Monday, March 28, 2011

Be It Ever So Humble...

My Etsy shop is still a fledgling thing, and i'm just starting to dip my profile into the more communal aspects of this shopkeepers' social media hybird thing known as Etsy; namely the Teams. I've recently joined three: the EMT EtsyMudTeam, BeautifulDreamers OOAK Art Dolls, and AnthropomorphicOnEtsy. The EtsyMudTeam has launched, thru one of its leaders, a collective where I, as an Etsy shop owner, can mark certain of my items for donation, whereupon all proceeds of that item's sale (minus PayPal fees and shipping costs) go to the Leach Pottery's Japan Relief efforts.
I've personally experienced some comparatively minor flooding in years past, and i know what it is to walk back into a house filled with mud and mold and ruined family heirlooms and start picking up the pieces. But when i watch the ongoing devastation of the poor people of Japan, just as with Katrina's victims, I'm horrified. The loss is so massive, it overwhelms me.

Because I currently live in a warm, dry home for which i'm grateful every day, I'm donating 100% of the sale of all my little birdhouse ornaments to this relief effort; please check them out, and if you've a warm, safe home you're grateful for, consider buying one of these birdhouses, offered individually or in sets, as a reminder of your connection to all those whose homes were swept away by the earthquake/tsunami in Japan earlier this month. And if my little birdhouse ornaments aren't your thing, please check out the EMT's other donated pieces. They're beautiful, every one.

While one purchase, by itself, will not fix everything, i do know firsthand that recovery from devastation of any size is incremental, and every little bit helps. Please pass these links along to your friends and family, colleagues and associates. You can also donate directly to the American Red Cross Japan Relief Fund here. Thank you.




Monday, March 21, 2011

Fellow Anthropomorphiac: Beaumont Studios

Just found the blog of a fellow Anthropomorphic Artist on Etsy, artist Olivia Beaumont, whose work i've been admiring for months now. As i'm still a green blogger, i'm putting her button here in a post, and will figure out the "Links I Love" gadget later...



Her work is a fine blend of intellectual arrows and emotional targets and i'll admit right now that i'm a bit envious of both her mind and her talent. Brava, Ms. Beaumont!