Awesome and Unusual Handmade Christmas Stockings From Etsy Designers Make The Mantel.

Not your usual Christmas Stockings, these three etsy stores sell handmade and unusual designs for the artisan holiday home. Hand-tooled leather with koi, flowers, bees and snowflakes from Moxie and Oliver, Burlap coffee sacks turned into elf stockings available with or without customization from Habitation Boheme and wild and modern patterns and designs for people and pets from Urban Creative. 

Most can be still be shipped in time for Christmas. Prices and designs vary. Read on for more info, pics and links to buy.

Hand-Tooled leather stockings from Moxie and Oliver:






shop for them here

Habitation Boheme offers unique, handmade one-of-a-kind repurposed burlap Christmas stockings made from coffee sacks:






shop for them here

Kendra Lock of Urban Creative has colorful modern graphic Christmas stockings for people and pets:




shop for them here

Army Men Jewelry from Knight&Hammer Benefits the Military Order of the Purple Heart.

What better jewelry to post about on Memorial Day than a collection of 'Army Men' inspired rings and necklaces whose purchase benefits those who gave so commendably to their country?



Knight&Hammer is dedicated to jewelry for the greater good designed with even greater creativity. Three lavishly gilded action figure rings (Sniper, Shooter and Recon) and two necklaces (Recon and Make Love, Not War) are part of their Jewelry with a Conscience line, where a portion of the proceeds from the sale of these items benefit the Military Order of the Purple Heart



The Products

SNIPER Ring, cast in bronze with their signature shank, gilded in either 18k Rose Gold-leaf , 18k Yellow Gold-leaf or Platinum-leaf :




Buy it here

SHOOTER Ring, cast in bronze with their signature shank, gilded in either 18k Rose Gold-leaf, 18k Yellow Gold-leaf or Platinum-leaf:





Buy it here

RECON ring, cast in bronze with their signature shank and gilded in 18k Yellow Gold-leaf, 18k Rose Gold-leaf or Platinum-leaf with a 3” army man.





Buy it here

RECON necklace in 18k Yellow gold-leaf gild, 18k Rose Gold-leaf Gild or Platinum-leaf gild with a 3” army man on 18” black matte enameled steel chain necklace:




Buy it here

MAKE LOVE, NOT WAR necklace, 18K yellow gold gild, 3 army men each approximately 3” with black matte enameled steel chain totaling 18” necklace with 3 dangling Swarovski heart crystals:



Buy it here

This special collection of Army Men jewelry by Knight&Hammer can not be found on their website. However, you can purchase these items from their etsy store (they are not available from their website store).

About KNIGHT&HAMMER:


Joseph Knight is the creative force and designer of all Knight&Hammer Collections. Starting in 2003, under his discerning eye, he has placed limited selections of Knight&Hammer Collections in luxury boutique retailers in New York, Philadelphia, Castle Rock, Boston, and Seattle.

Knight&Hammer is dedicated to evolving the best ideas, materials, and techniques from their global jewelry heritage into innovative, fashion forward designs. The Knight&Hammer lifestyle encourages adornment with consideration to the broad scope of beauty throughout the world. They will continually develop their unique brand position and recognition while always adhering to the highest quality standards in design and precious materials.

Knight&Hammer developed the motto: Jewelry with a ConscienceTM. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of each piece from this collection is donated to charity.

They have created specific pieces of Jewelry with a ConscienceTM benefiting the following organizations:
www.TuesdaysChildren.org

www.GirlsLEAP.org
www.SeattlesChildren.org
www.HelpingElephants.org

www.GildasClub.org 

www.Fokal-USA.org

www.RaphaelsLifeHouse.org

www.SavingSpecies.org

You are able to acquire other Knight&Hammer jewelry on-line here.

Happy Memorial Day!


Be sure to see these hip Military-inspired products I've found over the years.

Princess Leia Hair Headphone Covers, Headbands, Hats and Wigs.

"Yes, these are the Princess Leia items you've been looking for."

I love that Star Wars continues to inspire unique items and designs 35 years since its initial release. One of the most fun items recently brought to my attention by my friend Brad are these Galactic Princess Headphone Covers styled with faux hair and available in brunette, (blonde and ginger made to order), crafted by Jacquie Coe (aka Jacquie Longlegs).




Each purchase comes with two 6-inch in diameter buns with mesh backing, ready to glue permanently or attach temporarily to your own headphones (instructions come in package).
$24, buy them here


above: Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia Organa in Star Wars, 1977

Other fun items that replicate the cinnamon bun hairdo sported by Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia in the 1977 release of Star wars and available for purchase are headbands, hats, patterns for hats and wigs.

Princess Leia Synthetic Hair Headband:


Made with synthetic hair and plastic, you can purchase the Rubies' headband (initially priced at $81 and now on sale for $11.69) at the link below
Star Wars-Princess Leia Headband


The Deluxe Princess Leia Wig is made of synthetic hair and has a lined interior for comfort.

$16.99, buy it here


There are many talented individuals (and some not so talented) selling knit and crocheted hats emulating the legendary hairdo on etsy. Below are just a few:

Princess Leia Knit Headband by Lily & Keating.


buy it here

Crocheted Princess Leia Bun Hat in super soft non-itchy acrylic, made to order in any size from newborn to adult.

Made by Darcy Thomas, buy/order it here

Children's Princess Leia Headpiece/Hat
For the wee ones there's this cozy fleece version of the Princess Leia hairdo by Maycouture:

The Princess Leia Fleece Headpiece shown above comes in children's sizes S,M,L and XL.
Buy it here

Princess Leia Hat Pattern
For those do-it-yourselfers, you can buy a pattern by Ansley Bleu to knit the princess Leia hat shown below:

Buy it here

Shop Princess Leia Costumes, hats and more here