Somthing Different This Holiday Season

Something Different This Holiday Season

It's a tough holiday season this year for shoppers and retailers alike.  In the past couple of years, we've been hit with an avalanche of advertising and recommendations of what the Hot Thing for gift giving is; this year there's a lot less of that and more economic worries.

Seems like a lump of coal in the stocking might be a good present for some folks - at least it will help cut down the heating bill.

Additionally, the range of gifts seems to be rather small.  As I'm shopping for family (sorry friends - this year it's cards and cookies), I can't find anything that really strikes me as something I'd want to give.  As I shop, everything out there looks like everything we already have and prices are higher than I would like to spend.  A gift card seems a little impersonal and I'm concerned that the cards might not be good in a couple of months if more retailers close their doors.

As a solution, I have turned to the handmade, independant artists for gifts for those I am buying for this year.  There is a growing community of small artists who are producing original and quality work, selling directly to the public through both local craft shows and online.

These artists display their work on line through sites like Etsy, MadeIt, Ebid, Ebay and many more.  Some of these sites are auction sites, others are basically website stores that each artist stoxks with their own goods.  Some sites allow the selling of Vintage items - things from the distant and not-so-distant past that you thought were long gone.  Some sites let artists sell supplies in addition to their art.  It's part of a movement referred to as the Handmade Pledge (website www.buyhandmade.org/) which encourages people to buy handmade goods instead of mass produced items.

"Artist" means anyone who makes their product.  Some artists work in fiber (sweaters, fingerless gloves, scarflettes, clothing and soft toys), some work in soap (there are some AMAZING soap possibilities), others in glass, photography, paint, wood, etc...  There is a lot of jewelry - everyting from casual everyday wear to truley fine jewelry.  There are a lot of personal taste styles as well; from conservative and modest items to the SteamPunk/Goth and everything in between.  I've done a lot of searching for odd things and have yet to find a search come up with nothing.

As I look through the stores on some of the sites, I am struck by the creativity and uniqueness of many of the items.  I see things that I don't see ine the malls or online from the big retailers.  Additionally, a lot of the artists are willing to make an item especially for the buyer, using specified colors or materials, also something I can't get at the mall.  If I have questions, I can email the artist and they will tell me exactly what I need to know, unlike the staff of major retail stores.

There are some artists who need some more practice at their craft as well as some prices that are are over the top, but for the most part, I'm finding that I'm more willing to pay a little more for something different and in the color I want instead of settling for another one of what everyone else bought.  Plus, I don;t have to drive and park.  Most of the artists are using online payment options like Paypal and shipping directly to me.

Artists are located all over the world.  No matter where you are, there is probably an artist online who is relatively close to you, though most artists are willing to ship out of country.

I think possibly the best part of buying handmade, especially this year, is that the money from your purchase goes to the artists (with minor fees to payment processing and shipping expenses) instead of to the huge, faceless corporations.  Big Box Retail has gotten a little out of control, in my opinion, with telling us what we want and giving us haphazardly made products that may be toxic to us, our pets and our environment.

If you'd like to browse a little and consider purchasing from an independant artist this year, here's a few of the online sites:

www.etsy.com

www.madeit.com.au

www.goldleafcrafters.com

www.handmadeclothes.com