Two exciting new members for the VET!

This week we are happy to introduce to you two new members: April of Knightime Creations and Arsenia of Kneeman Marxist (hee). Check out these excellent shops, and don't forget to click that heart!

Recycled Vegan Onsie
from Kneeman Marxist

Courtesan's Wedding Necklace
from Knightime Creations

For the Team - Activities in August!

Hello Vegan Etsy Team Members! We have some really fun stuff happening that you don't want to miss out on. It's been a great summer for the team so far, and heading into August we've got big plans:

• There's still all day Saturday to enter the July Great Vegan Etsy Giveaway, so if you haven't put in your submission yet you'd better get a move on!
• We've scheduled our August Team Chat for Monday, August 9 at 7pm. Check out the thread in Team Events for details.
• The July / August Team Challenge is still waiting for entries - come on teamies, you know you can come up with something great. And kudos to Panda with Cookie and Cards & Jewelry by Michele for the fantastic treasuries that won them the top slots for the June team challenge - though I must say that every entry was a delight!

So there you go - better get moving! Summer will be over before you know it. That's alright though, because as soon as fall hits we can all start baking again... vegan cupcakes anyone?! :D

Summer Inspirations.

While the sun shines, and the days are hot and long, I browsed through the Vegan Etsy Team shops for yellow delights, as a token of sunshine on Etsy.
Here are a few of my favourites:

This wonderful, happy, print declaring " sunshine makes everything better" by Myzoetrope epitomizes summer perfectly. This delightful, Peruvian sunflower card from MVegan5 just oozes warmth and brightness.

This darling little clay cyclops from Veganosaurus reminds me of a sweet little creature that fell to earth to explore the sunshine and happiness, and makes everyone smile when they see him. Then I found this adorable bumble bee desk topper from Monkey and Squirrel and it reminded me of all the gorgeous, plump little bees collecting their nectar during summer.

Such happy, summer images from the very creative, talented Vegan Etsy Team.

There's still a few more days...

to enter the Summertime Great Vegan Etsy Giveaway from the Vegan Etsy Team! So don't forget to hop on over and leave your entry, and get a chance to win an awesome Vegan Etsy Team prize pack!

The VET is proud to support FARM's 2010 Animal Rights Conference!

The Vegan Etsy Team is at it again! We were contacted by, FARM, the Farm Animal Rights Movement, in the hopes that we would have some contributions for the auction portion of this weekend's Animal Rights 2010 National Conference. Of course this is exactly the kind of thing we love to be involved in! A few team members such as Ladies Blend, 3AM Art Productions, and myself (Melissa Bastian), sent contributions directly to FARM. But Pippi of Uber Duper Creations and Peace to All Creatures Zine took it upon herself to collect items from a number of fellow team mates and compile them all into a fabulous VET Gift Bag! Here is her own blog post about that project - enjoy!

* * *

Unlike we have in the past, Jessi and I cannot attend the Animal Rights Conference in Washington D.C. this year. So when Cindi Saadi of FARM USA wrote to the VeganEtsy Team seeking auction contributions, we knew this was a chance to be there in spirit. It's a great cause, and the team is always generous and jumps at the chance to help educate, outreach and save animals.

With only a very small window with which to seek contributions, some of the team members sent in contributions on an individual basis. (Would LOVE to see some of those items! hint hint) Even with the time crunch, the team pulled together and got their items in to me. Even as far away as Wales, UK! (Thanks to our very own 'zine project contributor, Kim Shay.)

Here are a few of these items. Oh! By the way, Starrlight Jewelry wins for best smelling contribution. As part of her contribution, she included Kona Coffee from Hawaii! My, oh, my, I almost couldn't resist! As the team leader, Starrlight also sent in a small VeganEtsy team promo package and a Team Sampler Package which included items like a "vegan" patch, bracelets and pins. She also included a beautiful hand painted cameo necklace.Who wouldn't look amazing in that? (I'm sorry I didn't take individual photos! The items contributed are high quality crafts. People will be excited for this prize!)
MidnightRabbits/Veganessa sent in a fabulous purse, which my husband aptly named "The Wookie Purse"! It was the perfect container for all of the contributions to be presented in! (see the last photo). She also included a lovely pair of red heart dangley (what? YES! That is a word) earrings. I also received 2 very pretty pins from MVegan5 to add to our collection (also a 'zine project contributor)!

Other items included in this fabulous team contribution auction bag are:

• A gorgeous Japanese Temari Ball by CraftyPanties,


• The awesome It's a Vegan Dog's Life Book, by VeganDogsLife,


• A very cool veggie magnet set by RadicalFringe


• Sweet Organic Cotton Pin Set & beautiful bracelet by VeganCraftastic


• And last but not least...A FABULOUS 'Zine Gift Pack which includes all 3 issues of Peace To All Creatures and The Peace 'Zine Logo Necklace by GingerCardCo and ÜberDuperCreations!
  

