I absolutely love this necklace. Maybe it’s the recycled vintage vodka label, maybe it’s because I live in New Orleans and we know how to hold our hard liquor… I don’t know but it’s pretty awesome. And it’s also available in scotch, rum, gin and brandy at dustDesignCo.etsy.com for $35. They’ve got plenty of other amazing repurposed jewelry pieces as well, including loads of steampunk inspired wearable art.
via GreatGreenGoods
I love coming across an amazing new-to-me artist via the Featured Sellers on Etsy. And I totally love the newest Featured Seller, Fosterweld.
Chris Foster, the artist behind Fosterweld, creates wearable welded art, such as belts, buckles and cuffs, as well as cool mirrors and furniture for your home. (I especially love this piece of mirrored artwork.)
His work has such a great industrial, unisex style. He makes the kind of accessory a guy would want to “borrow” from his girlfriend, and vice versa. You gotta love that.
If you’ve got a geek for a dad, I’ve got possibly the perfect place to snag a totally unique Father’s Day gift.
Zelle is a line of refashioned circuitry, computer bits and electronic parts that have been recreated as snazzy fashion accessories. There’s great geeky stuff for guys like microcontroller cufflinks and tie tacks, plus belts and eyeglass cases made from computer cables.
Check out Zelle designer Liz’s other shop, Fractalspin, for a whole section of Father’s Day gift ideas.
There’s stuff for the ladies too, including really cute necklaces, bracelets and earrings made from parts such as audio plugs and CPU fan guards. (I really like the fan guard earrings.)
Last night I found out that one of my favorite online indie boutiques, day-lab, just got a brother: Night-Lab.
Night-Lab just opened and is already stocked full of all sorts of cool stuff for guys, including this hand silkscreened vintage tie. The shop carries everything from clothing and accessories to housewares to comics and graphic novels.
There are already plenty of indie boutiques stocking cool handmade gear for girls, so it’s nice to see more places like Night-Lab popping up as well to offer a more masculine selection of goods. Everyone deserves the chance to shop indie!
Wow, what a truly unique necklace! I just noticed this carmel rain saucers necklace while browsing around over at Spipo Designs. Created from natural seed shells and sterling chain, I’ve never seen anything quite like this necklace. I love how it’s got a beautiful organic style but also manages to be elegant, modern, and funky…all at the same time!
Designer Rickina creates a wide range of jewelry, including a collection of pieces made for men. If you really love her work, you can even arrange to host a private trunk show in your home or office (think Tupperware party but with awesome handcrafted jewelry instead).
Caroline recently wrote to let me know about a new student organization she’s a member of at the University of Alberta in Canada. I really love the idea of this group… It’s called SAGA or Students Against Global Apathy, and their goal is to “get students to give a damn about the world”.
One of the ways that this group seeks to educate, empower and inspire their fellow students about global issues is through the use of funny t-shirts, all designed by SAGA members.
Every month the group has a design contest; the only rule is that the t-shirt designs be both funny and promote a positive or inspirational message about the world. All designs are printed on sweatshop-free American Apparel tees in a number of colors and sizes for both guys and girls, plus 100% of the profits go towards development projects, health services and education programs in India and Sierra Leone.
To learn more or to shop, go here.
Exploring the Mr. Pickles website has me cracking up laughing. Created by Ohio siblings Jack & Rita, the site features not only Mr. Pickles but also a flying hamburger, a nerd ghost, the Scurvy Friends, and a rotten apple.
It’s random, weird humor at its finest. You can learn more about each of the characters here, and then enjoy some of their adventures in the Masterpickles Theatre.
There’s also plenty of free fun, games and downloads, plus of course you can shop for your own Mr. Pickles merchandise. The Scurvy Friends t-shirts make me smile. Available for men, women, and children, they read “Friends don’t let friends get scurvy”.
Browsing Etsy, it’s not too often that I come across stuff designed specifically with men in mind (except for maybe t-shirts). So it was refreshing to find that Etsy jewelry shop tomate d’epingles has started creating a line of their jewelry for men.
These pieces could easily be worn by either gender, however, and many items in their shop incorporate recycled materials.
I really like the charm necklaces they’ve created for the guys so far, like this one featuring a Kokopelli charm, coconut shell claw and bits of copper and vintage bone. I’m also really loving their “vampire fang” necklace for men.
Another great Etsy find that is perfect for either gender is this Art Nouveau inspired martini set from Sassy Glass.
Each piece is painted by hand, and the four martini glasses all feature the same silver-based design as the shaker, only with a single colored accent on each glass so that you can keep track of which glass is yours at a party.
Find more unique hand painted glassware at Sassy Glass.
I’m constantly on the lookout for Etsy artists who are based in my area, and I’m always pleased to discover more shops created by Louisiana and Gulf Coast residents.
One of my most recent Etsy discoveries is Circular Accessories, a hand silk screened clothing company based in Baton Rouge. They’ve got a lot of great original designs for men, women and kids. (I think the baby onesies are particularly cute!)
