Etsy--Uh Oh!

I'm addicted to Etsy. I'll come right out and admit it up front. There are things on Etsy that I never even dreamed I needed before I saw a picture of them just waiting for me to buy them. Once I know they exist, I hear them calling out to me, "You will never see anything like this again. You'll regret not buying this." And they are so right.

Then there are the items that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole but I can't help but sit and stare at them for a while in horrified fascination. I can't help but ask myself if it is really possible that anyone would actually purchase THAT?

Here are just a few items I found last time I was online that are just too cool (or too bizarre) for mere words:


This item is oh so beautiful. Not that I would have any place to actually wear it if I did own it. *Sigh*

http://www.etsy.com/listing/44322846/soft-blue-teardrop-cameo-denim-victorian

I can't imagine myself actually wearing this in public but it's still really neat all the same.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53504435/floating-ring-pancakes-with-syrup

And these as well.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53440345/veggies-pizza-earrings?ref=sr_gallery_18&%3Bga_search_query=miniature+jewelry&%3Bga_search_type=handmade&%3Bga_page=10&%3Border=&%3Bincludes%5B0%5D=tags&%3Bincludes%5B1%5D=title


What practical purpose would these life-size felted animals ever serve anyone? None that I can see. So why do I want one so bad?

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SteviT


So adorable and teeny tiny. Must RESIST!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/LoveableTreasures


Okay, this one actually disturbs me a little bit. So why do I feel impelled to keep going back again and again to look at it? It's just too weird for words.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53510230/pea-pod-play-set-three-peas-in-a-pod?ref=sr_gallery_40&%3Bga_search_query=miniature+doll&%3Bga_search_type=handmade&%3Bga_page=11&%3Border=&%3Bincludes%5B0%5D=tags&%3Bincludes%5B1%5D=title


I don't even know what these are, but they are so darn cute!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53515964/digital-pdf-crochet-pattern-8th-mcc?ref=sr_gallery_28&%3Bga_search_query=doll&%3Bga_search_type=handmade&%3Bga_page=16&%3Border=&%3Bincludes%5B0%5D=tags&%3Bincludes%5B1%5D=title


Someone took a lot of time to make this. Someone will probably spend their hard earned money to buy it--but it won't be ME! Way weird.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53433286/zoe-ooak-pink-girl-80s-anime-zebra-plush?ref=sr_gallery_26&%3Bga_search_query=miniature+sculpture&%3Bga_search_type=handmade&%3Bga_page=9&%3Border=&%3Bincludes%5B0%5D=tags&%3Bincludes%5B1%5D=title

If you discover any great finds on your next visit to Etsy--please share them in comments.

Papo and Schleich Figures

Last weekend my nephew got into my toy closet and pulled out a bunch of my Papo and Schleich figures. He put them all into this giant battle together. It took him a great deal of time and he came and got me afterward so he could show me what he had done. I looked down at this huge battle going on between all these tiny plastic figures and thought to myself—how did I get so many of all these? I’ve got, knights, dragons, griffins, skeletons, monsters, pirates, cowboys, Indians, unicorns, fairies, and so many more, I couldn’t possibly write them all here in this post.

I actually do remember how it all started. There were two librarians at work who often had these really cool plastic figures that they would use in their book displays. What ever they needed, Papo or Schleich had a figure to go along with their idea. Their book displays were always the most popular, gathering little fingerprints until the glass doors on the display case were so clouded nobody could see inside anymore. When I asked one of these ladies where they bought the figures she told me about this amazing local toy store that carried them.

Fast forward now to the weekend one of my nephews came to stay with me for three days. I quickly saw that I wasn’t set up for entertaining six year olds for that amount of time. I didn’t have any toys for him to play with in my house. So that first day, I packed him up in the car and we headed down to this fabulous toy store I’d heard so much about. When my librarian friend said they had a lot of these plastic figures, she wasn’t lying. There were literally hundreds of choices to choose from. I bought a castle and told my nephew he could choose five knights and a dragon to go with it. They kept him occupied all weekend. Word quickly spread to the rest of my nieces and nephews and before long they were all begging to come play with my new toys. I got more knights, but quickly hit a snag when my nieces demanded princesses to go with the knights. Then there had to be pirates to fight the knights and monsters fight the pirates—well you get the picture.

Years have passed and my collection has grown, a few figures at a time, into a regular monster of a collection. I have never made a better purchase in my life. I use those figures for everything! They are fabulous for displays at the library. I can also put them in my purse and keep kids entertained when on the road or on camping trips. (Making rock forts and using the figures in them, will keep bored kids going for hours.) It doesn’t matter what age a kid is—even the teenagers in our family can’t help but paw through the collection from time to time and admire their favorite characters.

If you are interested in seeing some of the figures available for purchase these days, all you have to do is put in an online search with the words “Papo Figures” or Schleich figures” and you’ll get a ton of companies who sell the brands. But I must warn you that it is impossible to buy just one.