Valentine's Day Part 2: Unisex Gifts to Share with Dudes from Etsy

Handpicked on Etsy

Affordable pleasures that work for either gender are today's theme. Valentine's Day is about friendship, romance, shared love and admiration. What could be more fun than to share a cool handcrafted treasure with your honey? All of today's showcased pieces are surprisingly affordable, so you needn't break the bank to indulge in something unique for your special valentine. Using their chosen materials in clever ways to optimize both budget and artistry, these designers achieve a modern, organic aesthetic in these pieces. Click on the pictures to go directly to these Etsy listings. Prices range from $9.99 to $45.00.

From top left to bottom right, today's featured artisans include: makethisyourown, BlackDaisyDesigns, paintedmetal, TheBishopNine, mofei, sewluytionsbyamo, TheBishopNine, thebeadedlily

Huge Scale: Enormity on Etsy

Handpicked on Etsy
Scale is about the size of things in relation to other things. In design, we primarily strive for balance, combining large, medium and small elements in pleasing proportions. But some rules are meant to be broken, right? Sometimes there is a place for bold, outsized proportions that draw attention, make a big statement and introduce a dose of panache and humor. Today I looked for Etsy artists who aren't afraid of big scale and pulled it off beautifully with these eight creations. Click on the pictures to see these listings and more from these artisans. Prices range from $24.00 to $499.99. From top left to bottom right, today's featured Etsy artists include: QuilJewelry, TianaCHE, calexandra, WinchesterPottery, pipertree, chicallure, drobart, couvert
~~HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY, AND ALL THE BEST IN 2010!~~

Druzy Jewelry: Dazzling Discoveries on Etsy

Handpicked on Etsy

Druzy is a clear quartz encrustation that develops on the surface of fissures within a host stone, taking on the stone's color and imparting a fascinating shimmering frosted effect. The familiar geode is an example of the gorgeous crystalline druzy phenomenon found on miniature cave-like formations encased in stone. Today I searched on Etsy for druzy, and found these beautiful examples of jewelry created by talented Etsy designers. These pieces represent some of the best values on Etsy, given the inspired designs and captivating allure of the featured material, making these awesome considerations for upcoming holiday gifts. Prices range from $37.00 to $80.00

From top left to bottom right, today's Etsy artists include: CreativeCurves, nomadshop, BeijoFlor, MidwestAlchemy, Juliez7Jewelz, shimmerjewels, TheSilverLakeStudio, BeijoFlor

Tudor Style on Etsy

Handpicked on Etsy
The royal House of Tudor reigned the British realm from 1485 to 1603, starting with the Henry VII and ending with the death of Elizabeth I. Tudor dynasty intrigue, romance, betrayal and treachery reads like a work of dramatic fiction and has ever since inspired historians, novelists, playrights, and film makers to revisit the era. Influences from Tudor architecture and court style have survived through modern times, seen everywhere from residential facades to chunky furniture to costume jewelry. Recent films and the series, The Tudors, has sparked a trendy revival, and Etsy designers offer some evocative creations in all price ranges -- perfect to add a romantic touch to holiday attire or give as gifts. Click on the pictures to go directly to these Etsy listings. Prices range from $13.75 to $62.00.
From left to right, today's featured Etsy artisans include: duchessa, KiraFerrer, MiladyJewels, etherealcreations, treasurecast, justbedesigns

Romance Part II: Goose Bumps,Tredipation and Awe

Handpicked on Etsy
Today I look at romanticism from the perspective of "trepidation and awe" in which artists invite nature to thrill, titillate, raise goose bumps and send a chill up the spine. 18th Century Romantics weren't merely having a bit of fun with the occult or spooky. They were taking an intellectual stand against a clinically scientific, rational way of viewing and categorizing the world. Emotion, precisely because is was not rational, was embraced by these artists as a source and goal of the aesthetic experience. Endeavoring to elicit strong emotional responses to their works of art and literature, the Romantic Movement not only addressed melodramatic themes of love, yearning, loss and sentiment, but also themes including supernatural powers, and nature's power to evoke a mood, a sense of foreboding or wonder, or literally wreak havoc with a poisonous flower or its stormy turbulence. These aspects of nature would remain mysterious and out of our control, despite scientific advances in our knowledge and understanding of it. Today's compelling selections struck me as being modern-day expressions of similarly romantic themes. Click on the pictures to go directly to these listings. Prices range from $1.00 to $94.95
From top left to bottom right, today's featured artists include: ImagineStudio, judemcconkey, shelostit, magickmermaid, BillyCurrie, twistedsisterarts, lancerika, ara133photography

The Weaver's Eye: What She Likes on Etsy

Handpicked on Etsy by Two Weavers: Me and Cait Throop (Barefootweaver)

The common theme shared by today's featured creations is they appeal to two sets of eyes that share a common passion for creating cloth on a loom. My own weaver's eyes were captured this morning by a new EtsyLounge follower and fellow weaver, Cait Throop. Because I'm focused on my own weavings in progress today, I haven't much time for blogging, so I spied on Cait's Etsy favorites and discovered some tempting creations she has hearted. 7 of her picks jumped right out at me and landed in today's showcase, along with Cait's beautiful handwoven scarf, pictured at top left. If you're intrigued by what you see today, click on the pictures to go directly to these Etsy listings. Prices range from $12.00 to $135.00.

From top left to bottom right, today's Etsy artisans include: Barefootweaver, barbdunshee, kjoo, 51greenwich, kthurm, everdayglory, HandMeDowns, mariagotijoyas

Monochrome: The Gray Scale on Etsy

Handpicked on Etsy

Monochrome art explores a single color and its tonal variations. Today's selections are a tribute to the gray scale, represented in this array of photographs, ceramics, bodily adornment plus a wrapped stick of graphite that an artist might use to render a subject in black and white. In contrast to our color-infused reality, black and white photography teaches our eye to appreciate the full range of light upon surface, revealing nuanced gray shades stepping from white all the way to black. Before the invention of photography, artists sketching in coal, graphite or ink used their discerning eye to analyze light and shadow, converting colors into values of gray. Though we sometimes consider black and white to be the most objective portrayal of a subject, in fact it is an abstraction, given the technicolor reality of our world. Artistic expression in black and white or sepia tones is meditative, elegant, haunting, dreamlike or surreal, and sometimes is in itself a stylistic statement of rebellion. Click on the pictures to go directly to these Etsy listings. Prices range from $2.00 to $130.00.

Today's Etsy artists include: MirekPhoto, sclark, themaritimepost, Xenotees, waternymph, GomezbyHand, EarthborneArt, TheButterflyFactory, MNNPottery, andescruz