Etsy Roundup: All You Need is Love

I know it's only January 21st, and this Valentine's Day-themed post is probably a bit premature.  However.  When I was in middle school and high school, sometimes I liked to act all badass and cynical - even though I wasn't; I wrote in a furry diary with a feathered pen, for God's sake!  And so when Valentine's Day rolled around, I would go around saying to people, "This holiday is just a ploy to sell cards; it's a greeting card holiday," even though my head was all like "OMG hearts and candy and a boy I like gave me a Hershey's kiss!!!"  I'm not sure why I felt the need to put up this anti-Valentine's Day front, but I imagine it was for the same reason I sometimes painted my nails with black Sharpie and listened to screamo music even though I actually hated it.  So think of it like this:  I am now making up for those days by going Valentine- and love-crazy.  Does that make sense?  It's like I have all this built-up energy from holding back girly squeals and NOT wearing pink eyeshadow during that day like I wrote in my diary that I wanted to.  (Seriously).  So this blog will probably get the brunt of it until February 14th.  For my very first V-Day post, here are some items I found on Etsy that would be perfect for the holiday.  Have I told you yet how much I love Etsy?!

These cufflinks are (to use a dated and out-of-trend term) epic.  My husband and I are pretty extreme vintage video game nerds, and Duck Hunt is one of our favorites.  This dog always pissed me off, with that high-pitched giggle.  I'd always try to shoot him instead of the ducks...it never worked.  (That made me sound a little awful and cruel to animals.  I promise I'm not :) )  Jared doesn't wear cufflinks, and I'm pretty sure if he did they'd be fancy - the guy wears a silver tie clip, I mean...for fun! - but these are soooo amazing.  This Etsy seller has a ton of em, featuring Kirby, Sonic, and Mario!  From here for $25.

This handmade necklace allows for a mother to have her children's fingerprints around her neck.  A little strange?  Maybe, but it's kind of a nice thought.  This particular necklace is made to hold two children's fingerprints and names.  My sister-in-law has a little girl, and one more (unsure of the sex) on the way.  Audrey is four and wants the new baby to be a boy, and she insists that his name will be Plop.  Just Plop.  So...yeah.  Not sure how "Plop" will look carved into this necklace.  Probably pretty awesome.  From here for $95.

The thing I love most about these earrings is that ONE HUNDRED PERCENT of the proceeds go to animal rescue, which I really appreciate.  It's kind of rare to find something handmade where ALL of the proceeds are donated to a good cause.  The quote found on the site accompanying the earrings is:  "Saving one animal won't change the world, but surely it will change the world for that one animal."  Could not be any more true.  One of my former coworkers has a tattoo that looks a lot like these earrings:  a paw print enclosed inside a pink heart.  Love.  From here for $12.

I'm not much of a DIY-er.  I would like to be all crafty and creative, but most of the time, what I make ends up looking like crap.  However, this cute, rustic wreath doesn't look all that complicated if you had the materials.  Or you can just order a fully-made wreath and sit on the couch watching Netflix instead of getting your hands all sticky with glue and smelling like burlap.  (Burlap has a smell - have you noticed?)  From here for $35.

Here's what I learned after Jared and I moved in together/got married:  Husbands fart.  Husbands pick their nose in front of you.  Husbands sniff things inappropriately, and husbands scratch their asses in a super-disgusting way where you can hear their fingernails digging into their skin from a room away.  They just do.  So this card lets a husband know that he might be gross...but you still love him.  :)  From here for $4.

(This list contains a lot of jewelry.  I'm sorry if you're not a fan of accessorizing.)  This cute pendant says, "I still believe in 398.2", which, for those of you who are normal and aren't library nerds, is the Dewey Decimal section for fairy tales.  A very library-chic accessory :)  From here for $24.

I am a big fan of e. e. cummings, specifically this poem.  We even had these exact lines printed into our wedding programs!  I realize it's a huge cliche to like this poem so much, but I just think it's so beautiful.  I love this slouchy tank, which comes in many different color choices.  This seller has many other gorgeous book-inspired clothing.  From here for $24.

These are actual, 14K gold, vintage signet rings from the 1950s!  I have wanted one of these for a very long time; when you find them in antique shops, they're usually very expensive.  I'm not sure why I'm so obsessed with these...they remind me of the books my mom keeps that are about girls who wear sweaters with their cheerleading uniforms and who use the word "keen."  Love them.  From here for $48.

Wow, there is also a lot of incredibly geeky stuff on this list.  This, in particular, is a Zelda-themed locket.  Yes, the Legend of Zelda.  Which I play.  And am awesome at.  Jared would love it if I wore this necklace around...and for this price, I just might have to!  From here for $3.10 - no joke.

This card would also be great to give my husband on Valentine's Day...Breaking Bad is long gone, but he's still not over it.  And Jesse is his favorite character, bitch.  From here for $3.85.

This burlap pillow reminds me of the movie 500 Days of Summer, when Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom meets Summer and, inspired, he creates a greeting card that reads, "I love us."  And anything that reminds me of JGL is just wonderful with me!  From here for $25.

And now here's one last thing from Amazon, not Etsy:

Jared and I are far from being photographers, but we do love taking pictures.  This pink Holga toy camera has been on my wishlist for years now, and what better holiday to receive a pink camera than Valentine's Day?!  From here for $35.22.

xoxochelsea