First of all, a big thanks to decor8 for including Stockton & Co. in yesterday’s Etsy Take Five Tuesdays, and welcome to any of you finding your way here from there. Holly has a real knack for finds and her Etsy posts are no exception … I just love these letterpress frames by Sycamore Street Press, such a great idea!  Speaking of Etsy, look who I found in my front garden early this morning: 



What do Etsy & a snail have in common you ask?  I don’t really make new year’s resolutions but at the start of this year I tried to take a step back and look at my habits, my household, and see if I could slow down, do some things better, and more thoughtfully. I was never a rabid consumer but I am as guilty as the next person of making weird, dumb, unnecessary purchases. In addition to not wanting to be a slave to debt my entire life, I’d like to do as little harm as I can while I’m here.  I won’t bore you with the laundry list of changes we’ve made (and it’s definitely an ongoing process) … but one of the things I’m doing differently is always thinking ‘handmade’ first. I’ve purchased probably 80% of all gifts & things for myself from independent artists this year, (whether on Etsy or elsewhere).  Whenever I need something, I first ask myself - can I get it on Etsy? Or from a local craftsperson?

That’s the purchase-decision-change I’ve made, and it’s pretty simple … what’s harder for me to articulate is what this process has been like … the amazing people I’ve ‘met’, whose care for their work and their customers is evident in everything they do, and who make me feel like the activity of buying can mean something … the vintage sellers with shops full of perfect, loved items with a charm that’s sometimes hard to find in newer mass-produced goods … the artists whose work I’ve fallen in love with and whose shops I basically stalk, because I can’t wait to see what they do next.  So over the next few weeks I’m going to start sharing some of my purchases, showing the amazing things & I’ve found and a little bit about what they mean to me. 

I’m going to leave you with a couple of Kate Bingaman-Burt links, who’s Obssessive Consumption work says more (and more thoughtfully) on the subject than I can!   

Ranunculus are my favourite flower. I can never seem to keep them alive for too long, but while they are alive they go through so many beautiful stages. I just got two new plants, and am going to try and take a picture of each one every day as long as I have them. (will post on my flickr account) Indie Collective