Misanthropic swears and bunnies, oh my!

As some of you well know already, we gals at HMF HQ are geeks--we dork out, get inspired by, and fall in love with all types of things. Sometimes these things are real live people, sometimes they are things made by real live people; sometimes, we get lucky and it's both.

Jessica Pierce, the genius behind Spider Camp, is the latter. She had us at "Buy this rabbit with your moneys" (this very name made us absolutely nuts with happiness). Shown below, a green fleece bunny with wonky eyes and "fuck off" written on his chest.

Those of us that get sick of niceties and 'polite society' can relate to this bunny. Sometimes we just wanna tell people to F*Off. Now we don't have to. We can flash this crazed bunny with pride. Practiced misanthropes and newbies are well covered--there are a few bunnies such as this one for days when you just wanna tell someone what you really think.

We also like the sections in her shop--for instance, the bunnies with diseases. Now, diseases are usually no laughing matter in the human or animal world, but in the world of plushies, they are HILARIOUS. Check out "Plague".

Now that's a conversation starter if ever there was one. You can give it to your favorite angst ridden teenager for a rare and sincere smile. You can show it to your blind date and showcase your brazen sense of humor (and scare away weak sauce or boring losers), or leave it in your house for new lovers to see. You can even nail it to the wall in your cubicle as a warning to your least favorite co-workers to question your sanity or at least fear for their lives. Also available: "Herpes".

There are oh-so-many bunnies available where these came from. Some celebrate Ham and the love of meat in general (she even makes "Pocket Bacon" for bacon-aficionados) , the love of pies and sweets ("Pie for President"), swears, and pop culture references ("WTF" and "OMG").

And finally, the bunny named "Geek" which is our cue to end this post, as it was clearly made with dorks like us in mind!

If you love quirky irreverence, words and cute dolls, you must visit Spider Camp and get acquainted with the hilarious Jessica Pierce.

You're so decadent, darling: Shahasp Valentine and her queenly jewels

Those of us that have an affinity to rustic/nature inspired beauty in jewelry, or the voluptuous sensuality of bygone eras have finally found a one stop shop for earthy and heavenly elegance! Shahasp Valentine, an artisan specializing in PMC (precious metal clay) has a line of jewelry fit for a queen ('Modern Artifacts' or 'Precieux'), or the rugged individualist in us all ('Organic Series').

We love the variety of her design--many items are shown with variations, such as different stones, sizes, and chains, which makes the item as individual as the person wearing it. For a visual example, let's look at "Icicle" below, which is from the 'Precieux' or 'Modern Artifacts' side of her art:

Shown with a gold chain, and without stones surrounding the center stone, the second picture has a subdued regal air, while the first has a cool, understated, yet richly divine splendor. These are just TWO of the variations available in this one necklace...and they are all worth a peeky.

Her Organic Series jewelry has a more free-flowing design, very natural and unstructured. We felt an immediate affinity toward 'Knife Edge' and like the dark beauty of 'Lily'.

And finally, our personal favorites of her collection: Rococo,Nouveau Diamond Necklace, and Opera.

Sure conversation starters with excellent design, and a perfectly captured and balanced expression of romantic sentiment of bygone eras.

Check out Shahasp Valentine's site and get acquainted with this heavily talented jewelry artist!

Sophia Mohamed Al-Maria's Little Shop of London Horrors

There we were, minding our own business, trying to find the next post for your (and our) entertainment, when we quite accidentally discovered Sophia Mohamed Al-Maria's shop on Etsy. Apparently, werewolves live in London, and their observer, Ms Al-Maria, is tracking them to humorous effect. We like her tongue in cheek series of caricatures which toy with the villainous perception of Arabs, Immigrants and the 'Other' in London; a little subversive attitude has been our personal motto since 9th grade gym class: 'in your eye'.

Here's one we adore called "Dream Street" which is based on a friend of Ms Al-Maria's. We love it for so many reasons--the weaponry (one of us ALWAYS uses the 'grenade' while playing Drake's Fortune), the hairstyle and 'side eye' look, but most of all because of the use of the word "Frenemy" in the description! Granted, she said "not a frenemie" but, hey, we love it anyway--we'd love to see an image of an actual frenemy, someday. We just love that word.

Our new boyfriend, BLACKFRIAR'S BRIDGE, was spotted lurking about talking into his cell phone ear piece, a la James Bond, in a possibly North African dialectic (let's face it, languages we don't understand are HOT), and was cloaked in mystery; and, we imagine, a little ridiculousness, which is always rather endearing. This caricature warmed our icy hearts like no other.

