Interview- Daisy Wares

Today's interview is with Roni of Daisy Wares and Daisy's Destash.

How did you choose the name of your shop and how long have you been a member of Etsy?

My dog Daisy died when she was only 6 of cancer. She was the cutest Beagle and taught me so much in her short life time. I decided to dedicate my company name to her, Daisy Wares. I commenced my buisness on her birthday, Oct.9th and opened my shop in 2007.

What kinds of items do you sell in your shop and what inspired you to start creating them?

I started out making jewelry but have since added bath & body products. My friends were making jewelry and it looked fun so I took a few classes and got started that way. I was buying a lot of bath & body products and just thought I could make this. So again I took a bunch of classes and learned what I wanted to and went from there. All of my products are vegan of course.

Do you donate to any charities or do any volunteer work?

I donate to Animal Place, http://www.animalplace.org . They are the best animal sanctuary ever, I love them so much. Not only do they take in farm animals who have been abused and neglected but they go down to Mexico and help with spaying/neutering and rescuing dogs. They take such good care of their animals and are very loving people. I'm so happy to donate to them and I visit their sanctuary regularly. You can see my latest visit on Flickr, http://www.flickr.com/photos/daisywares

What are some of your favorite things about etsy?

Etsy has just exploded into this huge website for everyone and everything. I'm starting to hear of a lot of famous celebrities shopping on Etsy. My favorite thing about Etsy is just to view everyone's talent. I love to see all the Eco-friendly items artist are creating to help make this a better world. I am not happy though with people selling fur or any animal related by-products, if you want to help ban Etsy from selling fur please visit this link, http://daisywares.blogspot.com/2009/04/please-ban-fur-on-etsy.html

Do you sell your items outside of etsy, either online or in retail shops?

I do, I have my own website, http://www.daisywares.net and I have my products in Belle Sirota in Portland which is an awesome all vegan shop and Eclectix in Berkeley. And for anyone in the Bay Area I will be doing a craft show with ZNE at the Pleasanton Fair Grounds May 2 - 3.

Do you have any future plans for your shop?

Well the wheels are always turning in my head. I feel I have reached the plato of all my bath and body products that I want to make, but then I just came up with a great eye makeup remover and I kind of want to add that next. I sell more bath and body than jewelry right now so I might scale down the jewelry, but who knows I think one thing and do another.

What kinds of hobbies and interests do you have?

I've been knitting a lot lately, so I've been doing that when I'm not making bath and body products. Thursday nights are a big night in our house hold only because it's The Office and 30 Rock night. Otherwise I do not watch TV. My animals take up a lot of my time and I love it. We take lots of dog walks on the trails out here and play with the cats.

Do you have any animal companions?

I have 2 dogs and 7 cats. My house is full of tails wagging. They all get along for the most part. I get a little nervous when my 92 pound dog chases my little 10 pound cat but she is harmless to them. They are so much fun.

Do you have any websites besides your shop that you would like to tell us about?

My blog is http://www.daisywares.blogspot.com , my Twitter page is http://www.twitter.com/roni_seabury , my Flickr Page is http://www.flickr.com/daisywares , my My Space page is http://www.myspace.com/daisywares and I have a Cafe Press shop with Vegan related logos at http://www.cafepress.com/daisywares

How long have you been vegan and what made you go vegan?

I went vegan in 2007, but I should mention that I have been vegetarian since 1984. I wish I had learned about factory farming sooner. I learned about the harsh treatment of factory farmed animals in 2007 and that is when I became vegan. I was a naive vegetarian, thinking if you didn't have to kill the animal then it's okay to drink it's milk and eat it's cheese and eggs etc but I was soooo wrong and I am so grateful that I now know the truth. Being vegan is the best thing for me and I invite everyone to try it. It is not hard at all. Many vegetarians say they can not give up cheese because they think it taste so yummy on everything. But instead of focusig on the taste, focus on what you are really eating and how it got on your plate. It won't taste so good after that.

Do you have any favorite vegan things, like books, websites, stores, etc.?

Though Whole Foods is not a vegan store I do like to walk in there and see Vegan written right on the package. That makes it so much easier to shop and I don't have to read the tiny labels which you all know vegans are so good at. I love going to vegan restaurants and knowing I do not have to ask if there is any animal by-products in the meal. We have many vegan restaurants here in Berkeley. I really love supporting all the local vegan restaurants.

What are your favorite foods?

Herbivore has this awesome "chicken" sandwhich and I love their vegan cesar salad. I like buying corn meal crusts and making pizza at home. I have all the main vegan cookbooks and enjoy making something new a few times a week. And having Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero is a staple cookbook for anyones house!

Is there anything else you would like to add or share?

Please visit Animal Place's website at http://www.animalplace.org . You can sponsor an animal and become it's Foster parent, which is the best feeling in the world. Or you can make a small donation. They need money not only for food, but medicine and shelter for the animals. They are moving to a sanctuary that is 10 times as big as the land they have now which means they can rescue more animals in need but they need donations to help with the rescues and make the mortgage payment. And if you do not want to donate directly to them please remember that 10% of my sales goes to them every month so you could get something you really want and know that a portion goes to The Animal Place.