If you are lucky enough (smart enough) to be attending this year's Animal Rights Conference, I recommend attending the Saturday Night Banquet (Pre-register!!). And definitely stay for the auction afterward, or at least for some of it. It can get long, but I'm sure there will be some surprises and a lot of fun. Also, you won't be sorry for taking advantage of the free snack offerings (Scroll to the bottom) (Check your program for times on snacks).

~Peace!

(Oh, FYI, This entire contribution, not counting all the shipping contributors paid, is worth around $250 dollars! GO TEAM!)

Walk for Farm Animals 2010 - Support Daisy Wares!

I'm sure you've all heard of Farm Sanctuary, the amazing animal sanctuary with locations in New York and California doing work to educate the public about the true nature of farm animals, and to save some of those animals from the lives they would suffer on factory farms. Their upcoming Walk for Farm Animals will continue to help raise awareness, and also help raise funds for Farm Sanctuary to continue to do this important work. Vegan Etsy Team member Roni of Daisy Wares will be participating in this year's Walk. Check out this great info on the event and how you can support it!

* * *

I'm Roni from Daisy Wares, and I'll be participating in the Walk for Farm Animals to help Farm Sanctuary raise awareness about the realities of factory farming. The annual Walk for Farm Animals helps fund Farm Sanctuary's education and advocacy efforts.

Farm Sanctuary is the nation's leading farm animal protection organization. Since incorporating in 1986, Farm Sanctuary has worked to expose and stop cruel practices of the "food animal" industry through research and investigations, legal and institutional reforms, public awareness projects, youth education, and direct rescue and refuge efforts. Farm Sanctuary shelters in Watkins Glen, New York, and Orland, California, provide lifelong care for hundreds of rescued animals, who have become ambassadors for farm animals everywhere by educating visitors about the realities of factory farming.

I hope you will make a pledge of support for farm animals in need by making a donation for my participation in the 2010 Walk.

Two new members are better than one!

Today we welcome two fantastic new members to the Vegan Etsy Team: Johnson Family Zoo and Canamich Designs. These are two very different shops with some important things in common: great products and a love for being vegan! So please stop by the shops, have a look around, and don't forget to make them your new favorites.

Boo Boo Bunny
from Johnson Family Zoo (center)
(real live bunnies available from your local rabbit rescue!)

Path Note Cards (original photography)
from Canamich

The Great Vegan Etsy Give-Away: Summertime!

*** As of August 1, this giveaway is officially closed. Make sure to check back soon for the next exciting Vegan Etsy Team contest, and all of our other great blog features!***



Every month or two, the Vegan Etsy Team hosts a give-away challenge that awards a prize pack of vegan samples from its team members.



Summertime!

• Start: Now

• End: July 31st

• The Prize:
a vegan etsy team sampler pack full of handmade goodies contributed
by veganetsy team members.

• In a comment on this blog post, tell us about your favorite summer activity. What do you like to do, and why? Who with? Do your animal companions come along? What great vegan treats do you snack on along the way? But wait, here's the tricky part:

• Go to Etsy.com and search for items that are tagged with **"veganetsy team"**. Find one item that goes with, reminds you of, or represents your summertime activity. Anything you could take with you or remember the day by is fair game - just tell us why it fits! Please include a link to the item in your comment so we can all see how awesome it is.

• Each person can only respond 1 time for 1 entry into the drawing. (But blog followers get double entry!!)

• All contestants will be assigned a number. These numbers will be placed into a random generator at the end of the contest to determine the winner.

• Please note you must have contact information! We can't make you the winner if we can't get in touch with you. If you do not have any contact information in your user profile, please include an email in your comment where you can be contacted to inform you of your winnings.

**Not sure if this was unclear in some way, but we've had a couple of erroneous entries now so just to make doubly sure: entry items must come from Vegan Etsy Team member shops, and thus will have the "veganetsy team" tag. Thanks!



This contest's prize grab bag is sponsored by a number of our fantastic team members, including the Vegan Etsy Team Shop, Uber Duper Creations, Starrlight Jewelery, Veganessa, Pinkbubble Designs, and more!

Starrlight Jewelry Giveaway!

If you've been lusting over the fabulous offerings from Starrlight Jewelry then head on over to my blog, Vegancraftastic, for your chance to win any item $15 or under from her shop! Giveaway ends July 12 and is open to both US and International folks!

Don't forget - Team Chat!

Hey Vegan Etsy Team Members! Don't forget that tomorrow will be our first ever official Vegan Etsy Team Chat! Check the thread on the boards (in Team Events) for details on where to find us and how to join. We want to have as many teammates involved as possible!

The goal will be to have a big monthly chat, and possibly smaller chats weekly or whenever a group of teamies can get together. Since we are such a very global team, and have a wide range of obligations as far as work and family life, we want to really mix it up as far as times of day and days of the week, so that as many of us as possible will have a chance to join in.

Personally I think tomorrow will get us off to a great start. Hope to "see" you there!