everything better - even knitting! Just ask Kala of Vegan Craftastic. She'll show you these gorgeous Red Flower Knitting Stitch Markers, and you'll be a believer. Once her gorgeous stitch markers have convinced you to take up knitting as your favorite pastime, make sure to peruse her shop some more for great totes to keep your yarn in, and for other goodies too! Hey, and once you get good at your new craft, knit me a flower wouldja?

My Zoetrope puts it all in context with this funky image entitled "Morning Stroll". You can have yourself your very own print of it, as well as many other images by this creative and imaginative artist. Out of all of her wonderful creations though, this one really may be my favorite. Mr. BlueBird, that's a mighty fine earthworm you done raised yourself! And I'm sure he makes a fine companion, too. Hey Michelle... you think you maybe wanna hoof it from Brooklyn on up to Queens and come paint this on my wall? :)

You little girls out there can look stunning, ethical, and freshly blossomed thanks to Earth Groovz's creations; this one is called the Full Moon Flower Prairie Dress. This cut has been specially designed for both cuteness and comfort. And really, how many all vegan organic-focused children's clothing companies are out there? I'm thinking not many. This shop is unique, and so adorable! When I was a kid, you could get me into a dress (but it took some doing), but there was no way you were going to keep shoes on my feet or keep me out of a tree that looked good for climbing. Well little ladies, pull on this dress, climb a tree, and enjoy everything that nature has to offer!

When it comes to flowers, what could be better than the real thing? Maybe it's not better, but pictures of the real thing can be pretty darn good - and they never wilt! This Purple Crocus print by 3AM Art is just breathtaking - all the beauty and color of those first precious glimmers of color and life and light after the thaw of winter, wrapped up in one simple photographic statement. The first time I came to see my new apartment, one solitary crocus had forced its way up through the soil and bloomed in the tiny little plot in front of the duplex. Seeing it filled me with hope and happiness, and I knew it was a good omen. Sure enough, this turned out to be the perfect apartment for my fiance and I. Coincidence? You decide.

Art You Dream About takes the idea of flower-as-image one step further, giving us a beautiful print of daises in a field and combining it with a superfunctional journal. Don't worry though - the print has been protected via lamination, so you can go ahead and toss this baby right into your shoulder bag. Beauty and function - the best of both worlds! I'm deeply into this kind of object that is both aesthetically pleasing as well as useful. (Keep this in mind if you're ever trying to buy me presents - I'm a Capricorn, hint hint.)

The inspired Rachel Anderson of Two Silver Stars brings us to the brink of the fantastical with her lovely fairies, who inhabit a world of snails and dewdrops, spiderwebs and mushrooms, toadstools and butterflies, and of course perpetually blossoming buds. This Lily of the Valley print is one of the more striking to me, perhaps because I'm so in love with this flower. The first time I saw one in person, when I was 12 or 13, all the beauty of weddings and Alice in Wonderland and, indeed, Fairy lands came crashing together in my head, and for a minute there I decided it was the most perfect flower ever. So while this one stirs up something special for me, in truth each of Rachel's fairy portraits is captivating in its own way. Her images invite us all into a dreamland - and who among us doesn't need to take a moment now and then to dream?

It's no secret that I've got a paper thing. Combine that with a flower thing and what do you get? These beautiful recycled Lotus Flower gift tags from This Is It. So not only can you enjoy this simple but lovely floral image, but you can also impart it as a gift! Awesome right? If you're a major paper fan like me, you seriously have to check this shop out. It's run by a lovely husband and wife team who also have a supply shop that is definitely worth the time of all crafters. Not only do they genuinely appreciate your business and love their work, but they also donate a percentage of sales to animal welfare organizations - as do so many Vegan Etsy team members.

It can't rain all the time, isn't that what they say? Supposedly it has to stop eventually. Well, I'll believe it when I see it... assuming that my bosses let me out of the office for long enough to know it's happening anyway. Until that glorious day, I'll cruise the Vegan Etsy listings when I can snatch the time, and bask in all of their floral beauty - thankfully, there's plenty of it.

Until next Monday...

Hearts,
Melissa Bastian.

9 comments:

Veganosaurus said...

Hey that is one neat post! Close to my heart too because even we've been having May Showers here.... well May thunderstorms to be precise. But I'm not complaining 'coz in our case if it isn't raining then we have to put up with the ghastly peak summer heat! Yuck!
Anyways, thanks so very much Mel for featuring both my stores in this collection of awesome Veganetsy goodies!! :)

Embee Breedlove said...

Ah yes, I know that any day now, the 55-and-raining "spring" will break for the 95-degrees-not-a-cloud summer. That's the east coast for ya! Anyway, glad you enjoyed the post. Make some more bumble bees for us, wouldja? :)

Johanna said...

Awww Melissa! You're doing such a fantastic job with these posts :D I love reading all your descriptions -- so cute!!!

VeganCraftastic said...

My stitch markers are in some cute company, thanks for including them!

Book and Cat Librarian said...

Melissa, I love reading your posts! Sometimes I miss those showers you are referring to (lived in Ohio, now live in the land of the drought), but luckily we still have flowers, even as early as January. Thank you for including me :)

Embee Breedlove said...

Even if it wasn't super fun to search through Etsy to put these things together (and duh, it totally is), it'd all be worthwhile to read y'alls comments. You make my day. <3 <3 <3

JennyStench said...

oh goodness! Thank you so much for including me! I loved the post. And I'd glad to be surrounded by so many great artists! Thanks again!

3 AM Art said...

Awesome posting! Thank you so much for including my purple crocus flowers. Wonderful to be featured with these great vegan artists!

XOXO --Heather :)

Rachel said...

Aww, this is a great feature! So well written. And thank you for including my Lily fairy :)