Making Art out of Nature
I have been creating using natural elements for years now. My hobbies for exotic plants and reptiles have provided me with an abundant source of materials and inspiration. Being the spendthrift that I am, I couldn't stand to throw away a perfectly good snake skin! Everything I appreciate in nature, I find a way to preserve, share, or create with. I'm also an avid outdoors adventurer, I spend much of my spring, summer, and fall outdoors, seeking inspiration and materials to keep me busy through the cold Michigan winter (which is when I do most of my crafting). Never do I kill or harm an animal for its parts. Almost Everything I use either is a renewable naturally shed source that animals no longer need (like my snake skins) or salvaged from already-dead animals. Plants I use are not harvested from wild populations, but cultivated (or in some cases, tolerated) in my own gardens. I grow a wide variety of carnivorous plants in my bog outdoors. They go dormant every winter, and I trim their leaves in preparation of covering them up for their winter sleep. This does not harm them, as the leaves would have died back anyways.
Many of the materials I use tell a story. I will frequently include stories or pictures with my descriptions about the snake whose skin you are buying, or the inspiration behind a particular piece.
My reptile hobby has been with me for over 24 years now, and has expanded to include some rescuing and rehabilitation, when budget (and space) permits. As a result, many of the animals in my care are castoffs, rescues, or unwanted individuals. This Etsy shop helps pay for some of the veterinary care received by some of the more desperate rehabilitation cases I have taken in. I do not operate or work for a shelter - I do this work by myself, in my own home, with the help of some pretty fantastic and talented reptile veterinarians.