Some of the designs are variations on themes I’ve seen a lot of lately, like pirate ships and fleur-de-lis, but there are also totally unique shirts with images such as giant vintage sewing scissors or this one: a squirrel hoarding acorns!
Another local Etsy find is New Orleans resident Monique Leon. 
She creates jewelry and metalwork, sometimes using found objects. Most of her work, however, is created entirely from scratch.
There is plenty of gorgeous metal jewelry here, of course, as well as cufflinks, bookmarks and moneyclips. I think Monique’s bold black coral on steel cable necklace is especially eye-catching.
I love all of the unexpected discoveries that Etsy always manages to bring each time I log on. Just this morning I noticed that my fellow New Orleans Craft Mafia member Unique Products is now on Etsy too! It really is a small world sometimes…
I’ve had a recent fashion dilemma, trying to decide what to wear to the zombie-themed holiday party my boyfriend and I are hosting tomorrow night (believe it or not, this is actually the second annual zombie holiday party…it was a big hit last year). Do I go as a Mrs. Claus zombie? Wacky Christmas sweater zombie?
If only I had thought of it earlier, I could have just hopped on over to Sick on Sin and ordered a zombie t-shirt to wear, topped it off with a Santa hat, and been done with it. There are actually a few different zombie themed t-shirts here, but I’m thinking I would have gone with the long sleeved version of the I Love Zombies tee.
Sick on Sin has tons of really fun tshirt designs, ranging for horror to vegan to cute little animal themes. They’ve got all different kinds of tshirt styles for men, women, kids, and even pets. 
Plus there are fun accessories like pocket mirrors, buttons and magnets featuring their designs. And undies! Did I mention undies? I could have even had zombie underwear for the party! Alas…
Now that this crazy party of ours has turned into an annual event, I guess now I know to plan ahead for next year.
I just found out about B-Native, an online boutique dedicated to unique products that bring the spirit of New Orleans alive. Everything is handpicked for quality and made here in New Orleans or by displaced New Orleanians.
I think it’s still pretty new, but it looks like they’re always adding new products and artists. There’s already a pretty great selection though….everything from Times Picayune columnist Chris Rose’s book to really beautiful NOLA-inspired paper products to the locally ubiquitious t-shirt brand Dirty Coast.
Speaking of Dirty Coast, I’ve actually been meaning to mention them for awhile now. They’ve been set up at Festivus for the past two weeks, but if you live in New Orleans, you’ve probably seen their shirts all over during the past year. (I believe even celebs such as Brad Pitt and Jimmy Fallon have been spotted in Dirty Coast apparel.)
The guys who run Dirty Coast, Patrick and Blake, are really great. Some of the shirts are their own designs, but they also feature designs by other local artists, 
including my friend (the amazingly talented artist) Vance Kelly. He actually designed one of my favorite Dirty Coast shirts, the Venice-inspired tee seen here.
There are way too many awesome designs here to choose from. Fortunately though, with prices ranging between $12 and $25, you can easily pick a few up for yourself and plus some to give to friends.
Ties are the classic holiday guy-gift, right? But what if your dad, boyfriend or brother isn’t exactly a traditional guy? This year try getting him the kind of tie you won’t find at any department store.
Cyberoptix produces hand-silkscreened ties, printed on high quality 100% silk charmeuse or poly-blend ties.
Original designs range from vintage military inspired themes to the strange yet wonderful (check out the SquidBrain tie!). There is also a selection of tie designs that feature handstitched detailing.
Designer Bethany Shorb creates so much 
more than just unique neckwear. This extremely talented artist has also performed around the country as a musician, plus she does costume design for feature films, theatrical performances and bands, including designing wardrobes for Skinny Puppy’s 2004 world tour. Check out her IMDB profile to get a glimpse of her costume work.
I know more than a few guys who would love these ties. Spruce up your favorite man’s wardrobe this holiday season with Cyberoptix and get him a tie he’ll actually want to wear.
Ichabod’s, a great company from New Orleans, just launched their new website, featuring TONS of original t-shirts for guys, girls, and kids, as well as hoodies and messenger bags.
I first mentioned Ichabod’s in my Labor Day edition of Etsy Finds, although Ichabod’s has since closed their Etsy shop to focus on their own website.
All of the t-shirts are individually dyed and printed right here in New Orleans, using only American made, super soft vintage style shirts. The cotton messenger bags resemble vintage army bags and have plenty of room to tote all of your gear. My co-worker has an Ichabod’s bag and she loves it.
There are so many great designs that it’s almost impossible to pick a favorite. Although I have to say, the I want to be a dinosaur kid’s t-shirt is pretty amazing.
Ichabod’s is a great company not only because of their huge range of fun designs but also because they believe strongly in giving something back. Ichabod’s donates 10% of all proceeds to charity, and they even let you pick which one you’d like to support when you order, so you can feel good and do good when you shop at Ichabod’s.
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