Thursday, January 14, 2010

Etsy For One Year, Day 1

January 14th marks a day I will begin to buy as many of my needs for one year from Etsy.

My goal for this experiment is to prove that handmade/eco friendly can be more than a unique nick-knack boutique full of art and strange gifts. In order to do this, I am embarking on a fun, yet arduous task of buying as much as I need from Etsy for one year. Do to the unique philosophy of Etsy, I will be able to buy handmade, vintage, and craft supply items.

Every penny I spend for the next year will be documented here. Etsy obviously can not supply me with all of my needs for a whole year. There are some items that will NEED to be outsourced. These items will include things such as gas and food. I will document every purchase I make including these items. When I outsource, every effort will be made to get it used, recycled, or in some form eco friendly in order to maintain the philosophy of this project.

This experiment will prove that American consumerism can be brought back from our current convenient wasteful way of life, and still be fun. Over the past 2 generations, Americans have become accustom to quickly replacing, old used and broken items. Even I have fallen trap to doing this many times. Often in order to hush my whining children over a lost or broken toy I quickly tell them, "we can just buy another one". However, each time I am teaching my kids to fall prey to the same convenient lifestyle that is slowly tearing our country, land, and economy apart. How are my children supposed to grow up and take finances seriously, when they are taught to just "buy another one."? How are they supposed to care for and tend to the things they already own? This has stemmed from an ever growing global market and the ability to purchase ever cheaper stuff. Although a global market has many great advantages, it has come with many dark often unseen pitfalls. The advantage of Etsy, is the fact that you are buying something that comes with sentimental value from the beginning. The buyer will be more opt to care and tend to the item. Everything is also made by the artist. Therefore there is no middle man. As a buyer you have more opportunity to know where your product is coming from and make a more educated purchase. This means that what you will not feel a need to replace it as often, and it will require less shipping, and packaging.

We are all young enough to be a part of this consumerism, and we have all been trained and actively take part in it our whole lives. I will also be doing this in a large metropolitan city that will bombard and encourage me to buy stuff everyday. Therefor, I am sure you can imagine how hard this will be.

I am hoping that a side effect of this adventure is, I will save money, cherish and care for the things I buy, help the planet, put money in the hands of the maker, and help fund the USPS.

12 comments:

  1. Such a good idea, I look forward to following your consumer adventure. Like you, I feel very strongly about how our young people are learning about finance.

    In the UK now youngsters have government funded "student loans" to finance their way through university. The result is that when they leave uni and begin adult life they are already many many thousands of pounds in debt. I fear this means they will never develop a habit of waiting and saving for things they want, but automatically buy on credit. It's a cycle of evil in my eyes, and I see no way out.

    You may have guessed - all my three kids are saddled with big student loans to pay back, even though they all had part-time jobs to help pay their way, and despite us helping them as much as we could.

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  2. WOW! This is quite a venture! I wish you the best of luck and look forward to seeing what you purchase on etsy :) So many great things...great place to buy from!

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  3. I love this idea! I can't wait to see what you find!

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  4. Great idea! I will follow your blog to see how it all turns out.

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  5. I am excited to see where this goes, and promise to be a close reader. Best of Luck, AND enjoy it! I just know you are going to get the cutest things!!!!

    :)

    Chrissy

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  6. What a great idea! I'm following you now and will be back to read your updates!

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  7. Wow, Jen, what a very adventurous undertaking this will be. I'll be following you to see how it all goes. Good for you, and I'm wishing you all the success!!

    If there is anything you need from any of my shops, I would be happy to give you a 10% discount, any time this year to support your endeavor!

    http://zaftigdelights.etsy.com
    http://knitzyblonde.etsy.com
    http://lepetitemerchantile.etsy.com

    Hugs to you!

    Sandie

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  8. wow, Jen, you rock! I always knew that, but this really proves it. What a fabulous, edgy, forward-facing idea! I am so impressed. I will be very interested to see how this goes...

    and we miss you on ETTEAM, by the way.
    pamela

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  9. Sandie, thank you so much! That just proves the special TLC the handmade movement shares!

    Thanks everyone for following! I've never been a good writer. I was also diagnosed as a teenager with a learning disorder in basic writing skills. So, I apologize now for making you guys suffer through my shortfalls.

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  10. this is fantastic! I am sure you will accumulate some amazing items! I try to buy on etsy as well, so far, I am loving everything! Good luck with your endeavor, I am sure it will be quite entertaining to follow you! My best, Bridgette

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  11. Wow, this is really an impressive undertaking. Thank you for supporting artisans and small business owners. I've been an Etsy member for five months now, and some days I can't believe the amazing stuff I find in the shops. There's some amazing creativity out there, and it's so nice to know that what you are buying was made by a real person who cares about the product.
    I know my items aren't the most practical, but I invite you to visit my shop too: hppt://thewickedstitchery.etsy.com
    I accept custom suggestions!
    Good luck to you! I look forward to reading about your adventures.

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