Read the full Etsy blog post.

Sculptor and painter Jason Tennant hunts through the woods of upstate New York for the materials and inspiration of his wild yet graceful pieces.

Read the full Etsy blog post. Orien MacDonald, a.k.a. Old School Tools, grew up in Alaska and Southern New Mexico, where his parents were part of the Back-to-the-Land movement. His dad taught workshops in building handmade houses out of adobe clay and had a vast woodshop where Orien whittled his first woodworking project at the age of five. It didn't take Orien long to recognize his passion for handicrafts. Never interested in formal schooling, Orien took it upon himself to learn everything he could about woodworking, luthiery, blacksmithing and leather crafting. It took him ten years to hone his craft, but he persisted in raising the level of workmanship with each new challenge.

Read the full Etsy blog post.Canadian artist Elizaveta makes giant, playful, handmade necklaces using an odd assortment of items. From My Little Pony to hair rollers to Bubblicious bubble gum, her outrageous designs take people by surprise. Combining influences of haute couture designers like Alexander McQueen and Comme Des Garcons and rapper Flava Flav, Elizaveta makes one of a kind jewelry like no other.Etsian Tara Young aka weirdwolf met with Elizaveta at her home in Toronto, Canada to talk about fashion couture, My Little Pony and giant, playful jewelry. Don't forget to stop by Etsy's blog, the Storque for more great articles and videos!

Read the full Etsy blog post.With out any models to guide her, this self taught fashion designer went from selling her handmade dresses in her front yard to owning three stores across the US and a successful clothing label. As part of Etsy's Handmade Portrait series, Wendy Mullin of Built by Wendy took time out to talk with us about how she's built her business from scratch. Her sense of style and process are rooted in making garments by hand, and although she's not an Etsy seller, Wendy's beginnings were similar to many handmade clothing makers starting their own businesses.

Read the full Etsy blog post.
Master weaver Babajan of the Hyland Park weaving shop Pets With Fez wove his first rug at the age of six, a lovely tapestry sampler with images of frogs and turtles. His father, a shepard is Kurdistan fought in WWI as a teenager and eventually immigrated to San Francisco. When he started a family he realized that there were no programs in this country for his sons to learn the cultural traditions of his homeland. The family came together and resurrected and old after school program from the villages. Aunts and uncles, whomever knew a technique, would give lessons in traditional weaving, music, and languages. Baba and his brothers all took weaving lessons but it was clear that this was only a calling for Baba.

Read the full Etsy blog post.

Tina Spangler, a.k.a LuxtonLake, uprooted herself from her New York City apartment and lifestyle for the woods of upstate New York. She found her home in a forgotten community in Narrowsburg, NY called Luxton Lake. Once a thriving vacation destination for African-American New Yorkers the area was mostly abandoned in the 1970's when the damn was removed and the lake was drained. Tina found a dilapidated 1950's cabin in foreclosure and with very little funds, decided to take the leap and fix it up.