Going Beyond Etsy

Yes, it's getting down to the wire on ordering Christmas gifts online, but I just stumbled across a couple of great sites where artists are marketing their wares directly to buyers. I found the sites through Artsy Shark, and this handy listing of more than a hundred places where artists are selling their work worldwide.

The Christmas Stocking Tradition

When I was three years old and my brother one, we lived in Germany where they now how to do Christmas. My mother had special Christmas stockings made for us out of red and white felt with our names and designs embroidered and appliqued on. Mine had an angel. I still have that stocking and every year, i put it out. I love the tradition of stockings, and one of the things I often give my Christmas-loving friends is a gift wrapped in a stocking. You can find gorgeous ones all over the place and in all price ranges.

Here's a whole set of stockings I found on Etsy. They're not cheap--the whole set is $190, but these are not disposable items that get tossed after one use, but something that could become a cherished Christmas tradition, brought out every year as mine is.I also love that they're hand-made. While I embrace the present in many ways, I also value the past when everything was not mass-produced and one-size-fits all. My grandmothers, aunts and mothers all sewed and kitted and crocheted, and I have the afghans and crocheted mufflers to prove it. Not everyone was as lucky and for them, there's Etsy! Find these stockings here.

For more traditional designs of red, green, and white wollen stockings, try Garnet Hill, where they are currently having a sale.  Right now these stockings are half-price, or around $45.  Monogramming is asvailable and if you order by December 16 (Sunday), they guarantee delivery by Christamas.  they also have plaid designs and printed canvas options.

the Unicef catalogue offers a choice of two fabulous stockings created from Neaplese wool. The cuffs feature either an appliqued poinsettia or holly leaves and berries. I bought these stockings for friends last year and they were lovely. They only cost $20 each. And while you're on the website, you might want to check out their full range of holiday ornaments and such. It's getting a little late to order Christmas cards, but their cards are absolutely lovely and each box sold means more money in the Unicef coffers to help children around the world. Talk about a gift that keeps on giving. You can find the stockings here.

And finally, for those whose favorite holiday is actually Halloween, there's a whole new segment of Christmas ornaments and decorations created just for you!  Type in "gothic Christmas" on any Etsy. Because really, what says Christmas better than bats and spiders?
craft/art site and take your pick. This lime green stocking decorated with bats and spiders ($30) caught my eye on

Another great place to buy original art...Society6

Photo by "Steelback"

I was searching for images to help kick-start a story I'm writing and I ran across Society6.  I am, as you know, all about the Etsy and I'm also fond of Red Bubble and Zazzle too, but Society6 was new to me. I spent a very happy hour (or so) browsing their selection of photographs and art and by the end of that time I had a dozen (well,, really, a few dozen) items on my wish list. If you're still shopping for Christmas, and you know someone who appreciates art, this is a place to look. The only thing I don't like is that the item listings don't include information on the art beyond the basics. The works are priced to sell.

Friday Foto...

Sometimes when I want to relax, I cruise Etsy to see what's new in their photo department. I almost always see something I want, even though my walls are already cluttered with art and photos and even framed ads I pulled out from vintage magazines. I saw this photo by someone who calls him/herself The Jaunty Goose. You can see it and Jaunty Goose's other work here.

More Frenchy Christmas-ness

I love this card--the Eiffel Tower draped in a garland with a Joyeux Noel greeting. You can find it on Etsy. a package of ten will run you $17.50 plus postage, which is not cheap, but purchasing the cards will make you a patron of the arts!

Kattomic Energy's Holiday Gift Guide--Part Une

Joyeux Noel everyone. In the first part of the2012 Kattomic Energy Gift Guide, the focus is on Francophiles.

Books:  French cooking began, at least for most American cooks, with Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Snag the 50th anniversary edition for $24 at your favorite bookstore. Find it at Amazon here. David Lebovitz's The Sweet Life in Paris (subtitled "Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious and Perplexing City") is a great introduction to the food culture of the French capital. (There is a right and a wrong way to work your way around a cheese plate.) You can buy it new for $23 or used for as little as $5. (I often use the "buy used" option from Amazon's sellers and most of the books I've purchased arrive looking brand new.)

All of the Barefoot Contessa's cookbooks are wonderful and her Barefoot in Paris is one of those cookbooks that's as fun to look at as it is to read. It's just a beautiful book and the recipe for pear clafoutie is to die for. Available for under $20 in both print and ebook.

If you're frustrated that you can't order anything from Amazon France unless you're actually in France, check out French Books Online, a source for French language books in many genres as well as audiobooks, some of them bilingual. Authors in their policiers (crime thriller) section include Pierre Simenon (fils de Georges), Jean Amilia, Brigitte Auber, and Tonino Benacquista.

Chocolat is everybody's favorite French movie starring Johnny Depp. Buy the novel by Joanne Harris it's based on. 

Movies: The French invented the term "film noir" so as you might expect, they also perfected the art. The 1943 film Le Corbeau (the Raven) is arguably the best example of the genre. There's a fabulous Criterion Collection edition available, but it's pricey ($70) and according to Amazon, they only have four left in stock.

Paris Je T'Aime is a cinematic love letter to the city, and stocking stuffer priced at under $8.

It's Banned Book Week--Buy Some Bling

Best banned book quote I've read lately comes courtesy of @Beatitudes on Twitter:  "Books cannot be killed by fire," Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Over on Etsy, an artisan using the handle Pi-Hole has created this banned book bracelet. It's $40 and you can get it here.

On the same site, at Cobweb Corner, you can also get a cool "I read banned books" bracelet for $32.

Carolyn Forsman, who specializes in "conversation piece" jewelry created two different "banned books" bracelets for the American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom. Her bracelets cost $24 or two for $40. Be sure to check out her other goodies. Her bug bracelet is just the thing to wear on Halloween; or to pick up for your favorite Goth for Christmas.  (Yes, it's coming.)