“Expect more. Pay less.”
I think Walmart’s slogan is very telling. As Americans we want more for less. No, not just want. As Walmart has instructed we expect more. We constantly seek out the cheapest bargain and flock to sales. It’s not bad to want to use your money wisely, but more often than not it seems we are wanting to stretch our money to get more than we need. I’m trying little by little to change my attitude towards the things I buy. This quote keeps popping up on Pinterest:
“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” -William Morris
I love that and am slowly trying to live it. But, there is just one more thing I want to add to it. “As often as possible buy handmade.”
As an artist myself I believe in supporting artists. I believe in buying things that are unique and have the special touch of the person who dreamed them up. One of my goals in life is to not buy anymore jewelry that isn’t handmade by a real, live, I know their name person. I don’t wear a ton of jewelry and enjoy having a few pieces that I wear over and over so it’s not a huge sacrifice to pass on all the trendy cheaper pieces.
So I want to tell you about one of my favorite jewelry shops on etsy. Soul Peaces is the shop of Heather Lecy-Martin. You can read more about her and her inspiration here. Heather’s jewelry has a rough, imperfect look that I just love. Last year when I turned 30 I was done having kids 🙂 so I set out to get myself a necklace with the boys names. I ordered the Circle of My Life Necklace from SoulPeaces and I loved it. It’s my go to necklace and I rarely put on any other. A year later Norah is here and I didn’t want to wear a necklace with just the boys names on it so I contacted Heather about adding a name. I just received it back and I’m so happy to be able to wear my favorite necklace again.
I know the fact that the names are off center might bother some, but I rather like it. Parenting seems pretty off center most days so I just find it to be very fitting. Anyway, it wasn’t a mistake, just the result of adding to an already created piece.
I’m extremely pleased with the quality of the necklace and Heather only charged me the shipping to add Norah’s name.
Here are a few more of my favorites from her shop.
This Meet Me at the Birch Family Tree necklace was a close second when I was choosing mine.
I didn’t think I liked brass, but these Brass leaf Artisan Earrings are just stunning. The tiny dots give them such a special handmade touch. And I really think the brass has a warmth without being, well, gold, ya know? Perfect for fall. The same thing is available in silver here.
This locket is so on my wish list, but I’m not sure what pictures I would use.
What do you think? Is this stuff beautiful or what? Would you consider buying less so that you could support an artist?
Honestly it’s very affordable. It’s more expensive than buying on sale at Kohls, but these are the sort of pieces that last and don’t go out of style.
*FYI* I did not receive any compensation for writing this post and Heather did not ask me to write it. I don’t know her personally. I simply wanted to spread the word about a great artist.
Under the Beech Trees 