There’s something new for animal lovers on Etsy!  Founded in February 2008, Cruelty Free Etsy is a spankin’ new Team for those who make cruelty free products!  Cruelty free means no animal testing was used to create or produce the material, and that the item itself is free of animal products or byproducts, including honey, silk, wool, gelatin, beeswax, lanolin, leather, milk, etc.

Members are not required to be vegan or vegetarian themselves, nor do all items in their shops have to be vegan.  Founder Jennifer of JAKRandomArt explains, “We wanted to create an inclusive group to complement some of the other great vegan/vegetarian groups on Etsy. There are many artists creating cruelty-free items and we wanted to create a group for them that would also help those searching for cruelty-free products.”

There’s Vegan Etsy for vegans who offer only 100% vegan products on Etsy.  There’s EtsyVeg for anyone who’s vegan or vegetarian with an Etsy shop.  And, there’s EtsyForAnimals for shops to donate part of store profits to animal-friendly charities.  Cruelty Free Etsy, while it shares many members with the other animal-friendly groups, is its own entity; members can tag any 100% cruelty free item with CFE (for “Cruelty Free Etsy”) for ease in shopping and creating team treasuries.

[Woolie Handknit Scarf by Cricketscreations]

Co-moderator Celeste of Cricketscreations chimes in, “Hardly anyone is a born vegan: becoming more conscious of lifestyle is a continuum and a process.  We want Etsians to be rewarded for the items they create that are free of animal products, without having to adhere to the sometimes daunting amount of restrictions that go along with being a full on vegan.”

CricketsCreations features nearly 100 humane, originally designed scarves in her online boutique, all handcrafted in the heart of Canyon Country, USA near the Grand Canyon.

[Peace Dove Necklace by mvegan5]

Member mvegan5 said her shop is animal-friendly, both in using only animal-free materials, and in giving 10% of profits to a different animal charity each month.  She creates art and jewelry inspired by "my love of animals and nature, and use vintage/recycled materials whenever I can."

[Paper Crane Recycled Vinyl Cuff by JaKrandomArt]

JaKrandomArt creates unique, cruelty free, eco-friendly, handmade jewelry. Made from recycled vinyl records and found materials, each handmade piece of jewelry is a one-of-a-kind, wearable work of art. 

Cruelty Free Etsy welcomes new members! For information please visit the Cruelty Free Etsy Team page or read interviews of members at CrueltyFreeEtsy.blogspot.com.

Resources:
Cruelty Free Etsy on IndiePublic
Cruelty Free Etsy Yahoo Group
Crueltyfreeetsy.blogspot.com
EtsyVeg Team