And finally, SHOREDITCH, the hipster diva resplendent in Top Shop, with a lot of attitude to go with her flair. Dig her hoops and charm bracelet--we suspect she didn't get them on Etsy, but she very well could have.

Each adult werewolf comes delicately packaged in red tissue with a red EXPLOSION of GLITTER stars and an explanation signed and dated on gold paper. We totally want one. Check out her shop at SophiaAlMaria to show some love.

Look good, have fun: Laughtoomuch

With a strong sense of personal style and an innate ability to accent the fabrics used, Laughtoomuch is the brainchild of seamstress Dung--"Bessie" to her friends--a self taught sewing diva, who comes from a family of extremely talented seamstress/crafters. Originally she worked primarily on children's clothes, and the intricate, detailed work was perfect for her eye for detail and exacting standards; however, we think she's well suited to the adult world of fashion, especially since we want to wear her work! (We're greedy.)

Without further ado, our first clutch, the innovative My Heart Pleats for Only You:

What we love about this piece are the colors used. That vivacious red--the material looks like wallpaper; so chic--melts against the chocolaty brown material. The real surprise, however, is the incredible closure, which features amazing pleating detail in white--details like that are what makes for amazing personal style!

Be prepared to hide your goodies if you take Minty Neapolitan out with you--your friends (or we) will try to steal it!

Swirling teal accents deep velvety chocolate, with hidden pink and white linen interior-- and chocolate brown colored flap. This one is gorgeous up until the smallest detail; do we want to eat it, or wear it? It's hard to say!

And finally, the regal and versatile Crackled Gold Clutch tote, which is completely reversible!

As shown, it has an elegant wallpaper-like material with a queenly feel; the metallic gold looks stunning accented with that subtle, austere green. The handle is so simple, yet so smashing; one of the best we've seen in a long time. And, since it's fully reversible, the interior (or exterior, depending on your mood) is a crackled gold and green which is perfect for when you're feeling lusciously divaesque and want to make a big splash (with grace of course. We're classy gals, us).

Be sure to check out Laughtoomuch's Etsy shop and get acquainted with her effortlessly chic designs. You may get hooked!

Pop Iconography in the shadows

Troy Gua, shadow box maestro, has created some startling works of art in bold black and white, perfect for gift giving, conversation starting, or decorating like a pro.

We present the Lindsay Lohan:

What, you ask, will we do with a Lindsay Lohan shadow box? My friend, the possibilities are endless! LiLo would make a fabulous gift for the girls at gofugyourself, your favorite culture vulture, the guy that simply thinks she's hot, or the snarky friend that would find such a gift to be humorous (us). Lindsay seems to speak volumes; a sign of great pop art.

Dog lovers everywhere will be pleased to find amazing art that showcases your favorite furry friend. Whether Fido is a poodle, chihuahua, boston terrier, pug, beagle, shih tzu, you will find a beautiful representation with dramatic appeal. Sorta kitsch, totally modern, and fashionista-friendly.

And finally, your roomate, a rock god worshipper, will be satisfied by shadow boxes featuring Morrissey, Kurt Cobain, David Bowie, Elvis, David Gahan and Beck, to name a few available. These are a great way to display your favorite musicians in an adult friendly, stylish way; to showcase not only your impeccable taste in music, but your genius for home decor that many people covet, but few possess.

Decorate your life with one of a kind art that speaks to you...check out Troy Gua!

Etsy sellers: get taggy. Increase sales and visibility.

Hey all you Etsy sellers out there. We have a favor to ask of you:

Beef up your tags!

We found the sauciest, most delectable cocktail hat, and we can't find IT or the seller again. We noticed when we were browsing that this seller had 5 skimpy little tags and thought that was odd. Odder still, the tags seemed irrelevant in the extreme.

Let's say we were looking for a cocktail hat with a pink flower and black feathers. Your tags would help us find your item if they said this:

accessories hair

hat fascinator pink

black feathers

flower rose

barette pin

your store name

cocktail dress up

etc etc.

Let's say you're selling a grey hoodie:

clothing hoodie

hood grey gray

sweater cotton

womans womens

blah blah blah

Describe your item, how will it be used, and what it contains (it's features). Bear in mind possible spelling differences and mistakes. The best tags we've seen on Etsy belong to seller Letitiah. She covers most of the bases so her stuff is easy to find. We like easy to find. We get depressed when we can't find your stuff when we dopily forget to book mark it.

Good tags are one way to increase your visibility and make your buyers lives easier. Even if you don't piggy back your tags (multiple in one line), at least attempt to fill ALL of the available slots with relevant, descriptive, tags.